3 Signs You Might Be An Entrepreneur

Updated on 22 January 2015

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3 signs you might be an entrepreneur
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Ever thought of yourself as an entrepreneur but don’t know if you are cut out for it?

In his LinkedIn article “7 Signs you Might be An Entrepreneur” Ryan Holmes, CEO of Hootsuite, a global social media management company, shares the unexpected traits that successful entrepreneurs have in common.

We picked the most surprising traits that are often considered to be negative, but which according to Holmes, make for good entrepreneurs:

1. Restless, control freak and masochist

Restlessness is one of the most obvious traits of an entrepreneur. Holmes says entrepreneurs are seldom satisfied by any achievement.

“When most people reach a goal they think, “I did it! Time to sit back and enjoy it for a while.” An entrepreneur thinks, “Great, what’s next?” he says.

Holmes says many entrepreneurs also suffer from bouts of being control freaks, but that it’s natural.

“Throughout my career I’ve had to make a conscious effort to strike a balance between controlling my business and letting the talented people around me take the reins,” he says.

And finally, that entrepreneurs are often on some level gratified by pain.

“You’ve got to love a little pain and a lot of risk. You’ll struggle for money. You’ll work unimaginably long hours. You’ll be lonely, because while everyone else is out partying or watching movies, you’re toiling away … often alone.”

“Few of the entrepreneurs I know are loud or assertive,
especially not in big groups or meetings”

2.  Not part of the crowd

Entrepreneurs’ ambition can often come across as crazy to friends and family – “especially before the vision has been made a reality”, Holmes says. He adds that these are the kind of people that entrepreneurs shouldn’t pay much attention to.

Not only are entrepreneurs outsiders, Holmes says many are considered to be the black sheep or are dropouts.

“Lots of notable entrepreneurs have even ended up ditching the traditional education system altogether. While it’s not always easy to be the outsider, it’s exactly this quality— seeing things through a different lens from the rest of the world—that can help move society forward and drive innovation,” he says.

3. Introverted personality

Holmes quotes research from the Academy of Management which suggests that introverts in the workplace foster a better team environment than their extroverted peers. Introverts, he says, are also known to be good listeners, a greatly overlooked but essential asset for good leadership.

“Few of the entrepreneurs I know are loud or assertive, especially not in big groups or meetings,” he says.

Here’s an infographic with 7 characteristics of an entrepreneur:

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