‘Successful people are simply those with successful habits’ – Brian Tracy

Which are those effective habits that help you become a successful entrepreneur?

We have rounded up 16 useful business tips and inspiring quotes from some of the world’s best known entrepreneurs on achieving business success:

It’s not necessary to work from an office

If you are a beginning entrepreneur, you may not have an office to begin with. But Sir Richard Branson suggests that having formal office space is not necessary in order to be successful. The more important thing is to get your work done and make decisions.

Plan ahead and have a resilience to failure

Planning is extremely important for any entrepreneur. Sir Richard Branson suggests planning for all the worst eventualities that could occur. He says that your ability to deal with failure will determine how successful you will be.

Observe consumer behaviour

If you want to make your business successful, make it a point to observe common frustrations and problems that people around you appear to face. Focus on these to differentiate your business from the competition.

Gather information

Bill Gates, the US based billionaire and owner of Microsoft, says that the way you gather information has a deep impact on business success. Spend time collecting and gathering information about your market and your target customers.

Focus on offering impeccable customer service

According to Bill Gates, the businesses that offer the lowest prices do not always become the most successful ones but the ones who offer excellent customer service always become successful.

Do what you love

Brian Sharples, co-founder of holiday rental websites HomeAway advises to choose something that is in line with your passion. In doing so it will never feel like work.

Work on your strategy

However good your information and preliminary preparation is, your business will only succeed when you have a good strategy in place. Bill Gates warns that a bad strategy can ruin great planning.

Take cues from your gut feeling or intuition

Sir Phillip Green, one of UK’s top entrepreneurs, suggests that if your gut instinct or intuition says that something’s wrong, it probably is. If you are unable to make a decision, pay attention to your inner voice.

Look out for opportunities… and take them

Founder of Wal-Mart, Sam Walton, advises you to seize opportunities when they arise. ‘There will come a time when big opportunities will be presented to you, and you’ve got to be in a position to take advantage of them.’

Be prepared to work hard to reap the rewards

Or as Vidal Sassoon put it: ‘The only place success comes before work is in the dictionary.’

Aim for success

Eike Batista, Brazilian business magnate encourages you not to focus on perfection, but to focus on success instead. His reasoning being that you shouldn’t think you are unstoppable or foolproof, and don’t think that the only way your business will work is through perfection. Aim for success. 

Don’t be afraid of criticism

Or as Amazon founder Jeff Bezos put it: ‘If you never want to be criticised, for goodness’ sake don’t do anything new.’

Make others laugh

Azim Premji, Indian businessman and philanthropist, says that if people aren’t laughing at your goals, your goals are too small. Go on, give them something to laugh about. Then enjoy it when you reach your goals.

Don’t be afraid of making mistakes

UK’s hotshot entrepreneur, James Dyson, says that true entrepreneurs are never afraid to make mistakes. Take advice from experts but make your own decisions.

Take risks

Successful entrepreneurs do not get intimidated by risks. James Dyson tells aspiring entrepreneurs to be ready to take risks and work hard from that point. Risks may or may not pay off, but in order to really successful, you must be ready to take risks; this is the real thrill of building up

Don’t be afraid of failure

Sara Blakely, the founder of Spanx, says that failure is not the outcome – failure is not trying. Don’t be afraid to fail.

Listening to established entrepreneurs and paying heed to their words is an excellent way to pave the way for business success. What is your favourite inspirational quote or piece of advice? Let us know in the comments.