Let’s face it. Most businesses are not sexy from day 1, not even close. After the hype of creating your own logo, your first website, and getting the first reactions from friends and family, comes the real test: the people around you, those who don’t know you yet. Therefore, believe it or not, most business owners fail not because they have a bad business idea, or because they didn’t execute it well. They fail because they didn’t pay enough attention to these eight soft skills, that I have identified over the years.
Patience and resilience
A successful business owner understands the importance of patience and resilience. Building a business takes time and effort, and results may not be immediate. Patience is crucial during the often challenging initial phases, where progress might not be visible and there are no direct rewards for every action. Resilience is equally vital, as setbacks and unpredicted obstacles are inevitable. The ability to keep on going after failures and persist in the face of obstacles is the first and most important factor of long-term success.
Managing fears
Every business owner meets and overcomes many fears, but the most important and dominant ones are the fear of failure and the fear of success, which also conflict with each other. Each one of them represents about 20 sub-fears, and the key here is to manage them, not to eliminate them because they keep you aware and present in every situation. Fear of failure can hinder decision-making because you are worried about how failure would look like, while fear of success might lead to self-sabotage because you might be afraid of what would change after success.
Perfectionism
In the entrepreneurial world, perfectionism is always an obstacle, and that’s why the saying that “good enough is better than excellent” is so true when it comes to entrepreneurship. Starting a business requires quick decision-making, and waiting for perfection can lead to missed opportunities. The main reason why good enough is better than excellent is that while it takes time to create something good enough, it takes twice the time to make it perfect. In that timeframe, you might have lost an opportunity. Always remember that iterative improvements can be made over time, but taking action and adapting are key to the dynamic business environment.
Listening and asking questions
Knowing whom to ask for advice and what information to absorb is crucial, and it is on this list because I see many business owners ask for advice from people who can’t give them the right advice. It happens because they either don’t understand what really stands behind the question or their feedback is based on their own personal mindsets, which also reflect their fears. That's, by the way, is where every business coaching process begins. When you learn how to listen to the voices around you, you get a better understanding of market trends, customer needs, and team dynamics. Networking, for example, allows business owners to tap into valuable resources, gain insights, and build relationships that can propel the business forward.
Persistency
The ability to stay committed to long-term goals, even in the face of challenges, is key to overcoming obstacles and achieving success. Business ventures often involve ups and downs, and persistent effort is what distinguishes successful entrepreneurs from the rest. It is all about seeing the big picture, both from the bird’s eye view and from the ground level, and combining these two perspectives to a business vision.
Managing conflicts
As a business owner, you might meet two kinds of conflicts: internal and external. Internal conflicts, such as doubts and uncertainties and actions vs. beliefs, need to be addressed for effective decision-making, otherwise they will nurture the fear of success and fear of failure. External conflicts with team members, clients, or partners require tact and diplomacy, as they can cost you lots of money in reputation building, training employees, and missed opportunities. A successful business owner navigates conflicts with empathy, finding constructive resolutions that benefit all parties involved.
Time management
I am a huge fan of the saying “under promise and over deliver”, but to stand behind it, I also need to be a fan of effective time management, and so should you. Effective time management is critical in the fast-paced business world, and business owners must prioritize tasks, set realistic deadlines, and allocate resources efficiently. Time is a valuable asset, and a well-managed schedule ensures that energy and efforts are directed toward tasks that contribute most to the success of the business and your brand.
Learning capabilities
Nowadays, we have more information in the palm of our hand than all the historians, scientists, and philosophers previously had all together. The problem is that we have too much of it and most people can’t prioritize and choose who to learn from. In a rapidly evolving business landscape, staying updated on industry trends, technological advancements, and market dynamics is crucial, and a commitment to ongoing learning ensures adaptability and positions the business owner as a knowledgeable and forward-thinking leader. In order to make it happen I recommend that you do three things: Choose 2-3 people or resources to learn from, prioritize the content, and write key takeaways from everything you hear. If you can’t generate enough takeaways, consider replacing the source.
Key takeaway: Business skills are important, but they are easier to acquire than these eight soft skills, so to succeed you need to be proficient in both those aspects. While you can easily hire people who will help you with the business aspect of your skillset, the soft skillset is yours from home, and if you don’t have these, you are the only one who can help you acquire them.
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