Commenting on Jeff Chavez 11 Killer Instincts of Entrepreneurship

Posted on August 17, 2008

Jeff Chavez came up with an interesting article on what he calls 11 Killer Instincts of Entrepreneurship. As usual, I’m copying them over so I could give you my feedback.

  • The Solution Instinct: This is about ideas and always seeing them. Indeed entrepreneurs should be problem solvers - it’s an ability that can be developed over the years. Most of the times, only the most complicated problems make it up to the entrepreneur level (the rest being hopefully resolved by the employees) and even more, they aren’t limited to an area of activity. You have to solve problems from hiring to electricity problems if there are. If you are looking for a big cool place to store a birthday cake and you think the servers room can do the job (server rooms being especially cooled) then you have the Solution instinct in you.
  • The Detective Instinct: This is about fact-finding and due-diligence. Yes, every decision is based on real life factors. But I believe what sets apart entrepreneurs from regular employees is that they can take decisions based on inspiration, overruling the obvious factors. Sometimes you have to play by your feelings.
  • The Great Communicator Instinct: This is about connecting and constantly selling. While I’m probably missing most of the communicator instinct, I wrote before that the only ability an entrepreneurs can’t miss is the power of selling. As an entrepreneur you start selling even before the products is out on the market, you sell when you hire your first employee and you sell when you a pitching for investment.
  • The Youthful Genius Instinct: This is about doing what you love. Yes, and still there is something wrong with the entrepreneurs minds.
  • The Entrepreneurial Heritage Instinct: This is about how our heritage can reveal some or our natural gifts. I’m not sure about that. Where do entrepreneurship comes from in Easter Europe where we didn’t have entrepreneurship for like 50 years? Sure, I can agree that an Entrepreneurship oriented society can mean a lot as the paths have been traveled before!
  • The Risk-Taker Instinct: This is about going out on a ledge. I had some previous thought on this, and still I’m not convinced that Entrepreneurs are natural risk takers. In fact, in a way they might have a very well developed adversity to risk as everything they do is a calculated decision. And in a way, even if you are an employee and you decide to flip jobs you take kind of the same risks.
  • The Work-Horse Instinct: This is about paying the price. Yah, again, there is something wrong with the entrepreneurs minds.
  • The Thick-Skinned Instinct: This is about being tough. Besides the power of starting something up, an undeniable entrepreneur quality is the power of keep things going even in tough times, just like a marriage: for better and for worse.
  • The Flexibility Instinct: This is about being willing to change. As an entrepreneur you have to do what you have to do to make things work. This means that today  you could be the janitor or the secretary is this needs to be done. And as you are the ultimate goal accomplisher, you will work on your weak spots to improve them, not necessarily as a personal development process, but as an opportunity enhancement process.
  • The Human Instinct: This is about people. Attracting the best people is more important than the business model itself. Well, if you are an entrepreneur you don’t really want to work. Therefore you just need to find the best people for the job that you are sure are able to implement your… dreams.
  • The Knowledge-Quest Instinct: This is about constantly learning. Reading, thinking, listening, observing, absorbing, and applying is a hallmark trait of a great entrepreneur. If you are already reading this, then I don’t have to comment!
Related posts

» Filed Under Entrepreneurship Tags: Tags:

Comments

One Response to “Commenting on Jeff Chavez 11 Killer Instincts of Entrepreneurship”

  1. mclaney on August 27th, 2008 7:02 pm

    I always appreciate any insight from Jeff Chavez!

Leave a Reply




  • Archives