Entrepreneur or Dabbler?

Published on Monday, 17 October 2011

Written by Buffie Blesi

Take our Quiz

Over the last several months, as WorkAround opened and my coaching business began to shift, I spent a lot of time analyzing and reflecting about what it means to be an entrepreneur.  Who are the true entrepreneurs?  What do they look like?  How are they going about building their businesses?  Are they really serious about it or just dabbling?
 
How would you classify yourself?  Are you really building a business is  built to last or are you a dabbler who is “trying” out business ownership to see if it sticks?  Take this quiz and let’s see if you are meant to be an entrepreneur.
 
Answer each question True, False or I Don’t Know Yet?
Add your points up as you go. True is +1, I Don't Know Yet is +2 and False is +3.

1. You continuously challenge the status quo and are not afraid to speak up when there might be a better way to do things.

2. You’re not afraid to invest in your business and spend money on essentials such as marketing, professional advice, people, space and training.

3. You know your weaknesses and will seek to fill gaps with whatever is necessary to help your business succeed.

4. There is no “Plan B” that has you reentering the workforce as an employee.  That is not an option for you under any circumstances.

5. When you worked for someone else, you were constantly coming up with ideas for the business you were going to start. 

6. You planned this career move and left your company willingly.

7. You have a high risk tolerance and take calculated gambles for your business’ long term growth.

8. You have a strategic plan that looks out over the next 5 years and beyond and have a strong and clear vision of your business, dreaming about what it could become and how it will bring you freedom.

9. You are fearless or push through to quickly overcome any fears that seep to the surface.

10. You recognize that owning a business is the hardest work you will ever do and requires your complete and total commitment.  Working “part-time” is not going to cut it.
 

Add up your score and let’s see where you landed:
 
10 points–You were born to be an entrepreneur! You do what is necessary to be successful and aren’t afraid to fail.  If you do, you would never consider returning to a job, but would pick yourself up, dust off and get back to it.  You know what you want to have in your life and can’t wait to keep moving toward it. 
 
11-16 points–Entrepreneurship–You wear it well!  You might have stumbled into starting or acquiring your own business, but you are committed to its success and will invest in what is necessary to make it happen.  If one of your clients asks you to leave it all behind and work for them, you would be flattered they asked, but never, ever consider it. 
 
17-21 points–You are committed to your business right now, but regularly consider your “Plan B.”  Yes, you could always go back to whatever regular job you had and that gives you some comfort, but it will also hold you back from being the best you can be with your business.  Banish your Plan B, and you will see great success as an entrepreneur.
 
22-27 points–You are definitely a “Dabbler” – If a good client asked you to take a job with them, you would leap at it in a heartbeat.  In fact, that was probably the whole point of starting this business in the first place.  You are not willing to invest in the things that matter – like good business cards, professionally built website, legal help, accounting support or any other business necessity.  Why should you, since you might not need it when you get that job.
 
28-30 points–Time to leave it behind and get serious about finding a job.  The longer you spend on this business, the longer it will take to get a job. The big question to ask yourself is why you started this business in the first place?  Being in business is hard and thankless.  Yes, at first, it seems great. You work from home and have control over everything, but the risks to your finances and family relationships are tremendous.  The rewards can also be great, but there are no rewards without commitment.

If you need to refocus you and your business, a business coach can be the person to motivate and push you in the right direction. Learn more about KnowledgeSphere and our business coaches at www.knowledgesphere.advicoach.com.