The fifth, and most obvious attribute of an achiever is the Entrepreneur. While it may be obvious that an achiever has entrepreneurial characteristics, it’s also important to note that not all entrepreneurs are achievers. More on that later. 

Let’s start with the classic definition of an entrepreneur: a person who organizes and operates a business or businesses, taking on greater than normal financial risks in order to do so. There’s the key word, “Risk”. The entrepreneur likes taking calculated risks. I would say that the better a prospective entrepreneur calculates the risk, the more likely the success.

Here are Googles top examples: Andrew Carnegie, Henry Ford, Oprah Winfrey, Bill Gates and of course, Larry Page (Google’s founder). 

As we apply this concept here, in the context of the overall attributes of an Achiever, let’s look deeper—at the specific behaviors that make an entrepreneur so important.

An entrepreneur:

 -Looks for opportunities for success; actually, seeks them out.

 -Is curious.

 -Asks lots of questions.

 -Loves to learn. Always pursuing more knowledge.

 -Knows how to sacrifice to make a dream reality. 

 -Intrinsically motivated.

Of course, you can see these behaviors in the famous entrepreneurs mentioned above, but you can see it in other people too:

 -The elementary student who mows grass in the neighborhood to earn money.

 -The High School student that volunteers for an after-school program they believe in. 

 -The single parent who’s pursuing a degree online while working full time.

 -The retiree who’s pursuing a small business dream they’ve planned years for.

But why are we looking for these attributes in an achiever? Because these are the behaviors that often drive achievement. The curiosity to pursue learning. The drive to succeed. The meaningful “reason why” to take risk and “put yourself out there”. The entrepreneurial energy creates opportunities, seeks achievement, and pushes every day, normal people into the rare air of greatness. 

In fairness, there have been many so-called entrepreneurs who never succeeded. In fact, most people who start new businesses fail. This is why the entrepreneur attribute is just one of six that make up the achiever. The entrepreneur’s tendency to take risk has to be coupled with the survivor’s ability to fail well (and get back up). The entrepreneur’s focus on learning should be combined with the producer’s determination to “get things done today”. The entrepreneur’s passion for success has to be tempered by our final member of the team, The Integritor—who we’ll reveal in next weeks newsletter. For now, let’s just say without integrity, the entrepreneur might find a way to achieve results without doing things the right way. Integrity is the crucial, sometimes missing piece, of the successful entrepreneur’s toolbox. 

It’s easy to admire the entrepreneur. They win awards. They are featured on the cover of business magazines and websites. They are keynote speakers at conferences and are featured on podcasts. The best ones, though, aren’t just people who started a business. They are achievers: equal parts, Producer, Survivor, Team Builder, Creator, Integritor and yes, Entrepreneur.