The Five Unusual Characters You Will Encounter As An Entrepreneur

Being an entrepreneur puts you in a very unique position and changes your lifestyle in a number of ways. Now, you will be a member of an elite ‘club,’ of entrepreneurs like yourself. Like the members of the new circles that you will soon run with, you will also begin to operate at different times of the day.

Be prepared to now stand out from the rest of the people you encounter. Ninety-nine point nine percent of the population (probably…) work for other people and make their wages by doing what they’re told to do in an office – but you are cutting your own path, setting your own pace and doing something you’re probably very passionate about.

All this means you’re going to come into contact with some interesting people, and you’re going to have some unique encounters and interactions. To ready you for the rollercoaster ride that awaits you, let’s take a look at some of the different characters you’ll likely meet at some point or another.

The Blowhard

When you become a successful entrepreneur you’ll find that you suddenly attract the attention of all manner of people who believe they have what it takes to do the same. When these people meet you they will see opportunity, and other entrepreneurs will be happy to have finally found a kindred spirit.

Only not all of them will really be ‘like you.’ Some of them will just think that they are great entrepreneurs, and these characters are going to spend ages telling you what amazing plans they have (and how they involve you) without ever actually acting on them in any way.

Avoid these people because ultimately they will prove to be a waste of your time – there’s nothing to be gained from having hundreds of long ‘business meetings’ where you just pat each other on the back.

The Unrealistic Apprentice

Being a mentor is a great feeling, and sometimes you’ll genuinely find someone who wants to learn and whom you can help in turn. Other times though you’ll find people who wish that they did what you did, but are never really going to take the leap.

They’ll ask you to build them websites, teach them about business, and maybe even to invest in them – but they’ll never actually take your advice or do anything to start setting up their own business.

Again these people are unfortunately only going to waste your energy, so try to assess quickly whether they are really serious or whether they’re just deluding themselves.

The Jealous Types

Some people you meet will want to learn, but others are just going to be down on your success and say things like ‘why don’t you get a real job?’ These types are usually the people who still live with their parents and work in supermarkets, so don’t take what they say to heart.

The Motivational Speaker

As an entrepreneur you’ll probably go to a number of networking events, and often these will lead to other events with motivational talks and speakers. Other times you’ll meet people who just fancy themselves motivational characters and will have a similar amount of pep and charisma but without the audience…

These guys are certainly characters… and while they’re perfectly harmless they are also a little hyper and need to be taken with a pinch of salt.

The Absolute Genius

Of course some entrepreneurs you meet are simply going to be amazing at what they do. These are the people who clearly think differently from everyone else and who tend to just ‘get on with it’ rather than shouting about how revolutionary they are. They are a sight to behold, and they are definitely the ones you want to seek out and learn from.

Top Photo Courtesy: Wolf Of Wall St