Ten elements of success for entrepreneurial bosses - Only with a sense of success can you have the ability to succeed

Many people in society believe that success in entrepreneurship requires a lot of innate abilities, but I don't think so. I believe that the most essential element of entrepreneurial success should not be described in terms of ability. Because no ability is innate. For entrepreneurs, it is impossible to possess the "eighteen martial arts" required for success before starting a business, but they need to experience and grow during the process of starting a business. Whether entrepreneurs can master these "martial arts" as soon as possible depends crucially on whether entrepreneurs have the awareness and desire to acquire these abilities and maintain these awareness and desires during the long-term entrepreneurial process.

Therefore, it is recommended to change "ability" to "awareness". Especially for entrepreneurs, it is impossible to possess the ten abilities necessary for success before starting a business. But as long as there is a strong desire and awareness, and then through many conscious strengthening processes such as learning, improvement and experience, it is possible to acquire the required abilities and achieve entrepreneurial success.

Of course, in order to transform awareness into ability, entrepreneurs must persist and purposefully improve and transform themselves for many years. I have always insisted that within the framework of the natural laws of the universe, especially in the field of human social activities, consciousness more often determines existence. Only strong awareness can prompt the subject to continuously improve. Just like Edison, there is the electric light, Eiffel, the Eiffel Tower, and Watt, the steam engine. Without their awareness of hard exploration, even if opportunities come, they will still be missed.

Although the experiences, industries, and fields of successful entrepreneurs vary widely, one thing is essential, and that is a strong and active awareness of improvement. Based on my personal entrepreneurial experience of more than ten years and my exchanges with other successful entrepreneurs, I summarized the necessary awareness for entrepreneurs into ten aspects:

1. The awareness of creating dreams and discovering opportunities

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It is generally believed that a good entrepreneur should be someone who is good at discovering business opportunities, but what kind of person can discover opportunities that others cannot? It’s those who are used to creating dreams. Dreams will guide him to find, capture opportunities, and transform opportunities into long-term pursuits.

Any great cause originates from a great dream, but a great dream originates from the person who creates the dream. When Microsoft first started its business, its founder Bill Gates proposed such a great dream: to bring computers into homes and put them on every table. After entering the 21st century, Microsoft has put forward a new dream: to use excellent software to empower people to communicate and create at any time, anywhere, and through any device. The guidance of great dreams is the fundamental reason why Microsoft has become a great company.

2. The awareness of condensing dreams and focusing on love

It is not enough for entrepreneurs to have dreams. They must also be able to optimize and refine past dreams and condense them into a lifelong love and pursuit. And by integrating this love and pursuit with the field you are starting a business (or treating starting a business as a career that you love to pursue throughout your life), you can ensure you have enough patience and tenacity, and enough courage and confidence to overcome all kinds of problems. Despite hardships, obstacles, difficulties and setbacks, we must persevere, even lonely, to follow our own path.

One will become famous and thousands of bones will wither. The road to entrepreneurship is long and arduous. Without a spirit that loves your career as much as you love your own life, you will not be able to persevere no matter what. For example, I used to work in petroleum, and I know that conventional energy sources such as petroleum are non-renewable and will be exhausted in the near future, which creates a strong sense of crisis. One day I accidentally came into contact with solar energy, and finally found a way to realize my dream, and I have been out of control ever since. My career in solar energy stems from this dream: to seek a sustainable energy source for mankind, so that more people can love and use solar energy, and leave a blue sky and white clouds to future generations. With this feeling, during the more than ten years of promoting solar energy, I encountered a lot of resistance from employees, dealers, suppliers, real estate developers, and even threats to my life.

I tried my best to persuade him, I argued with him citing scriptures, and I even scolded him, but I never backed down. With this feeling, we started everything from scratch, adhered to the "scarcity theory" of making whatever is in short supply in the industry, constantly innovated and "replenished buckets", and created basic theories and markets for solar energy out of nothing. A complete industrial system integrating analysis, technology research and development, technology, tooling, equipment, large-scale automatic production lines, standards, testing, SOD standard operating procedures, network construction, upstream industry chain control, management, marketing, market planning, logistics, and services. We have successfully broken through the "Wanyan Paradox" that was insurmountable by industry founders and achieved the goal of sustainable development; with this feeling, we dare to face any competition. Once, a reporter from a media asked me that many large companies are preparing to get involved in the solar energy industry. Are you worried? I said that no one in the world loves solar energy more than us, because my life has been integrated with solar energy. This kind of fanatical love is Huangming’s real core competitiveness, and no one can compete with us. Besides, isn’t it my wish to have more people fall in love with and use solar energy? Why should I worry?

3. Awareness of learning new knowledge and progress and improvement

For any career, it is not enough to have a fanatical passion, no matter how long it lasts. You must also have a strong awareness of constantly learning new knowledge, new experiences, and new skills to supplement your own shortcomings and improve your own level. In order to realize your dreams and pursue the career you love, you must have the courage to break through the restrictions of many conditions such as major, occupation, age, gender, environment, etc., and use a child-like strong curiosity and thirst for knowledge to learn about anything that is beneficial to your career. , all learn eagerly: learn technology if you don’t understand technology, learn management if you don’t understand management, learn marketing if you don’t understand marketing, learn finance if you don’t understand finance... Continuously improve yourself, never-ending.

We often say that innovation is an essential quality for entrepreneurs. But where does innovation come from? Comes from learning that never stops. Learning is the foundation of innovation and the first need of people. Some people say that if you live to grow old, you will learn to grow old. In fact, the opposite is true. Only by learning can you live to grow old.

Founded in 1986, Red Star Group started with a debt of 600 yuan. In 2003, its sales exceeded 6.2 billion yuan. The most important reason why Hongxing can create extraordinary achievements is to follow the path of "reading to develop an enterprise". The company has specially set up four committees, including the Reading Achievements Sharing Committee, to carry out various kinds of happy learning work. This approach is warmly welcomed by employees, because working in "Red Star" not only allows you to get corresponding salary, but more importantly, you can pass Acquire new knowledge and master new skills through various channels. Everyone firmly seizes every learning opportunity, and consciously changed from "I want to learn" at the beginning to "I want to learn" now. For Red Star people, learning is an investment, learning is a kind of welfare, and learning is a kind of life. Persistent reading and learning activities not only solve the company's survival and development problems, but also realize the company's continuous innovation and transcendence. It plays a major role in promoting the company's development. Learning ability has become an important competitiveness of Red Star.

4. Awareness of adhering to social axioms and scientific rational thinking

In today’s era of complex information and explosion of knowledge, how can we ensure that the knowledge we learn and the decisions we make are in the right direction? Only a strong awareness and a firm belief in the truth can be the guiding light in the entrepreneurial journey. Just like mathematicians firmly believe in Pythagorean law and pi, physicists firmly believe in the immortality of matter and the law of conservation of energy. One thing that entrepreneurs must firmly believe is: efforts will be rewarded. Because the basic law of the market economy is equal exchange, both individuals and organizations can survive and develop in the long term only if they exist in harmony with society, contribute to society, and treat consumers well. At the same time, we firmly believe that the basic human nature of human beings (positive and progressive) will not change. Then use these basic principles and principles to analyze and reason scientifically, rationally, and logically, and build a series of theoretical systems to guide the actions of yourself and your team.

The most important thing is your team's vision, core values ??and mission. This is the lifeblood of the company's steady development, the guarantee for the company's strategic decision-making to be clear and correct, and the beacon that illuminates the company's journey forward.

Thomas Hansen, the founder of IBM, a well-known Fortune 500 company, has established clear corporate principles and firm beliefs based on the basic principles of society and business since he founded the company. For example, based on the people-oriented axiom, it is determined that individuals must be respected; based on the principle of equivalent exchange in the market economy, it is determined that the best service must be provided to customers; based on the principle that things are rare and valuable, and efforts are rewarded, it is determined that The philosophy of pursuing excellence in work performance. The primary responsibility of successive company leaders is to imprint these principles on the hearts of every employee so that they all understand what IBM is fundamentally about, thus laying a solid ideological foundation for the company's healthy development over the past century.

5. Awareness of breaking through stereotypes, innovating and creating

All roads lead to Rome. There is only one Rome, but the roads to Rome are different. Behind every entrepreneur, there are many little-known stories. The glory of their success is the same, but the methods and journeys of each person's success are very different. Entrepreneurs have different experiences, environments, qualities, and industries in which they work. The contradictions and problems encountered in the entrepreneurial process are also different. Only the innovation and breakthroughs of the parties involved can open up a new world. Any business venture is an exploration and an adventure. There is no once-and-for-all secret to success, and there is no pre-drawn map. Everything will vary according to time, place, person and event. Without innovation and creation, entrepreneurship is just empty talk. It is simply fanciful to think that you can start a successful business simply by imitating the successful experiences and practices of your predecessors. Because in today's world, information is changing rapidly, technology is advancing with each passing day, and consumer demands are endless. Only by constantly innovating and creating can we keep up with the times, gain a firm foothold and stand out in the extremely fierce competition.

This is true for traditional industries, and emerging industries, especially high-tech industries, are no exception. In the international high-tech field, multinational giants use the patents and standards they hold to set up various restrictive technical standards barriers. To enter the international market, Chinese high-tech enterprises must arm themselves with sufficient independent intellectual property rights. In terms of independent innovation, Huawei is undoubtedly at the forefront of the industry. In the first half of this year, Huawei's overseas sales reached US$2.47 billion, accounting for 62% of total sales, exceeding the international market sales for the whole of 2004. Huawei's overseas business has expanded to 77 countries and regions, and 274 operators around the world are using Huawei products. However, Huawei's road to expanding overseas markets was full of obstacles. On January 22, 2003, Cisco wielded the intellectual property stick and accused Huawei of infringing its intellectual property rights. The lawsuit lasted for a year and a half, and finally Huawei and Cisco reconciled. Industry insiders pointed out that if Huawei's products are not strong enough in terms of independent intellectual property rights, Cisco's lawsuit will at least be enough to make Huawei withdraw from the U.S. market, and at worst, Huawei's entire overseas market strategy will suffer a major setback. "Huawei's most valuable thing is not its large factory buildings and advanced equipment, but its core technologies with a series of independent intellectual property rights." A person in charge of Huawei said.

6. Peace of mind and awareness of emotional regulation

Entrepreneurship is difficult, and the psychological pressure that entrepreneurs endure is unimaginable to outsiders. At different stages of starting a business, you often have to face development opportunities, traps and temptations, market competition, business risks, rise and fall, and other important milestones. These are critical moments that test the psychological quality of entrepreneurs. In history and reality, there are many people who lose control of their emotions, lose their rationality, lose their direction, and make big mistakes at this time. There are even many people who embark on a road of no return because they cannot bear the pressure and responsibility. Entrepreneurs, that is, business leaders, must possess and maintain a state of mind that is either impassioned, passionate, calm, persevering, or fearless in order to successfully break through.

And no matter what psychological state they are in, entrepreneurs must always maintain a clear mind and reason deep in their inner core.

In the face of anything and any result, when all human resources are exhausted, we must use a peaceful attitude to treat helplessness and frustration, success and failure, merits and demerits, and praise and blame. "Do your best to do what you can, and deal with things that are beyond your ability calmly." Only in this way can we be able to remain calm in the face of change, unfazed by favors and disgrace, unfazed by success or failure, eliminate external interference or temptation, and move forward in the determined direction and goal.

7. Awareness of paying attention to details and keeping an eye on results

Real businessmen and successful entrepreneurs are both the most pragmatic. No matter what we do, we always focus on optimizing effects and maximizing results. Any plan he makes and any concept he advocates will eventually be implemented. Even the seemingly empty corporate core concepts or slogans will definitely help achieve the real goals. Paying attention to the details of the execution process and controlling the results of the execution are two sides of the same problem. Success or failure is rooted in details, and details determine success or failure. The ancients said: Great things in the world must be done in small details; a thousand-mile dike breaks in an ant nest, which talks about the importance of details. At all times and in all over the world, how many companies, operators, and huge projects have failed because of the lack of details! Entrepreneurship and management must not involve any formalism, carelessness, or ostentation. If you do this, you will definitely fail. Any of our lofty ideals and goals must be realized step by step in a down-to-earth manner, otherwise it will become a castle in the air. Similarly, when we do any work, perform any tasks, and pay attention to every detail of our work, we must always keep in mind our direction and goals, and be alert and evaluate the consequences of our actions. A goal- and result-oriented awareness of details is an important guarantee for entrepreneurial success. Otherwise, it will either be a mess of work that has lost its direction, or it will be empty talk with high ambitions and low intentions. I often talk to my employees about the "two centers", that is, communication should be audience-centered, and work should be centered on ourselves. Communication must explore the audience's points of interest, interests and technical support points in order to achieve the effect of communication affecting them. When doing things, you must keep your mission goals in mind, pay close attention to the implementation of the process and details, and never give up until you achieve your goals.

The Japanese are famous for their sophistication. Konosuke Matsushita once pointed out brilliantly that the era of refined management has arrived, and the competition among enterprises is the competition of details. Paying attention to details will make you invincible. I remember this story when Toyota opened up the U.S. market: A Japanese went to live with an American family in the name of learning English. The strange thing is that in addition to studying, this Japanese takes notes every day and records all the details of Americans' home life, including what food they eat, what TV programs they watch, etc. Three months later, the Japanese went back. But not long after, Toyota launched a cheap and high-quality car designed to meet the needs of American families. It was immediately favored by American consumers after being put on the market and became a great success.

8. Transform employees and influence the consciousness of others

In general, teams in the entrepreneurial period must be extremely scarce in human resources. The existing personnel either lack knowledge and skills, or lack experience and quality. Coupled with the unfamiliarity of social relationships, external resources that can be mobilized and borrowed are scarce. As an entrepreneur, you must cultivate and improve your ability to turn stones into gold internally and your ability to leverage external integration. To achieve this, entrepreneurs must have a strong willingness and awareness to influence and transform others. For employees and subordinates, entrepreneurs must work hard in preaching, imparting knowledge and solving doubts, guiding and persuading, setting standards, changing concepts, correcting habits, correcting behaviors, etc., to improve employee quality, cultivate team spirit, and gather team strength. Externally, entrepreneurs must have a strong awareness to influence and transform organizations and individuals related to their own business, such as government departments, government officials, media, banks, investors, dealers, consumers, etc., to maximize Improve the external environment and mobilize all forces to support your career.

In the history of the development of China's solar energy industry, the biggest impact we have done on others is to launch an unprecedented solar science popularization in the world.

Ten years ago, at least 99% of the Chinese people did not know what solar energy was. Since 1996, the "Solar Energy Science News" with a circulation of 3 million copies has been distributed to the public free of charge. So far, nearly 100 million copies have been issued. Since 1997, it has carried out the "Thousand Miles of Science Popularization Campaign" on solar energy, with a total of more than 80 million kilometers traveled so far. In addition, thousands of solar green storm events, thousands of renewable energy knowledge lectures, and green environmental signature events with millions of participants were held. No wonder a leader of the industry association said: Chinese people know about solar energy through Huang Ming. It is this kind of initiative to influence and transform others that has made the Huangming brand what it is today.

The hardships involved in transforming internal employees are unimaginable in many other industries. Because solar energy is a brand new industry, at the beginning of the business, there was no technology, no talent, and no experience, so it was almost a blank. All employees are laymen, and everything can only be learned by doing. I always exert a positive influence on my employees, prevent them from developing in a negative and backward direction, and guide them to actively strive for progress. I also take the trouble to help and guide them step by step, and I have honed each layman into technology, management, marketing, and communication. Experts have cultivated a group of top talents for the company itself and the entire solar energy industry. Some people jokingly call Huangming the "Whampoa Military Academy" of the solar energy industry, which makes sense when you think about it.

9. Awareness of taking responsibility and facing challenges head-on

Entrepreneurs must be clearly aware that you are the leader of this team and should be fully responsible for the final results of the team. Any evasion and excuse are invalid and absurd. Especially when the team encounters a major decision or crisis, no one dares or can take responsibility. Only you must make the decision or bear the responsibility and consequences. Only in this way can the team have a backbone and employees have a backbone. Only then can you win the respect and trust of all relevant personnel and make the team have combat effectiveness and durability.

In addition, entrepreneurs at the highest level are always brave enough to face challenges and take the initiative to meet them. Because at this time, not only you, but also your competitors are at a critical juncture. If your competitors retreat, you will advance despite the danger and you will defeat your opponents in one fell swoop and stand out (just as corners are the best place and time for racers to overtake).

10. The awareness of being prepared for danger in times of peace and self-examination and self-policing

Entrepreneurship is an adventure and a social practice activity with great risks. Many entrepreneurs were not mentally prepared to start a business at the beginning and rashly embarked on this difficult and dangerous road. As a result, they encountered a little crisis and immediately gave up or died midway. More often than not, entrepreneurs still have a relatively strong fighting and enterprising spirit when they first start a business, and they are also relatively able to endure hardships and be thrifty. However, after entrepreneurship reaches a certain level and the company has achieved some success, because they are unwilling to bear more pressure and responsibilities, many people will develop the mentality of being content with being rich, greedy for enjoyment, and unwilling to make progress. Some people are even dismissed by small businesses. The victory went to his head and became forgetful. Since then, I have lost the sensitivity and sense of urgency I had when I first started my business. And the real crisis came precisely at this time. Why is it said that the average life span of private enterprises is only 3 years? The roots are here. Bill Gates often tells his employees: Microsoft's lifespan is always only 18 months! In fact, he warned his team in this way: Never forget the crisis at any time, and never forget progress and innovation at any time.

Entrepreneurs also need to have the awareness to correct mistakes and be good at learning knowledge and lessons from mistakes. In particular, there are two situations to avoid: one is being too extreme, knowing that you are wrong, but refusing to repent for the sake of face or for your so-called authority, without knowing that doing so will lose your own authority. In fact, correcting mistakes and learning from mistakes in a timely manner will not only benefit the work, but also win the trust of the team. Another situation is that entrepreneurs often solidify and rigidize some successful practices in the past, and follow them as empirical dogmas and golden rules regardless of whether time conditions change or not. As a result, they make the mistake of seeking the sword at the end of the day.

Therefore, maintaining the awareness of being prepared for danger in times of peace and keeping pace with the times is the fundamental guarantee for entrepreneurs to maintain youth and vitality forever.

In short, in order to become a successful entrepreneur, it is not fundamentally about what abilities and qualities he already possesses, but rather the strong willpower and self-confidence to change others and the environment. Then in the process of starting a business, constantly adjust and transform yourself, moving towards the qualities and standards that a qualified entrepreneur should have. Because as long as the entrepreneur has a "heart", all the skills and experience required for business operations can be learned. This "heart" is the ten kinds of consciousness mentioned above. This is what every entrepreneur should prepare before starting a business.