By Busi Raphekwane
According to Badal and Streur (2012), self-awareness – a
conscious knowledge of one’s own character, feelings,
motives, and desires – contributes extensively to the
success of an entrepreneurial business.
The question on every entrepreneur’s mind is: how do I
ensure that my business succeeds? One of the challenges
that leads to business failure is the lack of information,
knowledge and skills. This often leads to the
mismanagement of the business, poor decision making and
ultimately the inability to keep the business sustainable.
Entrepreneurs invest a lot in their businesses, making risky
decisions to ensure they build successful businesses.
Sometimes, more emphasis is placed on the technical and
business management skills however, in my view, the lack of
business knowledge and skill is just one of the factors that
leads to SMME failures.
Another contributing element that is seldom discussed is the
lack of self-knowledge and development. SMMEs are
important and contribute to the growth of the economy;
therefore, we need to continue talking about its challenges
to finally get the success formula right. Having a good
understanding of who you are is the first step in developing
yourself as an entrepreneur.
Some of the reasons why it’s important for entrepreneurs to
focus on self-awareness:
- The business depends on you as the entrepreneur – a
good understanding of your strengths and weaknesses
will assist you leverage the key strengths and to align
them to the business’ core competences
- Entrepreneurs who are self-aware have the ability to
perceive others accurately and will help them to align
their team’s strengths to the business;
- Successful entrepreneurs know how to harness their inner
strength;
- Self-awareness enables you to develop an authentic
personal brand;
- Decision making is improved through the better
understanding of oneself;
- The business resembles the character of the entrepreneur
therefore if you would like to succeed; the journey starts
with you.
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About the Author
Busi Raphekwane is a senior business mentor at The Hope Factory.
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