Types of Entrepreneurs – Based on Business Characteristics

Sometimes entrpreneurs are categorized based on business characteristics.

Innovators

Innovators are the ground breakers. They see a problem or formulate a novel idea for a viable business, and they forge ahead. They have vision. Innovators typically have a high hurdle to leap when it comes to selling their idea to prospective investors and the public. They may also have some difficulty navigating laws that were not designed to handle their new business idea.

On the other hand, they typically have no direct competition, and if the business is successful, everyone will know the innovator’s name: Beyonce, Jeff Bezos, Walt Disney, Henry Ford, Arianna Huffington, Steve Jobs, Cher Wang, Oprah Winfrey (to name a few off the top of my head).

Hustlers

Hustlers are those that are in the trenches. They may start off small and tend to outwork most people. Hustlers are typically resilient but are prone to burnout. It’s difficult for them to share the workload and when they do they often get frustrated that others don’t share their drive or work ethic.

Imitators

Imitators latch on to someone else’s idea or business model and either bring it to their community or set out to improve upon it. Their goal is often to make an existing product or service better to gain an upper hand in the market; to be the standout.

Learning from others is part of the Imitator’s game plan. The problem is while that can be helpful, it can be tough being the next or newest product and compared to the original. Consider bandages. When you cut yourself, what is the item you put on your finger? Is it a band-aid?

Researchers

Researchers think out every angle before proceeding. They look for issues, compile data, and plan for as many contingencies as possible. One can expect a detailed business plan from a Researcher. The problem is that they are often gun-shy about starting. They overthink and take too long to get going. While they may be minimizing their failure potential, they may also foreclose themselves if someone launches the product or idea first.

Buyers

Buyers are those that purchase businesses they have confidence in. They don’t run the businesses but rather purchase them and then hire someone to run them. If a Buyer waits until market share is already established, they minimize their risk. Sometimes a Buyer thinks they can rescue a company but that carries risk.