Entrepreneurs are certainly not supermen. Neither do they perform miracles. They are just human beings.

But they are different from many of us. They posses several positive characteristics which are responsible for their business success. For instance, they have self-confidence, leadership, and creativity. Not many of us have these qualities. Most of us shy away from business. We prefer to be employees doing jobs which do not require great risks like bankruptcy. The optimism and positive thinking produces favorable results. We get what we deeply think and believe. Being hardworking and opportunity seekers, entrepreneurs acquire more profits. Moreover, in the process, they also create better goods and services for the consumers. Through their innovations, they contribute to the improvement of the standard of living. So, they do not only help the economy, they also help society.

Cantillon defines an
entrepreneur as one who bears uncertainty, buys labor and materials, and sells products at uncertain prices.

Innovative.
Entrepreneurs are creative. They do things in new and different ways. For example, they create new products or services, new methods of production, new markets, and new sources of raw materials. They love to explore the unknown, and blaze to new paths of progress.

Innovations are introduced to benefit both the economy and society. Changes are made in response to the needs of people. For instance, the high costs of production serves as an opportunity for entrepreneurs to introduce a technology that can reduce costs of production. Much better, they should introduce an innovation in which creates jobs for the jobless masses. According to the legendary Mohandas Gandhi, the progress of a country depends not on mass production, but on the production of the masses.

Innovations have provided us the products and services of modern civilization. We have wonder drugs, colored TV, computers, robots, cellular phones, cars, airplanes, home appliances, and many more trappings of modern life. Without innovations, we should still remain in our primitive stage of development. However, on the negative side, innovations have given us pollution and diseases. Entrepreneurs therefore should not only innovate for profit, but also ensure the protection of our environment.

Leadership.
Entrepreneurs are leaders by the very nature of their functions. They are people who are task-oriented. They are effective planners, organizers and implementors. And they are achievers. Here are the essential leadership qualities:
 Selfless dedication  Purpose and vision  Courage  Conviction  Enthusiasm  Integrity  Tact  Hardwork

Leaders treat their fellowmen like human beings. They respect human dignity, and are aware of other human needs like belongingness, security, fulfillment and love. Entrepreneurs do not exploit their workers or employees. Instead, entrepreneurs promote the welfare of their employees. When Jose Yulo, owner of the sprawling Canlubang Estate (about 7,000 hectares), was still alive, he gave numerous benefits to his farm workers, like free housing, free water, free electricity, free rice and sugar, free hospitalization and free education. He even installed TV sets were still scarce and expensive for ordinary employees. Thus, his workers loved him. They did not even like to be under the land reform program of the government. They preferred Yulos program.

Positive thinkers.
Entrepreneurs are positive thinkers. They think of success and bright sides. Such success consciousness leads entrepreneurs to success. Success begets success. Dr. Charles Flory, a noted American psychologist, said that wealth does not always come to the most intelligent or to the most ambitious individuals, but those individuals who think money.

There is nothing wrong with thinking and acquiring money and more money if it is used properly. Those who have plenty of money can satisfy their legitimate human needs, and be able to help others, especially the poor. There are many rich entrepreneur who are actively engaged in civic and humanitarian projects.

Individuals who always think of failures and other negative thoughts get exactly what they think. Their failure consciousness or defeatist attitude gives them failure after failure. The poor became poor because they think of poverty. While the rich become rich because they think of wealth.

Decision-makers.
Entrepreneurs make decisions. They cannot avoid this. Being creative or innovative, they always make decisions on how to improve their products, how to create new markets, how to increase consumers satisfaction, or how to maximize profits. The success of their business depends on their ability to make the right decisions.

Decision-making has six distinct phases:

 Identifying the problem;

 Gathering the data about the problem;  Analyzing the data;  Formulating alternative solutions;  Selecting the best solution; and  Implementing the solution/decision.

The aforementioned phases of decision-making is a scientific method of decision-making. However, implementation of the decision is a different matter. It requires leadership which involves skills in dealing with people. In fact, there are many unschooled entrepreneurs. Yet they are successful. They do not know anything about scientific method of decision-making or modern management strategies, such as PERT_CPM, forecasting method, Break-even point analysis, or linear programming. They just rely on experiences, ideas or hunches. They are not afraid to make decisions because of their risk-taking nature and selfconfidence.

The problem has to be identified and defined. Then gather the data relevant to the problem. Organize and analyze the data to be able to come up with alternative solutions. The next step is to determine the best solution. Naturally, the best solution is measured in terms of profitability. But is the solution implementable?

In the final analyses, it is the implementation of the solution that counts. A best solution which cannot be put into practice is not a solution. Peter Drucker, a renowned economist and management consultant, mentions four criteria of choosing the best solution:  Presence of risk  Economy of effort  Time factor  Availability of resources

An ideal solution is one that does not create another problem, and it is most economical in terms of time, labor and money. But of course, the final determinant is the availability or resources. For instance, are there competent employees, adequate funds, necessary materials and facilities to implement the decisions or solutions?

Entrepreneurs are generally. They implement their decisions on trial basis or limited scale. This is to test the feasibility or profitability of their decisions. If they happen to be right in their decisions, they implement their business projects in full-scale. The idea is that if they were wrong in their decisions, their losses have been minimized. However, the problems of implementing a decision can be eliminated or minimized if the decision has been the product of group action. As a democratic process, the beneficiaries, the affected ones and those concerned in the implementation should be involved in decision-making process. In community development, the implementors and beneficiaries of the project must be involve from planning to the implementation of the project.

Japan has many entrepreneurs, because it considers employees the most important resource of business. Employees are involve in planning, decisionmaking and implementation. Top management allows them to participate actively within their areas of competence in the vital aspects of the business. Through this approach, it is much easier to implement programs or projects. This is planning from below or participative management. A former of a poor country said, Planning from the top is planning for the top. Obviously, such kind of planning is not only undemocratic, but also ignores the rights and capabilities of people.

The Development Bank of the Philippines defines the qualities of an entrepreneur. 1. Self-reliant. An entrepreneur counts mainly on his own efforts, and succeeds mainly in by doing a good job. He relies principally on his own merit and work. His self-reliance is founded on hard work. 2. Risk-taker. He rises to a challenge and transfers problems into opportunities. His daring is built on his competence which is marked by openness to new ideas, new skills and new developments. Despite his setbacks and mistakes, he is willing to start all over again. 3. Industrious. He has a strong sense of pride in the workmanship of his product. He is quality conscious in all the components of his business. He is also precise in counting costs and in ensuring the value of money for his product or service.

4. Humble. The true entrepreneur has the humility and single-mindedness of purpose. Where there is a chance to earn, no matter how lowly the task, he is at work patiently, unmindful of his social status. To him rolling to be ashamed of. Patience is his badge of security. Humility is the quality that enables him to build a business from resources or opportunities, simple needs and humble beginnings. 5. Helpful. He learns how to work with others from different fields, conscious that with their help, effectiveness can be multiplied. He thinks of others, especially those working for him, and of the opportunities for advancement he can provide for them. Through appropriate words and works, he shows that he truly cares for their personal welfare and development.

6. Creative. He has a sense of perseverance and a spirit of initiative. Never satisfied with things as they are, he continues to improve, trying new and better ways of doing things. And when difficulties, frustrations and failures come, he is never discouraged. Often, out of these, come something new another success, another problem solved, another opportunity opened, another first. 7. Happy. The joy of this entrepreneur lies in the satisfaction of a customer, whom he puts first over everybody else. He therefore attends to the real needs of his customers with dispatch, efficiency, and graciousness. A service-oriented person, he is a happy man for he has discovered that the joy of giving is its own reward.

Business enterprise failed due to poor management. Being industrious is not enough. It is efficient management that counts most in business success. The entrepreneur must possess the following managerial skills: 1. Ability to conceptualize and plan. The entrepreneur must view all the aspects of the business, such as product, price, cost inventory, etc., in a related and coordinated manner. He must be able to plan for the total operation of the business. His ability to foresee future problems of his business is an excellent asset. 2. Ability to manage others. Management is getting things done by others. As the business grows, more people are needed. The entrepreneur must be able to organize work properly so that his employees can perform their jobs efficiently and effectively. Good human relations and communication are very important for the entrepreneur. By letting others achieve the objectives of the enterprise, the entrepreneur has more time for conceptualizing and planning.

3. Ability to manage time and to learn. The entrepreneur is a generalist. Especially when the business is still small, the owner does everything: clerk, salesman and manager. In view of the various function of the entrepreneur, he should be an expert on time management. He should also acquire basic training in small business management and specialized courses in accounting, finance, marketing, and personnel relations. A real entrepreneur does not actually stop learning. He can do this by reading, attending seminars, or enrolling in college. 4. Ability to adapt to change. Not a few individuals resist change. They stick traditional or established practices. This is the culture of many Filipinos, particularly the unschooled. A businessman who refuses to adapt his operations to changing needs and tastes of consumer is most likely to fail. Entrepreneur, being innovative or creative, quickly response changes for comparative advantage.