It’s a competitive world with difficult challenges that go beyond economics and personal hardships. On top of that, there is a tremendous amount of pressure to be successful and it can be crushing for people at times. Still, we all want to win in life and we can do it more easily than a lot of people think. The 7 keys to becoming a successful entrepreneur and person that I share in this article will help you build a solid foundation for success no matter what happens.

There are risks and liabilities that must be dealt with in every situation, and guess what: It gets harder the more successful you get. Like they say, the bigger you are the harder you fall.

You need to be honest with yourself about what you truly want as an entrepreneur and as a person. Is it money, power and recognition or is it having a nice house or a new car? Maybe, it is because you want more fulfillment out of life than a 9 to 5 job can offer? Perhaps, you’d like to raise a family with true financial freedom.

All of the great things that we want out of life are attainable. You just have to take it step by step. Obtain the building blocks to construct whatever you want. Then, lay down your infrastructure, block by block. Doing things the right way will inevitably result in success over time.

Let us get right to it. Here are the top 7 keys to becoming a successful entrepreneur (and person):

1) Structure

The only constant in this world is change. That is why structure is so important. Build solid finances, plans and infrastructures. When it comes to business, register your businesses with the state. Get a separate business bank account for each different business that you run. Develop an invoicing system. Develop a structure and maintain a system that controls how you get paid. Anybody can start accepting credit cards, getting legal documents in place, building social channels, organizing a CRM, and integrating useful software. In addition, you need to completely understand your sales pipeline or “funnel’, if you will. The more you improve this funnel, the better. To truly thrive in business you must be in a state of growth, not a state of survival. No house on a shaky foundation has a solid future. With a solid structure, you can build more success than you ever imagined.

2) Passion

Find your passion. Your Passion is your energy, the fuel to keep you going. Without this you literally cannot go forward. If you are not passionate about whatever it is that you do you will not have the option to keep moving forward. If you are passionate, even if you are making mistakes and learning, the underlying passion will give you the energy you need to keep going. This can be hard and you might find yourself on a long journey to find out what your true passion is, the passion that truly sticks with you. Passion will keep you innovating and give you the energy you need to follow through on your goals. All great things are built with passion over time.

3) Preparation

You can’t plan on anything in life and expect with 100% certainty that it will happen, but you can always prepare for what might be next. When they see successful people doing great things, a lot of people mistake it for luck. Oddly enough, the more prepared you are, the ‘luckier’ people will say that you are. Some people believe that lucky things just happen to lucky people. They rarely ever do. The truth is that good things happen to people who are right and ready for opportunities that will help them grow. With enough practice and preparation, we don’t need luck.

Think of preparation as an ongoing process that you get better at. You can try to prepare a delicious steak instantly, but the truth is it needs seasoning, heat and time to cook. In the same way, preparation in business and life is essential. Eventually you’ll get it right, but for now you need to research, practice and prepare relentlessly for your moment of success. 

4) Relationships

No man is an island. To be at your best, you need support. But, how do you get support and why would someone want to support you? The answer is actually more simple than you might think. You get support by asking and they support you because they care. To get the kind of support you need to sustain success in the business world, you also need to be willing to create value in return. Remember even your energy and your presence is value added. Your time and willingness to listen to people and find out what they really need is extremely powerful. Always be generous with people when you can. Try not to make too many assumptions. Be a light to people wherever you are. Cherish and cultivate relationships that make you a better business person and human being.

5) Becoming a Successful Entrepreneur (and Person) Relies on Your Leadership Skills

The fifth key I want to give you for successful entrepreneurship is leadership. This is your ability to lead people and lead yourself. If you make the decision to become a business owner, then YOU are captaining the ship. You must be able to make decisions and live with the decisions you make. You must have vision and execute on what you believe in. They say you can stand for something or fall for anything, and that is a true statement when it comes to your vision and your leadership skills.

Your leadership needs your unresolved commitment or you will always be restricted as you build, instead of building freely. Learn who you are and the strength and weaknesses that you have. Do the same for the people on your team. Discover your own true leadership style. The best way to find your leadership style is to truly understand how you view the world and what your instincts and intuitions are. Then, go with what feels right and steer clear of what feels wrong to you.

The truth about the competitive world we live in: Most people look at you as a piece on their chess board if you do not consider yourself a player in the game. Developing your own leadership style, is important because it will allow you to mutually aid and receive aid from other people as you go. Leadership skills help us open the doors of success in more ways than you can imagine here at Fresh Bros.

6) Purpose

When something has a purpose, it’s meaningful; it’s important. Similarly, a life of purpose or a business with purpose feels significant and meaningful. Feeling like your life or your business is meaningless can result in depression, despair and financial hardship. Living a purpose-driven life and running a purpose-driven business isn’t a specific science, but it is possible as long as you are willing to put a little time and consideration into the process.

Purpose doesn’t just come to you. You need to make it. To be able to find purpose, you’ll need to put thought and effort into what you care about and the choices that you make.

When you have purpose, it helps establish long-term plans, inspires creativity, creates loyalty and trust, and finally, it helps you and your businesses to stand the test of time.

7) Integrity

Integrity is the true mark of great leadership. There shouldn’t be any exceptions about honesty and ethics in business or life. Integrity is a condition of mind and isn’t situational. Leaders with integrity aren’t afraid to face facts. This is known as the reality principle, or “viewing the world as it actually is, not how you want it to be. As a matter of fact, the real mark of leadership is how honest you can be even when people are treating you unfairly.

Integrity means telling the truth, even if the truth is awful. Much better to be honest. Otherwise, you’re most likely just lying to yourself too. Leaders have to be brave, but they also have to be open to the notion that they make mistakes.

There is a difference between being blind and confident. Let us face it, in the current world of rapid change, there’s always a risk that you’re partly wrong or even entirely wrong.

Perhaps you aren’t incorrect, but staying open to that chance will make you a much more successful entrepreneur and person since it is going to open your mind to new ideas and new ways of thinking.

Thank You For Reading: “The Top 7 Keys to Becoming a Successful Entrepreneur (and Person)”.

“The Top 7 Keys to Becoming a Successful Entrepreneur (and Person)” is a primer and it is not intended to substitute for a long term business development approach.

Contact us for a free evaluation of your business or business plan. Call 1 (833) 377-4276 or email markets@freshbros.com. Want to read more articles like “The Top 5 Keys to Becoming a Successful Entrepreneur (and Person)”? Let us know by leaving a comment below.