If you had to pick one trait that makes a small business owner successful, what would it be?
Remember just one!
Hard isn’t it?
I’ve written about the traits of Calmness, Creativity, Clear thinking, communication, Confidence and Change.
All very important traits but if I had to choose one it would be CHANGE.
If you got 15 people in a room and asked that question…I’d bet you’d get 15 different answers.
Well that was the question Timo Kiander owner of http://www.timokiander.com asked me and 14 other bloggers.
And guess what…there were 15 different answers.
As a small business owner I think it is a fundamental trait to be able to change your business approach / plan / technology / products / service, etc.
And I think too many small business owners fail due to not changing or not changing fast enough.
If they are going off track, they feel things will work out fine…without making any changes.
We all make decisions that are not moving our small business in the right direction. They take away from our business targets / goals.
But changing things to get your business back on track is crucial.
In the first diagram below imagine the blue line is where your business is heading.
And red line represents the decisions and actions you are taking to get you there.
Some decisions / actions take you off track and some small business owners will not change until the last minute. And sometimes the change is too late.
The small business owner who embraces change and makes numerous changes tend to go off track a lot more. Hence the diagram below. But as soon as they go off track, they make more changes to get them back on track again.
They have no fear of making the change.
That’s what successful small business owners do.
Check out Timo’s blog post, 15 bloggers reveal: What is the most important mindset that an online entrepreneur needs and why. Read my thoughts on the one trait that makes small business owners successful…along with numerous other bloggers.
Andrew is a website builder and helps small businesses with their on-line presence…so they can grow their customer list and increase sales. That’s it! That’s what we do each and every day.
People need to plan for the growth..not just think its going to grow by chance..
“Black Seo Guy “Signing Off”
I was referring to ‘change’ rather than ‘planning’.
Andrew
Persistence is an important trait for online success or others ventures. Many newbies bought an ebook and start a blog, few months later they don’t make the kind of money they expected, they quit.
David
I agree…persistence is key.
As I said…it’s hard to pick one trait!
Andrew
I can see how change would be vital enough to make your top choice. If a small business owner can’t change –make course corrections, be open to new ideas, be willing to adjust to the market rather than trying to force the market to adjust to them– then they won’t be going very far as a business.
Delena
Delena
Exactly!
Hence why my top trait.
Andrew
Change impleis some degree of risk and that’s something some business owners don’t take lightly, that’s why some are more reticent to change than others. Of course, a clear head and knowing the circumstances around help the “change-making” a lot.
Phil,
I agree…knowing what the risks could be will help. But I also find some people won;t change through arrogance. They think all will be alright in the end.
Andrew