20 Proven Habits For Entrepreneurs And Business Leaders

Do you sometimes wish you knew what to do, and what not to do, to get you to where you want to go, quicker, easier? Then read on to learn 20 essential success traits and habits local entrepreneurs and business leaders share as their hard-earned wisdom on professional success. Immediately applicable, these tips will help you speed up progress in your own business or career.

The In the HOT Seat Podcast Series is a much-loved interview series with local entrepreneurs and business leaders that now garner an international audience reaching over 4000 listeners worldwide, every month. The snippets of their shared wisdom, tips and traits have been compiled here for you. So get inspired, centred and focused on the essential habits that will excel your professional progress.

20 Insider’s Tips To Success

Keep your sense of wonder, humour & humility.
Learn from experts. Seek mentors, advisers, coaches to help you move forward, faster.
Be resourcing – find professionals to complement your services. Just because you have chosen to work on your own, does not mean you need to be alone.
Become the master of your time. Invest only in the things that will move you forward. Be ruthless with ditching time vampires of all kinds. Your yes’s will be measurable when you know when to say ‘No’.
Do what you love. Passion and conviction in your purpose will drive you and help you get back up when things get tough.
Have a partner in the business – most successful ventures have excelled through a business partnership. Accountability, complementary skill sets and shared vision drive the business faster.
Develop an appetite for calculated risk and uncertainty. You will forever stay small if you don’t step up and out. Get help in this area if you need a second sober thought. Then the collective says, GO FOR IT!
Be people-centric. Your relationships with your team and customers will set you apart from the competition.
Be clear on your core values. Let them be the guiding principles of your processes, relationships and priorities.
Commit to excellence vs mediocrity. If you are playing the long-term game in business, you can not afford to cut corners or offer substandard work. Strive for excellence and set the standard high.
Try to enjoy each experience as a learning and growth opportunity. You will have good days, bad days, sometimes flying, sometimes soaring, sometimes even crashing. Each experience, good or bad is there to shape you and stretch you.
Plan!!! – No plan = no direction = no focus = poor results. It’s never too late to plan your year or next quarter. If you are stuck in a rut, call us.
Cultivate self-discipline. There is a fabulous TED talk by Mel Robbins. Check it out and then stop screwing yourself over by waiting to ‘feel like’ it.
Stay positive of mind. Boy, this is a big one. Most of us will be challenged by this the most. There are wonderful ways to raise your dopamine levels and keep yourself in the flow. So if you are struggling with feeling worthy, skilled, bright or plum enough, get in touch to learn how to raise your vibration and positivity level.
Learn to love your weaknesses. You will come close up and personal with your ‘personality warts’ like procrastination or feelings of inadequacy. There is always an antidote for each of them. Learn to know your triggers and behaviour patterns. Awareness is the first step to cure.
Get financially savvy. Ask for help to learn what you don’t know. Financials are top of the list of business failure. So get extremely comfortable with money and knowledgeable about business finances. Then learn to track your sales and expenses. Instead of adding stress it will put you in control and give you back autonomy over your decisions.
Know your WHY. The emotional connection and ultimate crux to motivation, direction and consistency.
Be confidently you. And be good with selling what you offer. If you don’t brag, present, ask, negotiate and share your uniqueness, no-one else can either. Selling is merely presenting a solution to a set of challenges or needs. Get sales training and clarity of what your product does for your clients. Then enjoy sharing what you offer.
Be prepared. This is a lesson to wear big girl pants. Legal support will be necessary throughout your business lifecycle. In the beginning, a lawyer can guide your choice on the legal structure of your business. Have your advisers lined up before you need them. Like an accountant, financial and a trademark specialist. Not sure where to start? Take a look at our trusted resources. We are always happy to make an introduction!
And finally. Stay committed to lifelong learning. Keeping your professional saw sharpened and your toolbox filled will keep your mind trending and hold your competitors at bay.

Wow, this wisdom is golden for entrepreneurs and business leaders. Now, to get you started on implementing what you have learned, start by rating each of those traits from 1-10 (10 = strong in that area). In the areas where you don’t score highly, plan how can strengthen yourself and acquiring that trait. It’ll be a wonderful exercise to help get yourself charged up and equipped to kick butt out there.

Before we let you get on to assessing your traits let us leave you with a couple more deep-seated sentiments from interviewees. This is the advice they would give to a younger self: