Feel and Sense of Business Ownership - Essay Example

eugene Name: Institution: Tutor: Date: An entrepreneur is a businessman/woman who envisions, creates and organizes business undertakings. S/he is also known as a risk taker[SUS06]. Entrepreneurship has different levels of force and urge depending on the degree of independence demonstrated by an individual, leadership intensity and novelty, how much dependability they take on, and how innovative they become in imagining and carrying out their business plans[Mor10]. The following characteristics have been noted as essential for any entrepreneur looking forward to success. Confidence. Confidence is a trademark of an entrepreneur. Not everyone is naturally gifted with confidence, but that does not limit an individual from learning and mastering the art of confidence with time. Most self assured men and women achieved their sense of self worth and confidence in their potential to overcome difficulties through pretence – even when they do not have the self assurance– and then attain strength and conviction in themselves by observing the outcome and acquire the admiration and reverence of others[Jon11]. Feel and Sense of Business Ownership. Taking charge for getting things and duties carried out and doing them with precision and attention signifies ownership of the business enterprise. Rather than observing a crisis as any other person, an entrepreneur views it as his or her own and gets the satisfaction of finding a resolution, thereby leaving things in more improved than they were initially before the crisis, and enhancing upon the state of affairs rather than overlooking them. While a sense of ownership makes for a stellar member of staff, the entrepreneur is aware that the objective is not to be possessed by the enslavement of too much responsibility. Rather than managing situations in an effort to own them, an entrepreneur trains other people how to take responsibility[Mor10]. That way an intelligent entrepreneur utilizes personal accountability in the eventual pursuit of profitability, joint effort, and inclusive success. Communicative. Entrepreneurs acknowledge that the most significant component of any business is the human factor. Human resources whether in the form of customers, staff, or strategic associates are what makes or breaks an enterprise, and communication is the key to profitable association with people[San05]. An entrepreneur works to master communication skills, whether they are written, oral, or non-verbal communications passed on through body language. And to sustain communication, he or she will make maximum use of all the accessible apparatus and resources. These may comprise foreign languages or public speaking lessons, computer and information technology, search engine optimization or neurolinguistic training as it correlates to sales and marketing, or dedicated writings such as those required for grants, business suggestions, mission statements, or policy instructions[Jon11]. In particular, an entrepreneur builds up an intense capability to listen and hear what others are saying, as the best communicators got that way by initially being the best listeners. Passionate about Learning. An entrepreneur has been described as an autodidactic learner, implying that much of what they acquainted with they learned not in a classroom setting but on their own by looking for information, asking questions, and conducting an individual reading and research. They have also been depicted as people who are quick to learn from their own faults, indicating that they are less prone to repeating the faults as a result of arrogance, ego, or subtleness to his/her own mistakes, limitations, or judgmental inaccuracies[Cla09]. To educate is to learn. And to guide, train, and convey experience to others the entrepreneur is continuously determined to learn more and get better skilled. As a result of the desire for education, genuine entrepreneurs envelop themselves with people who are either acquainted with more than they do or know things that are distinctive from what they know. They contemplate the views of others and perceptions that may be unlike their own, for example, in order to be better scholars of human nature. In this way they go on to improve themselves with information while also making a determined attempt to grow that knowledge by imparting it with others who are also front row learners of life’s valuable and limitless lessons[Mor10]. Team work. Those who venture into business for their personal gains but do not exploit teamwork wind up without the team but still have all the duties to be carried out. They bear the entire burden for themselves, and end up just moving from one job to a more challenging one – in an effort to be self-employed. But the new venture carries bigger individual and financial threats[SUS06]. On the other hand, team work is significant and has proved successful in the utilization of the physics of interpersonal cooperation and active associations. An offshoot can be easily broken, but a bunch of those small offshoots becomes stronger than the total of its single parts and can be hardly possible to bend, much less fracture. The same applies to businesses, and successful businessmen take advantage of teamwork to get the heavy duties done without employing his or her strength[Jon11]. The success story of a businessman, Marx Acosta Rubia, the owner of Onestop, was based on a replica that was centered on customer service. He mainly dealt in office stationeries and faced stiff competition from other players in the industry but by putting his customers first, and innovating his way of delivering the best services to customers, he maintained a competitive edge over them. Before becoming successful Marx made losses due to low quality products, untimely deliveries and poor division of labor in his firm. However, he overcame this by changing suppliers, and going for his supplies rather than wait for the suppliers to deliver. He also restructured his customer care division and trained the staff on how to handle the customer[Jon11]. His success in this field is due to the fact that he was willing to go an extra mile in getting things done rather than wait; he trained his workers on how to go about different issues that affects the business and he also mastered the art of proper delegation of duties thereby getting enough time to think of new strategies to improve business. His secrets to success include having a strong desire for learning and the valor to keep going in spite of numerous challenges. The success chronicle of businessman, Michael Reagan, the Chief Executive Officer of Fast Sign has not been without its ups and downs. He mentioned marketing, public relations and advertising as some of the major problems facing entrepreneurs today. In his case, he overcame these, by basing his focus on the customers in an attempt to understand them better, rather than working in the enterprise by being in a technical or operational viewpoint. His aim was customer fulfillment, and as a result, he treated both his staff and customers equally. The staffs were seen as business partners and the working conditions were sustained at inspirational levels. He believed that a business person who knew his staff was likely to understand how they handle his customers. Seven years after opening shop he recorded a profit of more than $1.4 million in income, which was extraordinary if one compared it to any other FastSign franchise that recorded $33,000/month. A few years later the Reagan’s FastSign was marked as the best in the western region and the 2nd best globally[Mor10]. Reagan’s success was as a result of enabling his employees have the sense of ownership in the business; he also employed the best customer relations and advertising services. By treating his staffs as equals and as important as the customers he inspired them to work hard towards the firm’s objectives. Barry Edwards, the Chief Executive Officer and founder of Creative Presentation Inc, understood the value of company image to the customers. He took a risk by leaving formal employment to work on his own ideas. He started out small with only himself working in the business located in his house. At first he had financial problems and several other issues but he overcame them by going an extra mile by being the sales person and the owner of the business at the same time. He also took action to project his firm as a big one with several employees in an attempt to create a positive image of the business even though he was working alone. After one year, he employed his first staff and a few years later, Creative Presentation Inc, was relocated from his home to its own office. Barry Edwards’ revenues rose progressively from $180,000 in 1991 to $11,000,000 in 1999[Jon11]. To achieve his success Barry understood the importance of business image to the customers and by projecting the firm as a big one, he assured his customer of reliability and financial ability to meet its obligations. He also understood the fact that in order to grow he had to carry out the extra tasks such as sales and marketing rather than wait to employ someone to do that. Allisa Harakal started her personal training business in 1999, offering group, home and work based training and Pilates. Unlike other trainers, she offered dance based fitness approach which was viewed as fun. Allisa had a passion for dance and fitness and to crown these she studied kinesiology, massage therapy and health exercise. To be successful in the industry, Allisa marketed herself through word of mouth, blogs, web sites and YouTube channels. She stated stiff competition, time management and waking up early as some of the main challenges she faced in the initial stages of the business[Cla09]. In order to overcome these challenges, she had to talk to everyone as each and every individual was a potential customer and to market herself through all the available means. Allisa’s success was due to her innovativeness, passion for the business and the customer based approach she applied in the business. Molly David started her winery business in early 2006 in Hunter Valley in Australia, offering a wide range of wines. During her first year in the business, she faced stiff competition from the big and established wineries in the industry. Lack of supplies such as bottles and vines presented a major threat to her firm. Her marketing skills were poor and thereby translated into losses for the firm. After operating for barely six months the firm was temporarily for a year due to lack of funds to run the business. Molly took this time to reflect and learn from the mistakes she had made. When she resumed business Molly overcame the initial difficulties by marketing her products to international consumers through the internet and by conducting wine tasting events. A year after resuming operation Molly recorded $2 million in revenues and two years later the profit grew to over $3million[Mor10]. Molly succeeded in her business due to her strong will and determination to succeed. She also became innovative by employing internet and conducting wine tasting festivals in marketing her products. From this unit, I have learnt that entrepreneurship involves more than just opening a business unit and waiting for the customers to purchase goods and services. The unit has exposed me to more valuable lessons and case studies of successful entrepreneurs and business enterprises. In order to be successful, a business person has to have the characteristics of an entrepreneur. One has to be confident in him so as to acquire the strength to solve crises that face his business venture and to gain reverence and admiration of others. An entrepreneur also has to feel some sense of possession of the business unit and take responsibility for all the decisions that are made. His staff should also feel the same so as to be motivated to work harder in an attempt to attain the organization’s goals. He should treat his staff as equals to customers and as business partners. The businessman/woman should be communicative as communication has been considered as a determinant of business success and failure. S/he should make maximum use of all the business communication apparatus and resources. He should be attentive and able to listen and hear his customers and staff. He or she should go out of the expected norms by being innovative and inventive and through the introduction and incorporation of ideas that might catapult the business in higher levels and at the same time maximize profits. Passion for the business that one tends to venture in is also important as it motivates one to diligently pursue what he or she loves. Have also learnt that one makes mistakes to learn from them and avoid repeating them. Another significant lesson is that an entrepreneur is a teacher and learns from teaching others and that an entrepreneur should try as much to get information from people who are more established and experienced in the industry. After much evaluation of my personality, I have come to the realization that my entrepreneurship strengths are in the following areas. Passion for business, willingness and attitude to go an extra mile to get things done rather than waiting for someone else to do them. I am also an avid time keeper and therefore I am able to deliver my goods and services on time. I am confident, responsible and attentive therefore able to solve problems, hear out and listen to other peoples opinion. The biggest lesson in this unit has been that a satisfied customer translates into repeat business and that business is not all about money but the satisfaction of the customer needs. However, I noticed my areas of weakness to be in marketing and communication. In order to overcome this, I plan on taking public speaking and communication classes so as to improve my communication abilities. I also plan to undertake a diploma course in marketing to improve my skills on the subject. References: SUS06: , (AWE, 2006), Mor10: , (Morris, Covin, & Kuratko, 2010), Jon11: , (Jones & Kally, 2011), San05: , (Mohanty, 2005), Cla09: , (Petti, 2009), Read More