Five Steps to Entrepreneurial Success - Personality Matters!
Five Steps to Entrepreneurial Success - Personality Matters!
I go into my second question, “When is the last time any of you have missed a day of work because of illness? May I see a show of hands of those that have gone at least one year without taking a sick day? How about two years, three, how about five years?” What you can’t see, but based on many of your own answers, you know that, many of these attendees have gone years without missing a day of work due to illness.
I then ask, “How is it that many of us can go years without missing a day’s work due to illness, yet we have employees that can’t string thirty days together without missing one or two of them?” Everyone thinks they know the answer, we all laugh and we look at each other. The answer is that we are all wired differently. If our employees were hardwired like us, they wouldn’t be our employees, they would be our competition. Viva la difference.
As CEO of Accord Management Systems, Inc, a behavioral consultancy, our job is to first measure the personality or behavioral requirements for a given position, then match the personality of the applicant or incumbent to that benchmark. We refer to this as job-fit. I have been a student of psychometrics for the last fifteen years and have gotten pretty good at it. I am not only a CEO, but also an author and a researcher. As researchers, we oftentimes begin our study with a pretty good sense as to the desired outcome. The research for my book, “The Entrepreneur Next Door,” wasn’t much different until the publisher threw a wrench into the whole works. They didn’t want a book just for entrepreneurs but rather for those that desire the same opportunity of financial independence. The publisher wanted to determine what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur, and since we had the database of thousands of entrepreneurs, I started looking at those that did not have the right entrepreneurial personality. That’s right, I began to interview those individuals that should not have been successful and I soon discovered two things.
First, the successful entrepreneur either had the right personality to do the job, or two and more importantly, they understood the differences that existed between who they were and what the behavioral requirements of the position were. They were able to manage this behavioral gap. This was the beginning of what I refer to as the Five Tier Performance Pyramid, also detailed in my book.
Tier I represents our personality. This is the least changing side of our temperament. Tier II embodies the behavioral requirements of a given position. As an example, what are the qualities that would one might want to find in an awesome leader? Such traits may include aggression, assertiveness, domineering, self confident, outgoing, warm, friendly, chameleon like, analytical, good with numbers, problem solver, driven, flexible, having a high sense of urgency, independent, strong-willed and a higher-than-average level of street smarts.
Each of these preceding qualities are more behavioral than skill-related or education and experience based. These are the requisite qualities of great entrepreneurs and business leaders. So what should you do if you don’t possess these qualities? Does that mean that you can’t do the job? Not at all. What it does mean is that you are going to work harder and experience more stress and frustration, but if you follow-through, you can be just as successful. Just be prepared for the toll it may take. One way to minimize this level of frustration is to understand exactly what the actions are that will lead to your success. I refer to these actions as Tier III of the Five Tier Pyramid. Actions are the specific plans that need to take place. Examples of actions for a CEO may include holding others accountable, and more specifically, looking at the sales organization and focus on each individual’s numbers. Do this once per pay period and follow-up with a one-on-one meeting with each sales person by week’s end. Let them know exactly where they stand and what they need to accomplish in order to grow with the team.
The actions represent our Tier III and the Metrics represent Tier IV of the Pyramid. Ultimately when we are able to achieve our results we have reached our Tier V.
Word to the wise, we can’t change our personality but we can change our behaviors which then allow us to accomplish our results. Sometimes the behaviors that are required go against our natural behavioral grain. Therefore, this level of change can be exhausting. When you accomplish your goals yet are exhausted at the end of the day, it’s a good thing because it is bringing you closer to your desired result. This may be frustrating but don’t give up as your entrepreneurial success could be right around the corner.
Five Steps to Entrepreneurial Success Personality Matters - To learn more about this author, visit Bill Wagner's Website.
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I look at my audience, a group of business owners, CEO’s and Entrepreneurs and as I begin my presentation, I ask the question, “Fill in the blank, I wish my employees displayed more . . . what?” The answer is always a resounding “initiative”, which is the exact quality that most, if not all entrepreneurs possess.
I go into my second question, “When is the last time any of you have missed a day of work because of illness? May I see a show of hands of those that have gone at least one year without taking a sick day? How about two years, three, how about five years?” What you can’t see, but based on many of your own answers, you know that, many of these attendees have gone years without missing a day of work due to illness.
I then ask, “How is it that many of us can go years without missing a day’s work due to illness, yet we have employees that can’t string thirty days together without missing one or two of them?” Everyone thinks they know the answer, we all laugh and we look at each other. The answer is that we are all wired differently. If our employees were hardwired like us, they wouldn’t be our employees, they would be our competition. Viva la difference.
As CEO of Accord Management Systems, Inc, a behavioral consultancy, our job is to first measure the personality or behavioral requirements for a given position, then match the personality of the applicant or incumbent to that benchmark. We refer to this as job-fit. I have been a student of psychometrics for the last fifteen years and have gotten pretty good at it. I am not only a CEO, but also an author and a researcher. As researchers, we oftentimes begin our study with a pretty good sense as to the desired outcome. The research for my book, “The Entrepreneur Next Door,” wasn’t much different until the publisher threw a wrench into the whole works. They didn’t want a book just for entrepreneurs but rather for those that desire the same opportunity of financial independence. The publisher wanted to determine what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur, and since we had the database of thousands of entrepreneurs, I started looking at those that did not have the right entrepreneurial personality. That’s right, I began to interview those individuals that should not have been successful and I soon discovered two things.
First, the successful entrepreneur either had the right personality to do the job, or two and more importantly, they understood the differences that existed between who they were and what the behavioral requirements of the position were. They were able to manage this behavioral gap. This was the beginning of what I refer to as the Five Tier Performance Pyramid, also detailed in my book.
Tier I represents our personality. This is the least changing side of our temperament. Tier II embodies the behavioral requirements of a given position. As an example, what are the qualities that would one might want to find in an awesome leader? Such traits may include aggression, assertiveness, domineering, self confident, outgoing, warm, friendly, chameleon like, analytical, good with numbers, problem solver, driven, flexible, having a high sense of urgency, independent, strong-willed and a higher-than-average level of street smarts.
Each of these preceding qualities are more behavioral than skill-related or education and experience based. These are the requisite qualities of great entrepreneurs and business leaders. So what should you do if you don’t possess these qualities? Does that mean that you can’t do the job? Not at all. What it does mean is that you are going to work harder and experience more stress and frustration, but if you follow-through, you can be just as successful. Just be prepared for the toll it may take. One way to minimize this level of frustration is to understand exactly what the actions are that will lead to your success. I refer to these actions as Tier III of the Five Tier Pyramid. Actions are the specific plans that need to take place. Examples of actions for a CEO may include holding others accountable, and more specifically, looking at the sales organization and focus on each individual’s numbers. Do this once per pay period and follow-up with a one-on-one meeting with each sales person by week’s end. Let them know exactly where they stand and what they need to accomplish in order to grow with the team.
The actions represent our Tier III and the Metrics represent Tier IV of the Pyramid. Ultimately when we are able to achieve our results we have reached our Tier V.
Word to the wise, we can’t change our personality but we can change our behaviors which then allow us to accomplish our results. Sometimes the behaviors that are required go against our natural behavioral grain. Therefore, this level of change can be exhausting. When you accomplish your goals yet are exhausted at the end of the day, it’s a good thing because it is bringing you closer to your desired result. This may be frustrating but don’t give up as your entrepreneurial success could be right around the corner.
Five Steps to Entrepreneurial Success Personality Matters - To learn more about this author, visit Bill Wagner's Website.
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Dianne CramptonDianne Crampton is an executive leadership coach, team consultant, author and president of TIGERS Success Series, Inc. Dianne has been helping CEO's and Executives connect their employees to their core values and goals for over 20 years using the trademarked TIGERS team culture process, which stands for trust, interdependence, genuineness, empathy, risk and success. To download a free white paper on behaviors that build strong teams and behaviors that will predictably tear them down go here. - Visit Dianne Crampton's Website |
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Leanne Hoagland-SmithAre your sales where you want them to be? Will you be one of the few who achieves sales or business success or one of the many who have failed to change? Are you tired of being told you are like everyone else? Then you may find my first book on sales of interest. Be the Red Jacket in the Sea of Gray Suits, The Keys to Unlocking Sales available at Amazon or at http://www.processspecialist.com/red-jacket.htm. This book is a reflection of my no-nonsense approach to improving sales to overall business results. If you are truly committed to making sustainable changes, then I can help you secure a positive return on your investment because I focus on executable solutions not telling you the problems you already know you have. From training to corporate (group) coaching to executive one on one coaching, my approach is to assess, create awareness, build a goal driven action plan and then execute. The bottom line question is "Not do you or your employees know it, but do you or they want to do it?" Please call for a free strategy session at 219.759.5601. - Visit Leanne Hoagland-Smith's Website |
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Jay Kubassek(Jay's Full Bio: EvanCarmichael.com/jaykubassek) Jay Kubassek is a Canadian born entrepreneur, internet marketing genius, professional speaker, international real estate developer/investor, executive film producer, extreme sport enthusiast and a passionate supporter of several charities worldwide. In 2007, Jay's vision and dedication to help other entrepreneurs and business owners duplicate his marketing success led to the creation of his fourth company CarbonCopyPRO, an internet marketing firm already worth over 15 million dollars that has over 20 employees and contract workers with clients is 12 different countries. Jay resides in NYC with his girlfriend Jamie, three year old son Milo and dog Cooper. As executive producer he recently premiered his first film in the 2008 Cannes Film Festival. As an adventurist he is racing the 2008 Baja 1000 off-road race and is a member of the 2008 U.S. National Elephant Polo Team, The New York Blue who will be representing the US in the 2008 World Championships in Nepal. Visit Jay's Blog: www.JayKubassek.com - Visit Jay Kubassek's Website |
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Linda RichardsonLinda Richardson is the Founder and Executive Chairwoman of Richardson, a global sales training and performance improvement company. As a recognized leader in the industry, she has won the coveted Stevie Award for Lifetime Achievement in Sales Excellence and she was identified by Training Industry, Inc. as one of the “Top 20 Most Influential Training Professionals.” Ms. Richardson is credited with the movement to Consultative Selling and is the author of ten books on selling and sales management, including Sales Coaching — Making the Great Leap from Sales Manager to Sales Coach, and Stop Telling, Start Selling. She teaches sales and management at the Wharton Graduate School of the University of Pennsylvania and the Wharton Executive Development Center. Linda is a frequent speaker at industry and client conferences, has been published extensively in industry and training journals, and has been featured in numerous publications, including The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Nation’s Business, Selling Power, Success, and The Conference Board Magazine. Learn more about Richardson's sales training and performance improvement solutions at http://www.richardson.com web - Visit Linda Richardson's Website |
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 Bill Wagner (Visit Bill's Website) For nearly twenty years, Bill Wagner has been at the forefront of entrepreneurial practice and is now a consultant, speaker and author in the entrepreneurial arena. His firm, Accord Management Systems, Inc., is a behavioral consultancy specializing in the metrics which measure the people side of business. From selection to succession, the company offers a series of interrelated surveys and services designed to improve employee performance and financial success. Bill’s speaking engagements place him in front of over fifty executive groups each year. His clients are primarily leaders of organizations including YPO, EO and Vistage. Bill’s recent book, “The Entrepreneur Next Door”, contains research conducted on over 1,000 young entrepreneurs. In this study, Bill benchmarks personality, emotional intelligence and brain dominance, allowing him to measure the gap between who they are and who they need to be to get the job done. Bill is heavily involved in the franchise community, helping “get the right people on the bus”. He rocks the boat and tells the truth, helping clients become their own organizational therapist.
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