When we think of the word entrepreneur, we often conclude that this can be attributed to someone who runs their own business. While this is of course very true, the idea of entrepreneurship is more about establishing and cultivating a mindset that sets you up for success down the road.

We’ve all heard about entrepreneurs that blaze a trail in their respective sectors, such as Steve Jobs, Richard Branson, and Bill Gates among many others, but despite their varying personalities, beliefs and working style, there are some consistent traits that make these people truly extraordinary entrepreneurs.

In this article, we’ll delve into the seven core principles, values and practices that mark the most determined and successful entrepreneurs, and ultimately unpack what you can learn from them.

#1: Failure is the Ultimate Lesson

Almost all successful entrepreneurs fell at the first few hurdles.

The most successful entrepreneurs understand that they shouldn’t fear failure, and possess the ability to learn from their missteps. Sometimes you’ll miss out on big opportunities, lose clients, or even lose entire businesses on your path to success.

However, in order to be successful, it’s crucial that you understand that any “failure” along the road is only so if you allow it to define your journey - it should only be viewed as a temporary setback.

#2: Stay Curious

The most successful entrepreneurs never stay still; they use everyday as an opportunity to continue learning.

You’ll often hear entrepreneurs talking about seemingly unrelated things that they have learnt from to improve their business, whether that’s books, pets, musicians or athletes.

There’s always a lesson to be learned even in seemingly arbritrary places. And, crucially, successful people often take the time to go looking for these lessons, rather than waiting for them to drop in their lap.

#3: Learning When to Say No

As you continue along your entrepreneurial journey, you may find yourself swamped with new opportunities; from landing that huge client to doing an interview for a popular podcast.

It’s often said that you must grasp every opportunity that comes your way, but it’s important to truly understand what each of these opportunities is truly worth to you.

Yes, it’s great to land that huge new client, but if you and your team are stretched to breaking point trying to deliver for them, then you’re risking burnout and the potential of an unhappy team.

Learning when to say no is crucial when it comes to the overall success of your business, and your own health and wellbeing too - the latter of which is often not touched upon enough when it comes to business owners.

#4: Delegate with Care

Highly successful entrepreneurs like to work in the most effective and efficient way possible.

YouTube and social media is chock full of videos and posts talking about how many hours a day you need to grind to make a successful business. Of course, you do need to put in the hours, but working 18 hours a day is neither necessary nor healthy.

The right way forward is to select the right team members to delegate to and give them all the tools they need to get the job done in the right way to free you up to do other things.

Many successful entrepreneurs, when starting a business, have no choice but to do almost all of the work themselves - this is perfectly normal - but as your business grows you need to begin to release some of this burden on yourself.

Ineffective leaders are those who are unable to let go of responsibility and hold on to everything for themselves - this can often be the case at the beginning, but if you’ve got a team you can trust there should be no issues in handing over to them.

Crucially, ensure that your team understands what needs to be done, and that you’ve given them the tools they need to achieve what you expect of them.

#5: Learn How to Manage Your Talent

The difference between a top tier business and one that can’t achieve its potential is seldom exclusively down to the leader alone. Even the greatest leader will struggle to achieve much on their own. Conversely, as we’ve seen with brands like Apple and Nike, a strong leader with a fantastic team behind them can change the world.

The most successful business leaders understand the importance of building great teams, and will spend much of their time creating, managing and improving these teams, rather than focusing on the minutiae of the day to day.

#6: Focus on What Truly Matters

The very best entrepreneurs spend little to no time sweating the stuff that doesn’t improve the business.

Understanding what truly matters is a skill that will develop over time, and sometimes you’ll come across issues that you’d think may not matter but will often go a long way to improving morale and productivity.

For example, keeping the drinks fridge full or remembering work anniversaries may seem like a passing insignificance, but imagine what this does for your team!

Not only does this make them feel appreciated and needed, but it also means they’re far more likely to do their very best work for you and help you accomplish some of your biggest goals as an entrepreneur.

On the other hand, worrying about the colour of the walls shouldn’t concern you; this can be delegated to someone in your team who understands interior design and branding.

#7: Monitor Progress

This may seem like an obvious point, but so many up and coming entrepreneurs are so locked in with the here and now that they forget to assess where they’ve come from and where they’re going.

It’s very difficult to succeed unless you can measure yourself against specific criteria. After all, it’s easy to measure success with plenty of cash in the bank, but how can you get to that point if you don’t know what is and isn’t working for you?

It’s important to set out your targets for things like marketing, sales, revenue and profitability to understand what systems and processes are edging you closer towards these goals.

GUEST BLOGGER AUTHOR:

RICHARD LECOUNT