More than a half-million new businesses are launched in the United States every month. But the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that at least 20% of them will fail within a year.
Many reasons are sighted. Lack of adequate start-up capital, running out of operating cash early-on and failure to write a comprehensive business plan are among the top reasons why new operations stumble.
But another key factor sighted is the lack of key skills of the entrepreneurs themselves. A top Business Development Agency offers four areas it has identified as the most important attributes of start-up business owners. Let’s take a look at what they found.
Time Management
New business owners are often broadsided by the amount of time they spend in those first critical months of ramping up a new enterprise. Demand on time comes from multiple areas. Two of the most time-taxing sources are customers with questions and employees who need a lot of guidance as they start new jobs in a new company.
It means that highly effective time management skills are critical to achieving success. It also keeps personal levels of stress low to avoid psychological burnout. The latter is a major contributor to business failure.
Leadership Skills
A study completed at Northwestern University showed that almost no one is “a born leader.” Rather, leadership skills are learned. Leadership is not just about being nice to employees and making life easier for everyone in the organization. It’s a balance of making firm demands and expecting results from subordinates while also treating them with dignity and respect. Sometimes a leader must be tough, but they should always be fair.
Adaptability
The business world today has never been more dynamic thanks to rapidly changing technologies and consumer demands that shift and change often, sometimes from month to month. Entrepreneurs who can adapt to those changes are those that survive and thrive. Also, business leaders who become too slavishly attached to an original business plan may not be able to make the necessary course corrections.
Learning to Delegate
This is often one of the hardest skills to pick up and apply properly. A leader must choose excellent people to work for them and then give them important responsibilities to carry out. Then they must learn to trust them while also giving them the space they need to show initiative and thrive.
Certainly, many entrepreneurs “learn by doing,” and they become excellent business operators by learning from their mistakes. But the more of these four skills they can bring to the game from the start, the greater their chance of success.
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