This is an excerpt from my ebook — Building a Good Foundation — So You Don’t Find Yourself in a Hole.
If you were as smart today as you will be after you open your inn, you possibly would never start your inn. Being able to anticipate all the problems you will face would be the deterrent in any dream pursuit. However, just as you underestimate your project’s roadblocks, you will also underestimate your ability to overcome those hurdles. Let your creative juices flow. During the course of your B&B research you will gain see the most common industry hurdles and prepare yourself for the unforeseen, and get the tools you need to deal with everything you’ll face. Once you are aware of what is required, either you are confirmed, can adapt, or turn away. Whatever you do, don’t ever ignore reality. Risk takers fall into three general groups: non-risk takers, calculated-risk takers, and speculators/gamblers. Which are you?
Start now to understand what kind of entrepreneurial spirit you have. Entrepreneurs have different strengths and weaknesses. You want to understand yours so you can work with them and to explain to others why you are a “good risk” for them. Here’s a list to start working with for your entrepreneurial spirit education:
The Entrepreneurial Personality Profile, as presented by Larry Kutt, a business consultant in the Denver, Colorado, metro area, talks about the possible styles common among entrepreneurs. How many of these apply to you? Are/Do you…
- Action oriented? For you is it Ready! Fire! Aim! (yes, I mean in that order)?
- Can see an opportunity; take initiative or control?
- Deal well with ambiguous information, from different angles and directions?
- Not deal well with authority. Have you been fired (several times, maybe)?
- Follow your own vision. Innovative; don’t follow conventional wisdom?
- Have a good sense of humor?
- Independent. Do things your own way; don’t fit in; strong ego?
- Like excitement and not like team sports as much as individual sports?
- Love your freedom?
- Need to prove yourself?
- Non-analytical, emotional, intuitive, and/or right brained?
- Poor delegator. Do you need to figure out where the money is?
- Practical and get down to work, know the value of money, thrifty?
- Relative lack of fear of risk and failure. Take calculated risks?
- Resilient: Is your attitude if you fail when you’re poor it’s no problem to you?
- Work well under pressure?
- Optimistic — Blindly so?
- Sales oriented — influential, convincing?
- Think work is synonymous with play?
As far as the entrepreneurial bed and breakfast innkeeper is concerned, there are a few personality musts: being a problem solver, flexibility, having a sense of humor, humility, willingness to serve your guests, and respect for others’ differences. And successful innkeepers should have a stable personality, stable relationship with your partner (be that life-partner, children, or business partner), having a sense of self, possess sound management skills. These are the traits that will help you thrive in this industry.
Will your set of characteristics of entrepreneur traits serve you well as a bed and breakfast innkeeper? Is buying a bed and breakfast the best use of your style? Take the above test again as you continue your research into your new career and lifestyle.