Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs

Characteristics of Successful Entrepreneurs
Although many behaviors have been ascribed to entrepreneurs, several are
common to those who are successful. Those in new ventures and those who are
already part of an entrepreneurial firm share these qualities, which are shown
in Figure 1.1 and described in the following section.
Passion for the Business The number one characteristic shared by successful
entrepreneurs is a passion for their business, whether it is in the
context of a new firm or an existing business. This passion typically stems
from the entrepreneur’s belief that the business will positively influence people’s
lives. This is the case with PatientsLikeMe, the subject of Case 1.2, which
is a company that allows people with life-changing diseases to converse with
one another, share their experiences, and learn techniques from one another
that help them better cope with their diseases. Making a difference in people’s
lives is also the primary motivator behind many social enterprises, which are
often started by people who set aside promising careers to pursue a social
goal. This was the case with John Wood, who founded Room to Read, and is
the author of the book Leaving Microsoft to Change the World. Wood’s deep
passion to help children in the developing world caused him to start cashing
in small amounts of Microsoft stock to buy books and build schools, even
before he left the company. In excerpts from a 2007 interview published by
Forbes magazine, Wood said:
During my travels, I met so many children in the poorest parts of the world, lacking
access to school, books, and libraries, that I began cashing in small amounts of
stocks to help them. Two hundred
Wood eventually left Microsoft to work on Room to Read full-time. As of May 2011,
Room to Read had built over 1,440 schools and distributed over 9.4 million books
in developing parts of the world.
Passion is particularly important for both for-profit and not-for-profit
entrepreneurial organizations because, although rewarding, the process of
starting a firm or building a social enterprise is demanding. There are five
primary reasons passion is important, as reflected in Table 1.2. Each of these
reasons reflects a personal attribute that passion engenders. Removing just
one of these qualities would make it much more difficult to launch and sustain
a successful entrepreneurial organization.