Entrepreneur Leader 2

Are You An Entrepreneur Leader: Work harder on yourself to do better with your business

July 3, 2008 Business Report, The Star

By Jo Hazelhurst

As a young entrepreneur, I am often asked: "So how are you doing?" What people mean is: "Are you making any money?" Society measures success by what you have in the bank. Now as much as this question is irritating, cash flow is king for any business. You must have money to put back in the business if it is to grow. But money should not deter you from focusing on yourself.

I learnt this at a leadership conference in 2003, from Jim Rohn, an international business philosopher.

This is what his mentor, Earl Shoaff, taught him: "I would say: 'This is all the company pays.' Shoaff would say: 'No, that is all they pay you.' … I told him things cost too much, but he said: 'No, you can't afford them.'"

He told him: "Jim, if you want to be wealthy and happy, learn this lesson well: learn to work harder on yourself than you do on your job."

My business mentor, Allon Raiz, taught me that entrepreneurs have a particular mindset that is different to that of the employed, or even the self-employed.

So what is the difference between the self-employed and an entrepreneur leader?

An entrepreneur leader takes risks and can be uncomfortable, while most self-employed people seek security. An entrepreneur has big vision and a clear sense of purpose. Ask self-employed people what their purpose and vision for their company are 30 years from now: a shrug is not uncommon.

An entrepreneur leader create opportunities and jobs for others; self-employed people create opportunities for themselves.

Entrepreneurs hire people who are more talented and better than them in delivering the product or service; self-employed people think they can do the job better than anyone else.

Entrepreneurs build teams and teach people to be great at what they do. Self-employed people complain about employees as the bane of their life and business.

Entrepreneurs take responsibility and rise to challenges, while self-employed people often believe they are victims, frequently blaming or complaining.

Entrepreneurs passionately challenge life; self-employed people avoid leading, teaching, financial management, sales, systems, innovating and expanding.

Entrepreneurs embrace mistakes and failure; self-employed people are scared of looking stupid or being wrong.

It's not uncommon to become resistant to the many changes that you experience in your journey as an entrepreneur, or to be scared and stubborn.

I resisted many changes. I resisted systems, creating discipline, selling, and charging what I was worth.

But it's important not to resist the possibility of being whatever you set your mind to. There is an entrepreneur waiting to burst out and create something extraordinary in most of us.

My other business mentor, author and business teacher Blair Singer, taught me how to sell myself to myself every day. He helped me to apply my 16 years of personal development knowledge to my business.

He says our entrepreneurial spirit is only as big as the little voice in our heads tells us.

As my thinking changed, so did the results in my business. As I grew, so did my business. It is these lessons that I will share with you, so that you can work to become the best entrepreneur you can be.

Once a month, as a part of this entrepreneurship series, I will give you practical personal development and team leadership tools to help you change your mindset, to break through your personal and team limitations and build a set of resources to develop your leadership capacity.

Your task this week is to write down 50 personal and business reasons (logical and illogical) why you think you are not further than you want to be. Take each belief and ask yourself: "Is this belief empowering or disempowering me?"

Copyright Jo Hazelhurst June 2008

Jo Hazelhurst is a personal and team leadership facilitator, writer and entrepreneur.