This is not the first time a SEAL has applied what he learned in military life to business and entrepreneurial success. In this case, Brent Gleeson, a former Navy SEAL turned entrepreneur, author and motivational speaker, gives us his own advice for entrepreneurs who are about to start their own business or are already on the entrepreneurial path.
For Gleeson, being an entrepreneur is a career in which you must keep learning all the time, and in which much of the wisdom is gained through mistakes.
(See: 7 lessons for success from William H. McRaven, the SEAL commander who hunted down Bin Laden)
“I try to apply all the key principles I learned in the SEALs and in battle at the company every day. Entrepreneurs need to have a warrior spirit, because nobody said it was going to be easy.”
These are 12 things Gleeson believes entrepreneurs should know and remember every day in business.
When you are starting out
1. You must have a solid plan, but remember that the environment around you will change often, so you need to be able to adapt to the new environment quickly. You must be agile and not take too long to realise that changes and adaptation are needed.
2. Be cautiously optimistic about the partners you find and about early-stage investors. When you are starting out, any partnership or capital injection from investors looks like a great opportunity, simply because people are interested in your business. But remember that those people do not always have the best intentions in mind.
(See: Why an entrepreneur should be as well prepared as a Marine sniper)
Persistence
3. Don’t throw in the towel. Don’t become another business failure statistic. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t stop doing things that aren’t working, or shift your focus to new business opportunities and drop earlier ideas, but don’t give up.
4. Remember that skill and talent are no substitute for persistence. Most successful entrepreneurs got there by being persistent, not by being talented.
Leadership
5. At some point, most entrepreneurs will have to become leaders. As the business grows, more people will look to you for guidance and inspiration. Study and learn about leadership, and never assume that you are a great leader. And don’t forget that good leaders are good because they turn the people under them into good leaders too.
6. Be aware of your emotional skills. The words you say, and how you say them, have a much greater impact than you think. Emotional intelligence is essential for leading teams successfully.
Adaptability
7. Running any business requires the ability to adapt. Industries change. The economy changes. New technologies are created. Products and services become obsolete. Today, having a solid and stable business means having a business whose manager adapts to change quickly.
8. Obstacles are opportunities. And this is no cliché: by getting past some of the barriers that many others don’t dare or can’t be bothered to overcome, we will sometimes find opportunities to make our company more profitable.
On failure
9. Sometimes mistakes look like failures, but they are not. Mistakes are lessons that make you wiser. Failure is making the same mistakes over and over again. When you make mistakes, review them, write them down and take the lesson from them. And don’t make them again.
10. Missing some of our goals, or making mistakes, is unfortunately unavoidable in business. When it happens, don’t wallow in misery or punish yourself more than necessary. Entrepreneurs have no time for self-pity. When you fall, dust yourself off and keep going.
On success
11. Setting high goals is a must for maximising performance, but reaching those big goals requires a series of short-term strategic objectives. Achieving those small objectives is what gives you the drive and encouragement to reach the bigger goal.
12. Give credit where it is due. An entrepreneur should take more of the blame and less of the credit. Recognise the team for its achievements and contributions regularly, because they are the ones who make success possible in your business.
Finally, never assume that your company has already reached its full potential. You should try to get better every day, both as a company and as a person.
The entrepreneurial path is a hard one, but a rewarding one. Don’t get discouraged, and stay positive. Keep preparing, and get back up when you are knocked down. Always keep moving forward. Be persistent and you won’t fail.
Further reading
- Resilience: the keys to success when things get really tough
- 10 things you should know in the pursuit of success
Featured image: Rennett Stowe from USA, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
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