Although you may believe that your entrepreneurial spirit runs through your veins and is evident, not all capitalists have the same qualities. Your business style will differ from those of your peers depending on which personality traits you have. Which type of entrepreneur are YOU? These are the most common types. We also discuss how to use your personality traits to your benefit.
Here are 8 types of entrepreneurial activity
- The Builder
- The Opportunist
- The Specialist
- The Innovator
- The Fact Finder
- The Follow Through
- Heavy Hitters
- The Wannaprenuer
>> The Developer
Joe Abraham, the author of EntrepreneurialDNA, says builders are motivated to create scalable enterprises in a short time frame. These business leaders launch multi-million-dollar companies in a matter of years. Their unique perspective is that they focus on infrastructure.
They are laser-focused on attracting top talent and increasing the company’s bottom line. There is no limit to how much money they can make. This type of focus can make it difficult for builders to build lasting relationships. This Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde’s disposition can lead to high employee turnover. Hyde disposition.
The Opportunist
The opportunist is a self-explanatory moniker. He loves all aspects of marketing and selling the business. They are like well-trained hunting dogs and will find money-making opportunities wherever they go. Opportunists gauge their success by how much money they make. They are always looking for the next big opportunity to get to the top. Their downfall is their impulsiveness. They may get caught up in the moment and not notice a problem in their business logic until too late. They can be the ones who make them successful.
>> The Specialist
Specialists are experts who know what their strengths are and don’t hesitate to use them. They are averse to taking chances and working within a carefully constructed set of rational rules. They analyze every business decision with precision and rely on tried-and-true networking methods to find new leads. While they too are influenced by their income, they can become complacent when they achieve their business goals. A specialist may need a decade to achieve what a builder may take several years. This is due to their methodical nature.
>> The Innovation
Many of today’s 30 under 30 leaders, including Mark Zuckerberg, fall within the category of innovators. Innovators are often just doing what they love and then start to see the business opportunities that arise around them. They are the happiest experimenting with their ideas and will often say that they don’t want to make a profit. They evaluate their success by the impact their product or service has upon the human race. Their enterprises might suffer because they avoid the “business” aspect of their businesses.
>> The Fact Finder
Employers use the Kolbe Index to evaluate a potential employee’s compatibility with their company. It is similar to the Myers-Briggs Personality Inventory. The Kolbe test shows that fact-finders can be compared to specialists when it comes to their methodical approach to making decisions. Before making a call, they meticulously review every aspect of the question. Fact-finders can uncover new questions, much like you can take a single thread and unravel an old sweater. They are unlikely to fail in their business ventures, but this also makes it difficult for them to succeed.
The Follow Through
If fact-finders are not abstract thinkers, the process of following up on business decisions is very linear. Each step of the business-building process follows a logical progression. These entrepreneurs have a set of clear commercial moves in place and value employees who respond to them. These leaders are positive reinforcement types who give praise for the job well done and continuous improvement.
The Heavy Hitters
Heavy hitters are home-run sluggers. They want to win big or they will go home. They don’t care much about incremental success, and their companies are not serialized. They aren’t interested in succession planning and big-picture planning. They’re more focused on what they have to do now. However, this type of thinking is often needed to help them set long-term goals.
The Wannaprenuer
These are the people who believe they have an entrepreneurial spirit. These people are those who are constantly seized by the next big idea but lack the vision or drive to make it a reality. These people want to be self-starters but lack the drive and willpower to make it happen. They could be one of the other types if they have the motivation.
There is no need to be limited by one type of entrepreneurial ability; most business leaders who are successful combine several types. Abraham says that Bill Gates is a Specialist-Builder. While it doesn’t hurt your chances of success in any way, knowing your strengths and weaknesses will help you build your business objectively.
Try to surround yourself with people that complement your strengths and minimize your weaknesses. To increase your chances of starting a successful business, team up with someone who is a good fact-finder or follower if you are a heavy hitter.