Are you an entrepreneur or manager? Successful entrepreneurs aren’t always good managers. Typically, entrepreneurs are very impatient. This is because of their competitive nature and strong sense of urgency. Plus, the good ones have slight OCD. Impatience and obsessive compulsiveness aren’t good traits for managers – though it works well for entrepreneurial success.
Steve Jobs, genius entrepreneur or manager? – He wasn’t known as a good manager
He WAS, however, one of the best entrepreneurs of our time
I’m an entrepreneur. I know how to launch a business startup, build it into a viable business and then grow or scale the business accordingly. But I’m not a good manager. I’m very good at managing myself, but I’m impatient with others and I’m a total control freak. I’ll try not to mention my temper – Oops! 🙂
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Thank you! Now for the principles of management!
Entrepreneur or manager – two different things
Most successful entrepreneurs already know and understand the principles of management – the theory – the formulas needed to build a great team and then manage them. They either have an MBA or they know and understand most of what is taught in an MBA program. So most successful entrepreneurs do know HOW to manage.
For some clarity about your need for an MBA, check out my blog post:
Can You Really Launch a Business Startup Without An MBA?
Entrepreneurs struggle to balance people skills and their drive to succeed. They tend to be abrasive and may offend others unintentionally. While directing the implementation of their vision for their business startup, they overpower people. Entrepreneurs can’t do their work if they’re spending their days managing people and managing day-to-day operations.
The role of an entrepreneur
An entrepreneur is the board of directors combined with each and every stock-holder all wrapped into one person. And NEITHER of those groups MANAGE anybody. They call the shots, but they don’t implement them. So what are you? Are You a Small-Business Owner or an Entrepreneur? The Difference Is Important.
Please check out: Ten Things Entrepreneurs Don’t Do
Misconceptions
Obscurity is commonplace with entrepreneurs. Nobody truly understands them. And others just don’t understand the reasons for the hard work they actually do.
Which one is an actual job title, entrepreneur or manager?
“Entrepreneur” is not a job title. Most people think you must work at a job within your company. And “Manager” is the job title they probably expect you to hold. But “Manager” is a full-time job all in itself. If you’re an entrepreneur launching and growing a business startup, you’re already working 15 hours per day or more.
Entrepreneurs are unconventional
You, the entrepreneur, don’t work “at” your company. You work “on” your company. That is such an obscure concept for most people to understand, new entrepreneurs and small business owners included. And that’s sad because you probably work harder and innovate much more than anyone else at your company. But you’re it. You’re the key to success!
Be sure to read: Top 10 Tips From Seasoned Entrepreneurs
As the one who’s most preoccupied by how your company is doing, you’re on the clock 24 hrs per day, seven days per week, and 365 days a year. You’re the one who takes the highest risk. And you don’t even get a paid holiday for Christmas. Entrepreneurs are visionaries who are focused on growing a business startup, not managing the daily operations.
Get management assistance
In the beginning, you’ll do everything, including sweep the floor. But as you turn your business startup into a viable company, you’ll hire or outsource the day-to-day work. Whether you’re an entrepreneur or manager, it doesn’t matter. Your staff must be managed properly, and by someone who has 60 hours per week available to work.
Entrepreneur or manager, find someone who can manage for you full-time
To be a successful entrepreneur, you must put a reliable person in the management role while you grow your business startup. Otherwise, you’ll be buried in work and you won’t have time to break new ground in your target market and establish your brand. You direct your vision for your product or service, and you make sure it gets marketed and sold as you see fit.
Find the right person
Find an intelligent person who can put up with your abrasive personality – your impatience – your narcissism – your overbearing bossiness and your slight OCD. And if you don’t display these bad traits from time to time, you’re probably not trying hard enough to see your entrepreneurial vision through to fruition.
Work on your people skills
Entrepreneurs ARE control freaks. Very few competent people can tolerate that. So find someone who’s levelheaded, loyal and dependable. And then work on your interpersonal skills!
Your opportunity
Once you find the right person, you’ll have an opportunity to use your great management knowledge! Teach it to them. Mentor them. And then slowly upgrade their responsibilities as your business startup grows. Be sure to reward them regularly. The benefits to you will far outweigh your cost of training a manager.
My personal management augmentation story
I have a new business startup which I launched six months ago after moving to a new location. Before breaking ground, so-to-speak, I spent time networking, locally. Then, after establishing some relationships, I met Ulises, the son of my new friend – a successful local business owner. Ulises had just graduated from college.
I started by paying Ulises to perform a local competitive analysis for me, in order to build a sustainable competitive advantage. His work was very professional. After that, I asked him to work for me full time and he accepted my offer!
Get a good right-hand person
Finding a good right-hand person is extremely important. They must have a personality that complements yours very well. Ulises is a calm and patient person, which is the opposite of me. And he’s very smart – able to work independently. He’s been loyal, and I’ve been slowly training him to become a great manager.
The rewards I’ve experienced so far, and it’s rare to see rewards so early, have been steady growth, a sizable customer base, positive buzz, and a strong target market who are tuned in to our conversation on social media. That’s rewarding for sure!
Teach them to sell
I’ve been teaching Ulises how to be a great salesman. Sales always comes first. That’s where the money comes from. He now understands how to close a deal and how to compromise properly in order to get more customers. I’ve taught him the “sales mentality.”
To see what I’ve written about the “sales mentality,” please check out:
Sales Mentality – What Works and What Doesn’t?
Teach them management skills
Now that I’ve increased my staff to seven employees, Ulises is learning how to manage them. And he must manage people who are older and much more experienced than he is. What an opportunity for someone so young, right? Thankfully, his intelligence and his demeanor make him a good fit for the role of “manager-in-training.”
The following traits must be instilled in your manager-in-training:
- Confidence – If they trust you, you can teach them to be confident when implementing your decisions
- See: 7 Traits to Turn Good Managers Into Great Managers
- Maturity – It’s imperative that your manager-in-training can control their emotions at all times, especially in the office
- Positive attitude – They must remain positive at all times. This will rub off on your staff
- Prioritization – If they understand your priorities, they can make decisions that will keep you out of their hair
- Patience – It takes time to build a cohesive team. And it takes time to develop efficient processes and procedures. Then it takes time to teach these to the staff
- See: Characteristics and Attributes of a Good Manager
- Problem solving – Great managers are able to solve a wide variety of problems quickly and effectively. Develop the problem solving skills of your manager-in-training and your company will thrive!
Train them well
If the person you’ve hired to manage your company is competent and complementary to your personality, train them well. Give them the freedom and independence to do their job. Try your hardest to not micro-manage them. Send them to management training classes. By investing in their future, you’ll be investing in the future of your business startup.
Thank you for reading:
ENTREPRENEUR OR MANAGER – Discover the difference
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