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What Makes Athletes Great Entrepreneurs?
What makes athletes great entrepreneurs?
We all know what athletes can do on the playing field. They can show off with high-flying dunks, and break tackles. They can also score touchdowns and knock home runs out of the park. Over and over, they never seize to amaze us with spectacular plays, performances, and games. Over their careers, they naturally develop and hone key skills that allow them to go out every night, and consistently put on a show.

The skills that athletes use on the playing field are also the same skills that are needed to be successful in any aspect of life. These are the same traits needed to reach the top of any field, industry or profession. The exact same traits that help athletes win championships on the playing field are they same ones that are needed to win in the entrepreneurial world.

The entrepreneurial world can be a complete grind, which requires you to have a ton of thick skin along with a “never quit” mentality. Without having a certain mindset combined with the right skills, it can be an emotional rollercoaster that will more than likely lead to failure. Athletes ideally can be great entrepreneurs because they already possess this type of mentality and a skill set that is perfect for achieving success in the business world.

They understand that certain components of the business world are comparable to sports in many ways. They might not initially have the know-how to succeed right away, but with the right guidance, athletes are great suitors to lead companies and enter the start-up world.

Self Drive– Athletes are self-driven and often don’t need extra motivation to get things done. Athletes are constantly pushing themselves everyday to workout, eat right and maintain their bodies, even when coaches aren’t around. There are days where it’s harder for athletes and business leaders to put in the work, but they always motivate themselves to get it done when it counts the most.

Goal Oriented– Athletes set personal and team goals all the time. Whether long term or short term, goals are what push athletes to achieve every day. Goals are crucial in the business world because they monitor what the company needs to do in order to continue running efficiently and effectively. Without goals, there really isn’t a way to measure progress.

Confidence– Confidence is at the top of the list for athletes because without confidence they simply won’t perform to the best of their ability. They have to believe in themselves on and off the playing field or they won’t take risks, make decisions and inevitably won’t get results. Having confidence as an entrepreneur works the exact same way.

Poise– Athletes are poised, composed and calm. They don’t get flustered easily and appear to be collected at all times, no matter the situation. This is critical in the business world because leaders need to be under control at all times. They have to show and lead the team by example; furthermore, focus on controlling situations by staying positive even when things might be going wrong.

Determined & Persistent– Athletes don’t give up. They keep pushing on despite setbacks, or detours. They quickly take their L’s, figure out what went wrong and move on to the next. Having this mentality in the business world is so important because you will hear a ton of “No’s” before you hear one “Yes.” It takes persistence and an attitude that you’ll keep going until you get the answer you want.

Able To Handle Failure– The unfortunate part of life is that failure is inevitable. At some point in an athlete’s career, they’ll lose heartbreaking games or come up short in some type of way. This will also happen in the business world, but it is all about how you brush it off and keep going. Athletes are known to handle and manage failure well, which is imperative in the entrepreneurial world.

These are just some of the traits athletes possess through playing sports for years. There have been many athletes who have made the transition to the business world and have been very successful because of the skills that are above. If you are an athlete thinking about making the leap into the business world, don’t hesitate. You already have what it takes to be a great business leader, all you have to do is approach entrepreneurship the same way you approached your sport ever single day.