Entrepreneurial Spirit: Is It In You?

You've heard the promise and potential of running your own business, but there's one thing to confirm before taking the leap into self-employment: Do you have the drive to be a successful entrepreneur?

While many small businesses are born out of an individual's passion, nurturing that endeavor to its fullest takes an innate quality of never-ending motivation and insatiable desire to succeed. Entrepreneurs are a unique breed and not everyone is cut out to follow their path to success.

So, do you have the true entrepreneurial spirit in you? Let's find out.

What exactly is 'entrepreneurial spirit?'

It's the inner motivation that compels an enterprising mind to identify business opportunities with intention to attain profits

A word of French origin dating back possibly to the 16th century, entrepreneur was used to describe "one who undertakes (some task)," some contextual interpretations literally meaning "of being between jobs." Indeed, the essence of the entrepreneur, that being the entrepreneurial spirit that drives some individuals, is to actively seek out tasks and opportunities, often completing those only to set off to a next endeavor.

Entrepreneurial spirit can apply to any number of goals and aspirations but, in its globally accepted and understood definition today, it's the inner motivation—even restlessness—that compels an enterprising mind to identify business opportunities with intention to attain profits, monetary or material. By the definition previously provided, it knowingly and deliberately incurs and even invites risk in its actions. But unlike thrill seekers and daredevils who thrive on high-adrenaline and death-defying situations "because they're there," the entrepreneurial spirit focuses on identifying social needs unmet, opportunities unaddressed and resources under-utilized that could yield tangible returns on effort expended.

Make no mistake; entrepreneurs who take on risk for reward are just as brave (some would argue more so) than those who scale mountains or jump out of planes. It's the spirit that drives them to do it.

So what are the key characteristics?

Entrepreneurial spirit manifests itself in many individuals, though not all have applied it to business situations. Similarly, those who are in business do not all share true entrepreneurial spirit. To use a well-worn phrase, your results may vary.

True entrepreneurs find more fascination in listening to others than selfish satisfaction in talking about themselves

In the United States, the entrepreneurial spirit has been used rather loosely in recent years, largely driven by the e-commerce boom of the late 20th century that promised "everyone can become an entrepreneur"—it was probably an entrepreneur who said that. True entrepreneurial spirit, however, would be identified by these defining characteristics:

• Socially engaging: Entrepreneurs thrive on interaction with others. It's how they root out opportunities for helping others, be it for charity or profit. They have the ability to actively listen and incisively see needs around them, identifying potential to address problems or otherwise improve the human condition.

  They are naturally charismatic, conversing with ease, and provide real assurance that is consistent in its level of caring. The truest of entrepreneurs will find more fascination in listening to and learning about others than they would find selfish satisfaction in talking about themselves.

• Creative: Their creativity comes from their ability to listen and learn every day. They solve problems by insightfully gaining as much information as possible about the situation or setting that interests them, assembling that information in ways that leads to solutions that others might never consider.

  Their creativity might lead them to attempt things others would scoff at or to make proposals that some would ridicule. Their creativity generates truly unique solutions, usually not conceived or suggested before. This gives them advantage over others who might only work to repeat or retread what's already been done.

It's that same pull that compelled early Americans to travel westward to seek out new opportunities for themselves and their families

• Strong/Steady: Akin to the aspect of creativity, the entrepreneurial spirit incorporates a determination and assuredness that it isn't dissuaded by detractors. Entrepreneurial endeavors, as noted, can be fraught with high levels of risk (personal reputation, financial standing) yet it is the entrepreneurial spirit that drives individuals to check and double-check every detail in effort to mitigate as much risk as possible. Then, springing from this due diligence comes the bravery—yes, bravery—to make the leap that will set an idea aloft to fly high or spiral out of control.

  The stress of this sort of risk isn't for everyone and often separates the real entrepreneurs from the aspiring entrepreneurs; in the face of failure, the true entrepreneur learns from the experience and goes back for another try.

• Uncompromising: It's called "visionary," "impassioned" and "unyielding"—all words that describe the almost-fanatical drive that enables entrepreneurs to achieve their goals as they envisioned them. When counseled that what they've achieved is close enough to what they set out to do, the entrepreneur won't settle until it matches the original concept or goal; "close enough" simply isn't.

  Interestingly enough, the entrepreneurial spirit has been labeled as being destructive in that the entrepreneur, upon achieving a goal, may feel compelled to dismantle what he's done in search of the next milestone that surely lays ahead. Consider the remarkable creators, inventors and business owners who sell off what they've achieved, likely before their overriding drive causes them to deconstruct what they've created; they realize profits while freeing themselves to pursue their next goals. And that ongoing pursuit is what they'll remain uncompromising over, always.

If this all sounds deep, even metaphysical in some regards, that's because it probably is. The entrepreneurial spirit is that same pull that compelled early Americans to travel westward to seek out new opportunities for themselves and their families. They risked dangers, disease and even death, yet could not ignore the potential that was surely out there, ready to be taken and tamed.

This is the entrepreneurial spirit and, if you have it, it's likely what drives you to try harder, reach farther and simply smile when others tell you it can't be done. To someone possessed of the entrepreneurial spirit, them's fightin' words.