Today the world is changing at lightning speed. What worked in business a couple of short years ago is now redundant. Customers’ expectations and needs are shifting on a daily basis and that means, to succeed, you need a set of core skills that will carry you through. Here are my top five skills all entrepreneurs need in 2018.
1. The determination and hunger to succeed
Innovation, great ideas and the ability to spot gaps in the market are vital if you want your startup to be successful. But in my view, nothing is more important than total commitment and utter determination. Many businesses fail because the founders don’t have the drive and hunger to succeed.
Very few high-growth companies were successful from the word go. In fact, there is anecdotal evidence to suggest that having an easy ride is a bad thing when it comes to building a business. For example, having overcome personal challenges, immigrants often have the toughness and hunger necessary to build very successful businesses from scratch. So, toughen up and accept that this isn’t going to be easy.
There are countless stories of entrepreneurs with the hunger to succeed in competing against the odds. For example, Sukhpal Singh Ahluwalia arrived in the UK as a refugee at the age 14, before going on to set up Europe’s largest car parts business; while Sir Jim Ratcliffe grew up on a council estate in Failsworth, and is now the wealthiest person in Britain.
2. Good face-to-face communication skills
Not everyone is an extrovert, a natural salesperson or inspiring people manager. In an age where a large proportion of our communication is done electronically in writing, many people are finding it harder and harder to communicate face to face, with clients, staff, investors, and prospects. But if you’re going to build a great business, you will need to hone your communication skills. When you’re a startup founder, it really does pay to really learn how to communicate. As Richard Branson says, “communication is the most important skill a leader can possess.”
Focus first on the soft communication skills like controlling your body language, active listening, and formal presentation skills. Then when you’ve got into the swing of it, turn your attention to building up your business conversation skills with the emphasis on keeping things concise, clear and precise. Everyone can learn these skills, you just need practice.
3. An eye for processes and detail
The big vision is one thing but the most successful entrepreneurs are process geeks too. So if you’re determined to succeed, you need to learn how to love the detail. The detail is important because it’s where the efficiencies are hiding and where the bottlenecks are created; not just in terms of financial control but in every aspect of your new business.
If you’re not convinced then think about this: some of the most successful entrepreneurs in the world today are process geeks, take Mark Zuckerberg or Bill Gates for example. So even if you’re not, these highly talented people want to work in a company that takes the detail seriously. If you don’t learn to love the processes right now, you could find it hard to recruit and retain people that do in the future. In fact, a recent study by Nintex found that third of U.S. employees at large companies are currently looking for new jobs, with 86% citing their company’s broken processes as the reason.
4. Ruthless time-management skills
There are not enough hours in the day. And in 2018 and beyond, there are going be even less of them. Technology has opened up whole worlds of new opportunity, but it has also increased the pace of business exponentially. Nine to five is now 24/7, for every single entrepreneur. It’s no longer the exception – it’s all of us.
If you can’t plan your time effectively, you have no chance of building a successful business. You must be ruthless about what can be achieved, and what just can’t. Don’t kid yourself that you can do something when you know you can’t, and don’t overpromise in your eagerness to impress. Learn to prioritise, how to focus on the important things, and most of all, learn to become an expert at saying “no”.
5. The ability to pivot
If you don’t know what product-market fit is, now is the time to learn because as a startup entrepreneur it’s going to be a big part of your life. Product-market fit is matching your product or service with what customers actually want to buy, at a price they want to pay, and that at the same time gives you a profit. No one ever got product-market first right first time. Even if you think they did, or they tell you they did.
Every successful service or product has been through numerous iterations before it hit the right spot. Starbucks started out selling espresso machines and Twitter was an app to search for podcasts. That means you need to learn how to pivot away from your original idea or method of delivery towards a new and different one. This sounds easy. But it’s not. It takes courage to admit that you got it wrong and it’s time to change direction. But every business person, especially the late great Steve Jobs, knew the value of pivoting.
All these skills can be learned by anyone. You’re not born with them. If you can set your mind to gaining these skills you’re putting yourself ahead of your competition right from the start. And you need every advantage if you’re going to succeed long term.
