How to Survive in the Entrepreneurial Community Age

What traits do successful entrepreneurs embody? 

How can we think and act like entrepreneurs do? 

Here are 7 areas to work on so you can take advantage of the next economic age instead of it taking advantage of you.

1) Be a voracious reader of great books and prolific writer. A great book to start is The Magic of Thinking Big by David Schwartz. Reading expanding our thinking and writing crystallizes it. The written and spoken word carries a lot of power.

2) Act like entrepreneurs do. Entrepreneurs have a clear vision, are fast learners, service fanatics, self-disciplined, courageous, and persistent. They know who to deal with failure. Entrepreneurs do the uncomfortable and become familiar with the unfamiliar. They have ambition and unwavering faith. Entrepreneurs are leaders; dealers of hope. They are nimble, flexible and adaptable. Entrepreneurs have a cause and they go where others dare not go taking many along their journey.

3) Make your cause your business. Many companies attempt to attach a cause to a business which is difficult to do. Clever entrepreneurs attach their business to their cause. This is the reason entrepreneurs have such zeal and zest for their business and their cause. Entrepreneurs create communities un-conforming of rascals.

4) Invest heavily in you and your team. Entrepreneurs duplicate themselves by using a duplicatable business system. They create the right culture for future leaders to emerge. They create the environment for teams to perform. They reward performance in an inverted pyramid, typical of most organization, putting the customers at the top and the front line workers to serve their customers.

5) Work broadly and deeply. Become a pro at your craft. Entrepreneurs spend the least amount of time in their offices. They travel extensively and are in the middle of the action. They work and relate to people at different levels of skills. They can relate and communicate to entry level and to experienced workers. Entrepreneurs break organizational politics themselves. They absolutely hate to get filtered information, watered down truth.

6) Have the right partners. Very successful entrepreneurs associate with great minds. They work relentlessly until they find the right partners they can fully trust. They surround themselves with results driven people with stellar character and masters of building relationships.

7) Be a master communicator. Having a mission, vision and purpose on office walls is not enough; they must be alive in the hearts and minds of people. Entrepreneurs are master communicators of their cause and create a culture where workers can thrive.

Great products and great commerce are very important but they no longer give you the edge, a loyal community of people does.

Be blessed and be a blessing to others!

Carlos Fontana, President of Phalanx

Co-author of the book Follow to Lead (The 7 Principles to Being a Great Follower)

Author of the book PRICELESS (Sixty-Six Simple Stories of Reflection, Love, and Legacy)