What it takes to be a successful entrepreneur?

People often ask me if I think they have what it takes to be an entrepreneur. There is no "one size fits all" quality. Entrepreneurs each have strengths in different areas. Some of them are amazing players who make remarkable things happen on a limited budget. Other genes are in their area of ​​expertise and transform their industry. Still others have the ability to find a hole in an existing market and successfully exploiting to turn a profit.

Some of the most successful entrepreneurs I've seen are re-arrangers. They take existing solutions (sometimes from other sectors) and applies them in new ways scenarios / to create value.

If I were forced to choose a quality that is indicative of business success, it would be this ability to find new uses for existing solutions. Too many people believe it is necessary to have the next great idea in order to start your own business. This is not true. It is equally effective to apply an old idea of ​​the next big problem. Here's an example:

As part of one of my previous work I have done a business of cleaning the apartment. We have cleaned over 1000 apartments in New York. As part of a large company, we had specific rules that were required to be followed (in order to maintain the integrity of the brand). One of these rules is that our apartments not only be clean, would be "hospital clean". This required using cleaning products that were developed specifically for us. Theses products thoroughly clean and kill germs better than other chemicals on the market. The challenge for our operations team is that our apartments were in many different buildings scattered throughout the five boroughs of New York. The cleaning staff was required to travel (by public transport) from one place to another. How could they carry their tools and cleaning supplies from one place to another?

The answer came from a trip to the airport. Roller-board (suitcases on wheels) had been used by business travelers for years. We bought a few pieces of luggage and adapted them to our challenge. Within eight weeks we had refined this idea to the point where the cleaning staff could bring the supplies they needed in a rolling bag the size of a large bag. This "lightning" struck when one of our operations managers was taking a relative to the airport. Everyone was pulling their bags personally - even children. These bags would be too heavy for them to play by themselves if they have wheels. He thought, "that is what we need."

Sharpening this skill requires practice. Here are three ways to start developing your powers of rearrangement.

View every problem as mutually exclusive. Many times the situations are more complicated to solve them first. Remove any situation and you will discover some smaller issues that can be easily solved. Every little problem is resolved will have implications. Sometimes these will take a slightly different direction from what you expected. See if you can still get the desired end result, even if you are traveling along a new path.

Start the final result and take a step back. Too often people get caught up in solving a problem in a particular way. Identify the desired end result first and then think deeply. As you reflect on the final result begin to list the different ways to achieve it. List everything - even the processes they see as "crazy". This will help you expand your thinking to the point where you could simply apply an old solution to a problem again.

Bring in people who know nothing. Many large companies use "cross-functional teams" to solve problems. This is nothing more than bringing in people from other parts of the business to look at the situation with a fresh set of eyes. You should do the same thing in your business. Ask your accountant to look at your distribution system. Ask your lawyer to take a shot at solving the problem of customer traffic. Talk to your UPS delivery person worries about fleet management. Good ideas come from many different places. You may not get the exact answer you're looking for, but you can get some clues that will make the final result.

In the end, starting a business requires the resolution of a million little problems (and a few large). Successful entrepreneurs are excited by this process. You can develop the skills of re-arranger. All you need is an open mind and desire to succeed .......