There are all kinds of entrepreneurs out there.
At least twelve entrepreneurial archetypes that I’ve identified so far.
So, which one are you?
The Figure-It-Out-on-the-Fly Archetype
Your business is up and running… And so are you, every morning. Because you’re not really the planning type. You’d rather just wake up and decide what to do as the day goes along.
Weak Link: Not having a plan for the day can leave you open to distraction, and high-priority tasks can get delayed or forgotten altogether.
You can also feel a bit lost at times as you’re often unsure exactly what it is you should be doing.
Solution: Every evening, sit down and plan out the next day.
This will give you direction in the morning and you’ll always know exactly what you should be doing at any given moment.
I go into this productivity hack in more detail, along with four other coaching tips to drive business growth here.
The Dreamer
You have big dreams for your success, and you can see it all happening clearly in your mind. But for some reason, your business just doesn’t seem to get off the ground.
Weak Link: While it’s vital to have a vision for your future success, action is what is going to make it become a reality.
Solution: If you don’t have one, it’s time to make an action plan, and put the power of deadlines to good use.
This will give you a roadmap to follow so you can get out of neutral. The deadlines will pressure you to start taking action.
The Over-Planner
Similar to the Dreamer, the Over-Planner has difficulty getting closer to his goal of a successful business.
As the name suggests, this entrepreneur spends a lot of his time planning out every minute detail of his business… and re-planning, and reviewing and ultimately… over-planning.
Weak Link: Planning feels like action. And it is a type of action, and you do need a plan.
But eventually, you have to get out of the planning stage and start taking action or nothing’s really going to happen.
Solution: Take your highest priority task, set a deadline for it, schedule it in your planner and follow through on that commitment.
Repeat, repeat, repeat.
And if you have trouble following through on your deadlines, then it might be time to get an accountability coach.
The Method Man
You’re driven. Your productivity is on point. You make use of deadlines and accountability, and incorporate as many success habits into your life as you can.
Your business is a success and you work hard. But do you work too hard?
Weak Link: Success takes hard work, no doubt, but do you feel guilty if you take a day off?
Burnout is real and it’s important to maintain a healthy work-life balance or your health can suffer.
Solution: Try to remember that life is short and you have to take time out to enjoy your success and celebrate your wins.
Literally schedule time off if you have to and power down your phone as often as you can.
The Consumer
This archetype is constantly downloading e-books, and PDFs and is signing up for webinars, tutorials and online courses.
Their YouTube history is a stream of Grant Cardone, Tony Robbins, and the rest of the entrepreneur advice crew.
Weak Link: You’re definitely learning your craft and consuming important knowledge, but at some point, you’ve got to stop consuming and start being a producer.
Solution: Once again, it comes down to taking action, because all this consumption of information is actually a form of procrastination.
Take a pause on the downloads and start going after your clear goals with a sense of urgency.
The Procrastinator
Needing no introduction is the Procrastinator. This archetype lives in all of us to some degree, I’m sure. And it’s a dream-killer.
Weak Link: Wasted time. Slow growth. Frustration and feeling disappointed in themselves.
Solution: Use this 7-Step Blueprint to Overcome Procrastination and defeat this issue once and for all.
The Chaotic Whirlwind
You’ve got the flair and you’ve got the work ethic, but you inhabit a disorderly, chaotic space.
Somehow, you still get it all done, but are you making it harder on yourself?
Weak Link: The drawback here is that you can end up wasting time looking for things amongst piles of paperwork and who knows what else.
And worse, a disorderly space can cause a disorderly mind.
Solution: Give a home to everything and give everything a home.
Build a habit of keeping things minimal and organized and see how your mental clutter disappears as well.
The Overflowing Plate Archetype
You’re the kind of entrepreneur that has so much going on in your life that it’s hard to get your business going.
And you often wonder where the day went.
Weak Link: You have the best of intentions to build your business, but you have trouble finding the time to get things going.
Solution: Schedule a time each day to make an effort to get the ball rolling. Even 15 or 20 minutes a day will soon start to add up.
Small efforts over time will lead to big things.
The “Nobody-Can-Do-It-As-Good-As-I-Can” Archetype
You’re the captain of your own ship and nobody knows your business like you do.
But you’re stretched too thin trying to do everything on your own.
You’re hesitant to delegate because you have trouble trusting that others will take your business as seriously as you do.
Weak Link: When your business reaches a certain point, a failure to delegate can slow its growth and prevent you from focusing on the highest priority tasks in your business.
You also open yourself up to burnout.
Solution: Take the time to find quality team-members, consultants and assistants who are high-integrity. They are out there. Start small and build trust from there.
Once you find the right people and take good care of them, they’ll take good care of you.
And the amount of time that you can free up will have you wishing you’d done it sooner.
The Sloppy Spender Archetype
You take risks, you build your business, but you don’t really keep track of your money or your spending habits.
Weak Link: You just don’t know where your money is going and you could easily be losing it on wasteful spending that could be put back into your business instead.
Solution: Start tracking your purchases and check your balances daily.
I go into this a little deeper, along with some other smart money strategies here.
The Confident Bull
You’re feeling the natural surges of confidence that come when you step out on your own and make a successful business for yourself.
This confidence plays into every interaction you have and helps you network and build relationships.
Weak link: But are you a good listener? This skill can easily be overlooked when you’re feeling so good about yourself and you may tend to overpower those around you.
Because of this, you can miss out on valuable insights and helpful feedback. You can be blinded to other solutions and different ways of doing things.
Solution: When someone else is speaking, really focus on listening to what they have to say, rather than forming your own thoughts and responses, or shutting them down.
The Born-Under-a-Lucky-Star Archetype
Everything just seems to go so well for you.
You had the right idea at the right time and you found great success with it.
Building your business wasn’t too much of a struggle and the doors just seemed to open up wherever you went.
Weak Link: You may come to expect things to always work out this way and fail to prepare for potential down times. Down times may never come, though life does like to throw us challenges.
Solution: The future is not the present. Prepare for a leaky roof even when there is no rain.
Did You Find Your Archetype?
If you didn’t see your particular entrepreneurial type in the lineup, let me know so I can add it to the list.
And if you did see yourself here, I hope you got a tip or two that can help you level up.
Nigel
Nigel Cook
Accountability Coach
