6 Soft Skills Every Entrepreneur Needs

When I was in high school, we were told that being an entrepreneur was for people who couldn’t get jobs. They don’t teach the skill sets in school because school is set up to lead everyone to a 9-5 job working for 'the man'.

It’s not until you get to college that you’ll find courses on being an entrepreneur. And even then, it’s taught by people who only know theory... oftentimes, they’ve never actually run a business. On the other hand, I've been in this entrepreneur game for over 14 yrs. I have seen and done a lot. And none of this stuff is taught in the MBA program.

So, in true Viv style, I’m going to share 6 soft skills that are essential to running a business that NO ONE tells you about! Keep reading for all the details!

#1 Self-confidence

I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve had to correct people when they refer to their business as “my little business” or worse, "only a hobby". I actually had someone introduce herself to me as someone who’s been in business for "just a year".

When I asked her what she actually did, she said she was a leadership expert and was featured in Brene Brown’s book. WHAT?!?!?

Are you trying to stay small sis? Are you not trying to do big things? How do you think Chad would’ve introduced himself?

If you don't believe in your business, why would you expect anyone to believe in you?

You have to believe in yourself, Sis.⁣

#2 Resilience

Nothing will knock you down as many times as being an entrepreneur. Setbacks, failures, and losing money are all part of the game. You need some thick skin and higher-than-average risk tolerance to play. ⁣

This literally is the time when you have to put your big girl panties on and get shit done. No matter how you feel.

That’s the entrepreneur life.

#3 Communication

Did you know that the average attention span is 8 seconds?

Your ability to get your message across clearly and concisely is more important than ever as an entrepreneur. So is the ability to build rapport with your customers and your team.

Don’t be afraid to simplify for the sake of being clear and getting your important message across, quickly!

#4 Time Management

Time = Money and the only one making that money is you! You can always make money back, but time is irreplaceable.

What you can't be doing is spend your time scrolling Instagram if it's not for work purposes or comparing yourself to others.

As an entrepreneur, you need to focus on spending your time in ways that will actually move your business forward!

#5 Teaching yourself new skills

Being able to teach yourself new things is one of the most valuable skills you can have as an entrepreneur, especially when you haven't started making money.

You can do this with books, podcasts, webinars, courses, audiobooks, conferences or shows like Mind Your Business.

Just be sure you're also taking ACTION to implement your new skills and not just learning for the sake of learning.⁣

#6 Patience

Boy, do you need patience because being an entrepreneur is not as sexy as I make it look. *cackles Vivly* Even though social media makes this look easy, this shit is hard.

The thought that freedom can be produced within a couple of weeks or a few months is a complete myth.

What you’re NOT seeing on Instagram is the process involved or the many failures people had to go through for you to see the “overnight” success.

Patience is a lot of small actions to get to the big result.

Being an entrepreneur is a rollercoaster ride but if you can master these 6 soft skills, you'll be well on your way to success (eventually - remember that patience thing)!