What it takes to be on top?
You know those filthy rich types who supposedly have no brain. You call them dumb celebrities, from George W. Bush to Roman Abramovich.
But … have you noticed one thing? They remain on top of their business – be it in politics or in oil trade – despite being apparently dumb, while we more intelligent types still search the internet to find out what it takes to be on top of our own business.
This is the real twin paradox of the world. A lot of people know what they have to do to start a business and become successful. But a majority of them don’t make the cut. And many successful entrepreneurs don’t know the secret of success. They just do it.
Can anybody explain this phenomenon? We would need an Albert Einstein in psychology or anthropology to figure it out. While we wait for such person to emerge, here are our five cents on that topic: what make some people succeed in business and stay on top.
- Genes
This is something we cannot control – as of now. We all come pre-installed with certain kinds of genes. If it is in your genes to start a business and succeed, you will, no matter where you are or what kind of education you have.
If you feel you have the instinct to start a business, go ahead and start one. Don’t lose your heart even if you fail on multiple attempts. Haven’t you heard of that old saying? “Never fear shadows. They only mean that light is shining somewhere.”
- Idea
From Thomas Edison to Steve Jobs, many successful entrepreneurs have depended more on ideas than on genes. If you a great business idea, nothing can stop you. You can start one on the real world, or you can start one on the internet. But one thing: Make sure that your idea is a great one. Some ideas appear world-beating at gestation. But they may fizzle out on implementation.
There was once a filmmaker who used to see great story ideas in his dreams. He would forget those breakthrough ideas when he wakes up. So, he devised a method to write down the story ideas he gets in his dreams. He would write down the great story idea on a piece of paper as soon as he had the dream. The next day he woke up, and checked the piece of paper. It simply read: “Boy meets girl”.
Avoid similar situations. Think over an idea for at least a couple of days. If you still find it great, move forward.
- Courage
Courage is often an under-rated virtue of successful people. No matter how great your idea is, and how suitable your genes are for running a business, you will face obstacles on the path. That is a certainty. You need courage to stand up and stare those obstacles on the eye. You need courage for not to quit. You need courage to find a way past it.
- Hard work
A number of people often confuse hard work for the maniac zeal some people have for doing something. They write programmes day in, day out; they try to sell their outdated products that nobody wants. No amount of hard work in flogging can wake up a dead horse. Hard work means smart work.
You can understand it if you follow tennis matches. The great champions, Federer, Nadal, Sampras … they don’t win every point, not even every game. They win the crucial points, crucial games, or the crucial moments. That is why you need to put in hard work to win at the crucial stages of the business.
- Plain luck
Many successful people will object to this point in private. They may declare in public that they are lucky. But deep inside their mind, they tend to believe that they make their own luck. It may be partially true. You will have to do something to be at the path of Lady Luck. Still, you need a bit of luck. Otherwise, you cannot succeed in running your own business and stay on top.
Were George W. Bush and Roman Abramovich lucky? Yes, perhaps. But they had the courage and they worked smartly to realize their ideas.
Now you can forgive their dumb talk, can’t you?
