What Makes an Entrepreneur?

Not everyone is well suited to the task of starting and running a successful business. That has been a topic for investigation, speculation, and research since the time of Joseph Schumpeter's (1883 - 1950) writings. Schumpeter argued that the innovation and technological change of a nation comes from the entrepreneurs, or wild spirits. Schumpeter came down squarely on the side of the personal individual characteristics associated with entrepreneurs as being the determinative factor. In addition to Schumpeter's idea of the wild entrepreneurial spirit, psychologists have since proposed various critical personal characteristics as being decisive. Some of these characteristics are:

1. A personal need for achievement,
2. the trust in the importance of personal effort on business outcomes,
3. self-confidence,
4. the desire for control,
5. willingness to take risks,
6. tolerance for ambiguity, and
7. decisiveness.

A new study available from the World Bank suggest that family characteristics, or upbringing, have the strongest influence on becoming an entrepreneur. You can find that report here.