By Zoë Chapman - finalist for Female start-up 2021 and great british entrepreneur 2023.
The 21st century traits of an entrepreneur are ever-evolving due to the strained financial climate we find ourselves in especially since the pandemic.
However, with the unpredictable global crisis in which people were formed to be based from home indefinitely, mixed with the loss of so many jobs, everyday people began to turn their passions into small businesses which led to an influx of a new generation of entrepreneurs.
Unlike their processors, who would typically have access to the funds and networks that would facilitate risky career choices, the government began to recognise that these hard-working talented individuals could bring significant financial growth alongside a wave of innovation that would have previously been an unachievable path for so many dreamers.
This led to an influx in small business support through grants, loans and learning programmes such as incubators and start-up support services within local boroughs or previously established networks such as Enterprise Nation.
Despite the rapid development of support for those wishing to pursue an entrepreneurial path, a Founder would need to have the attributes to withstand such a challenging environment.
Long hours, little or no pay, navigating ever-changing social media platforms and finding new ways to reach customers.
Therefore, given my own journey having started Kiddiwhizz in the midst of the pandemic and manufactured my invention, the Whizzer with no funding support, in my opinion the follow attributes are critical to becoming successful.
Feel free to add your thoughts or additions in the comments at the end of the blog post.
Essential Character Traits
Resilience: You will inevitably have the vast majority of those around you doubting your ability to actually turn your idea/passion into a profitable business. But if you have defined your ‘why’ (a term I refer to a lot including in this Start-up blog) then you will always have an element in your resilience toolbox to remind you why you are doing this.
I have wanted to quit countless times and so have all other Founders I know, yet it’s the resilience in us that take the challenges and turns them into fuel to continue.
Innovative Mindset: With so many other businesses and entrepreneurs choosing to take this path, it’s no surprise that competition is high. You will need to define your USPs to highlight what makes you stand-out and be different to all the rest. This involves thinking outside of the box when it comes to marketing what you are offering your customer.
Resourcefulness: Funding is not something we are all blessed with, yet depending on the business you’ve embarked on you will no doubt need financial support. Therefore being resourceful will be critical. An example would be skill swapping; do you know someone who you could trade skills with in order to support one another? In doing so, you could avoid a cost that you weren’t able to outsource to another paid professional. Do you have contacts from previous careers that you could reach out to for free advice or support?
Enterprise Nation Blog
Check out the full article and other traits that experts and success stories added to the blog for Enterprise Nation.
