Is my personality suited to running my own business?

Although there is no unique type of individual who is successful in business, experience has shown that successful self-employed people share key characteristics

Success comes to those who see opportunities and take them. (entrepreneur.com)
  • Logical, organised and responsible (good at getting things done);
  • Confident;.
  • Able to communicate and get their point across;
  • Sociable, with the ability to take leadership;
  • Single-minded, but able to take advice;
  • Flexible and adaptable;
  • Quick to take opportunities (and ready to take risks);
  • Hard-working, committed and determined (‘get up and go’ type);
  • Thick-skinned (able to handle failure);
  • Individualistic (not afraid to stand out from the crowd); and
  • Creative and imaginative (always coming up with new ideas for the business).
“Some days you’re smiling and thinking you’re going to make this thing rock. Then the next day a pipe breaks and your costs look too high. You have to learn to keep your eyes on an ultimate goal. If you lose sight of that goal, you have to get out.” -Hamdi Ulukaya, founder and CEO of Chobani

This list is not exhaustive and much has been written about the personality traits required by an entrepreneur (yes, by starting your own business, no matter what it is, you can call yourself an entrepreneur!). For example, entrepreneur.com list 5 personality traits all entrepreneurs must have. These are:

  1. Passion: People who are passionate about the work they do do not baulk at the hard work that is involved in starting and running their own business.
  2. Motivation: The will to achieve a goal drives many people and inevitably plays a role in success.
  3. Optimism: Always looking ahead and being positive about what you are doing is another personality trait of many entrepreneurs.
  4. Creativity: Entrepreneurs tend to think outside the box. They do not think like everyone else which often leads to novel and successful ideas.
  5. Risk-takers: Starting your own business is a big risk. If you are not willing to take a risk, you need to rethink starting a business.

These lists should give you an idea of the challenges you face. You do not need to have all these characteristics, and you will develop and grow as a result of both your negative and positive experiences. If you intend to start up as a partnership, look for complementary characteristics in your partner. The best partnerships are ones where the partners have different abilities and strengths to contribute to the business.