As the founder of a high-growth business, one of the critical factors that will impact your sustained success will be your level of self-awareness and your ability to leverage it to make sound business decisions.
Do you know: What kind of entrepreneur you are? What are your strengths? What are the weaknesses? And what are the skills should you look for in your employees to help mitigate your weaknesses?
Unfortunately, far too many entrepreneurs shy away from these questions – particularly when it comes to talking about their weaknesses. Society conditions us to see weakness as a negative when in reality the ability to acknowledge and accept weakness can actually be your greatest strength.
One of the models I use to frame my thinking around my personal strengths and weaknesses as an entrepreneur is Gino Wickman’s Visionary vs. Integrator model.
In this blog, I’ll share the characteristics of each kind of entrepreneur to empower you to start playing to your strengths – and hiding your weaknesses.
The first kind of entrepreneur is a Visionary
Typically Visionaries spend their time thinking big picture. They see the future, have a pulse on the consumer and understand the future needs of their customers. Their time is spent thinking strategically and connecting the macro dots in order to drive a company forward.
While they excel in big-picture and creative thinking, their weaknesses tend to lie in the implementation elements of a project. They have a lot of ideas, but their wishlist is often bigger than their resources.
While visionary-thinking is absolutely essential to building a great business, if left completely unchecked, this kind of leadership can actually have an adverse effect on an organisation as it can result in a lack of company focus or direction.
Being a visionary is a gift. Visionaries are what push the world forward. However, a genius in the wrong position looks like a fool. If you are a Visionary, you need to make sure you surround yourself with an Integrator or a team of Integrators.
The second type of entrepreneur is an Integrator
If we think of a Visionary as an architect, then the Integrator is the builder.
In contrast to Visionaries, an Integrator’s strength lies in execution. They are able to take complex ideas and manage them through to completion. They’re a steadying force, and often a voice of reason that realises when they need to say “no” to certain ideas.
When it comes to detail, managing people, and creating organisational clarity, Integrators shine. However, they may get so caught in the day-to-day that they fail to see the bigger picture.
What type of entrepreneur are you?
You might be a Visionary, you might be an Integrator or you might be a combination of the two – neither is better or worse.
What’s important is knowing who you are, so you can amplify your strengths, manage your weaknesses, and surround yourself with people who cover your weaknesses.
Want to learn more about how you one benefits the other, and why it's necessary to have a combination of this in a business? Check out my blog on the 11 principles I've learned in the last 11 years of The Entourage that includes this important lesson.
