Entrepreneurs and innovators pave their way toward success and opportunity, overcoming fear, mitigating risk, and working diligently to reach their goals. While exciting and fortuitous, this does not guarantee a stable income, success, or a secure livelihood. Entrepreneurs and innovators keep up with the demand for excitement and fresh new ideas, satisfying different needs previously unmet by consumers. While there is the potential for success in many people with various backgrounds and experiences, personality traits can influence success as an entrepreneur or innovator, as well as the likelihood of someone becoming an entrepreneur or innovator.
There are many types of entrepreneurs and innovators, whether you invented a new product, built a business that was unique and saw a demand for it, or created a business to pave your own path. The work is not always easy; there are many factors you can control within your business, but not necessarily the market, consumers, or demand. Creating a new model, approach, invention, or finding your own niche market to be self-sustainable. While many are capable, for some, it is daunting to go without security or the guarantee that comes with working for a big corporation.
Each career path offers different challenges and benefits; for entrepreneurs, the risk can be greater than in other paths. The more reliance on oneself, the greater the need to internally motivate oneself. Some attribute this to confidence and optimism, while others view it as a necessity for creating a business that they can feel successful in or contribute to.
Now that you are an entrepreneur or innovator, learning more about your personality can help you understand yourself more and lean into the different traits you notice that you like about yourself. There may also be traits that seem inexplicable and second nature; there does not seem to be another way or method that feels fathomable for you. There are chromosomal and genetic linkages to personality. You may have been told that you remind others of a different family member of yours, someone like your mother, who would do the same things. These comparisons are common based on these chromosomal linkages; these do not explain our personality completely. There are limitations as to why we act, think, and feel the way we do. Our experiences can also influence our personality, affecting our optimism, discipline, stress-related responses, and other aspects of our character. The nature vs. nurture debate is a common argument in personality development, including the emergence of personality disorders.
Our personality determines a lot about what we want to do, what our values are, and how we want to spend our time. Personality encompasses our thought patterns, behaviors, and emotions, as well as how we interact with the world, perceive ourselves, interact with others, manage stressors, and achieve our goals. There are many theories and tests used to categorize our personality and explain why we live the way we do, how we process information and emotions, and the relationship patterns in our lives. Personality types also exhibit differences in dopamine. Entrepreneurs have a higher physiological response to dopamine, which influences how they make decisions and maintain momentum.
The Big 5 model is one test and model that describes personality with five different traits: openness to experience, extraversion, conscientiousness, agreeableness, and neuroticism. Openness, extraversion, and conscientiousness are all traits a part of the Big 5 model that are seen in entrepreneurs and innovators. However, different studies have yielded varying findings on this topic, including the role of extraversion, which can depend on the type of entrepreneur. Entrepreneurs are consistently found to be more open to experience, which contributes to their willingness to try new things, forge their own path, and take risks. Conscientiousness refers to discipline and impulse control; entrepreneurs often require this discipline for success.
Entrepreneurs and innovators all share a curiosity, a drive to create, do, or enact something on their own terms, to pave their own path. Self-efficacy is also found to be a trait that many entrepreneurs possess, believing in themselves to achieve the goals they set. This need for achievement and self-belief is often attributed to higher confidence and a stronger sense of one’s own capabilities. Notably, entrepreneurs usually have a higher achievement motivation.
Entrepreneurs can be compared to managers with differences in personality traits; extraversion is sometimes seen in entrepreneurs and often seen in managers. This evidence is not entirely straightforward, as there are significant differences and variances between entrepreneur and manager types, which can be attributed to their differing levels of confidence and achievement. Risk attitudes are another consideration; entrepreneurs tend to have a higher risk tolerance than managers, which contributes to the inherent lack of security and stability associated with entrepreneurial roles. Managers and entrepreneurs can both be successful, leading to productive and fulfilling careers.
There are other factors to consider when understanding career choice, including financial security, experience, familial career choices, mental illness, health, passion, and support. Our personality is a piece of the puzzle as to why we make choices, how successful we are, and what drives us. However, we only know so much about the whys and reasoning behind all of this; we are all incredibly unique with our own unique perspectives and histories. There are also circumstances and uncontrollable events that contribute to how successful we become and how effective we are in our careers. We can also pivot from one career to the next, not just follow an entrepreneurial path based on different circumstances that arise.
How do I learn more about my personality?
There are many tests and tools used to dissect who you are based on how you answer questions about your thoughts, emotions, and actions. Two easy and helpful tools are the 16 Personalities Test and the Big Five Test. Increasing your own curiosity about yourself is a great way to be mindful of your traits, lean into what is helpful, and be aware of ways to use your traits in your favor. Even if you do not find your personality aligning with the career personality traits outlined, it does not mean you cannot be successful. Learning more about ourselves can increase our confidence and self-efficacy, leading to a greater sense of fulfillment in our choices and a deeper understanding of our challenges.
