9 personality traits for guaranteed success
Ever seen the look of surprise when certain men hear that you are the Managing Director or CEO? Most women are generally content and more likely to take a back-seat when it comes to leadership roles. However, being a woman shouldn’t hold you back or alter your chances of success. It all comes down to personality. You need to develop confidence and a fiercely independent attitude for determination to succeed. Read on to learn more about the important qualities that prosperous businesswomen possess and how to develop them. 1. Ambitious Being successful is not only about being an expert in your industry, but also having the desire to see the bigger picture, and play a greater role in society. A successful entrepreneur has a vision and can see the path ahead and be able to inspire others to help them turn a dream into a reality. 2. Entrepreneurial and hard-working Women can be extremely resourceful. We are able to identify opportunities and develop the relationships that are needed to get work done. Hard work is our secret to success and to be successful you has to learn to sacrifice most of your spare time to build up your business. 3. Passionate Successful female entrepreneurs have a passion for what they do because they tend to develop businesses through the things they enjoy doing. Women have been stereotyped as emotional leaders by men, but really we are just passionate about success and excellence. What you need to do is find your own passion and once you believe in it, turn it into something you can really be proud of. 4. Optimistic/Positive attitude In the face of adversity, you need to be bold enough to stand the test of time. The tendency to look on the positive side of events or conditions helps you maintain a hopeful outlook. With an optimistic perspective, one expects the most favourable outcome, and as such, is more likely to get that favourable outcome. The ability to analyse situations, see the good side of projects and the results showcases a person’s attitude and level of confidence. This trait is contagious. 5. Confidence One of the defining characteristics of being successful is confidence —the ability to understand what you are capable of. A confident personality is essential to win the hearts, respect and earn the trust of clients and build a profitable business with a solid reputation. There is no point in starting a business unless you are confident and believe that you are destined for success. To be a successful Motherland Mogul, you need to stand tall and hold your head up high. Whenever you are around and engaging with other people, smile, shake hands and always maintain eye contact. 6. Assertiveness You also need to be straightforward and confident in our communication with others to enable them to seize new opportunities. You’ll be greatly respected for this. In order to express your ideas, values and abilities you need to be assertive and confident. As a woman, when you are are self-assured, your peers will treat you with respect. Be fearless and learn to speak with authority and purpose. Remember though to also keep calm and deal with criticism rationally. 7. Aggressiveness Being aggressive doesn’t necessarily mean fighting all the time. It involves bringing constructive energy to projects to make sure that things get done. You can enhance this personality trait by developing a determined attitude to make sure you see things through until they are done. 8. Persistence We all get tested and life knocks us down now and again, the secret is in remembering to get back up when we fall. I have one motto, to always remind myself why I started even when I face challenges or opposition. Starting something is one thing, but keeping it going and making sure it’s a success is another. You need to learn the power of persistence and never give up. 9. Humility The business industry is always changing, so you will constantly need to keep up and remain innovative. Successful Motherland Moguls understand this and are willing to put in the extra work to learn and improve. Read books, attend workshops and learn from others. Remain humble and don’t ever be afraid to admit that you don’t know everything.
Always be a dreamer: The story of Grace & other successful women
Grace is a seasoned banker with over 20 years on international banking experience in Europe as well as several countries in Africa. She boasts a successful career and a number of ‘firsts’ in her current bank. Though she at one time loved her job, the enthusiasm is waning as office politics thickens, even as she seeks a more fulfilling vocation. But Grace has another burning desire – to own her own executive events management and floral business. Having grown up in Nairobi, with her stay-home mother, being a keen gardener and floral enthusiast, Grace has a keen interest in flowers. She watched how the floral business flourished and prospered in Kenya –even at export level. Grace is also a good organizer and has a keen eye for events management, particularly corporate events. She has dreamed of having her own events management and floral business for many years – but to date, fear of financial insecurity and stepping leaving her banking job holds her back. She remains frustrated with her job and her life, yet dreams of stepping out into the world working in the area of her passion. Dreamers are daring people They dare to imagine. They dare to imagine a change; they dare to imagine a possibility. Where the audacity to dare becomes a limp hope is when the dreamer ceases to execute for lack of courage and for much of fear. But when we cease to dream and to execute our dreams, we make a folly of our hopes. Our dreams form the very essence of our desires and hope –and we owe it to ourselves, and perhaps even to the world at large, to have the audacity to execute. Ms Oprah Winfrey records that when she decided to move from Baltimore to Chicago as a Talk Show host, everyone thought she was insane, for she, a black woman, was going to the eye of the storm. Chicago was Phil Donahue land, and Phil Donahue was the king of talk show hosts. How and why on earth could Ms Winfrey do this to herself? Why would Chicago want to see a black woman hosting a talk show when they had Phil Donahue? Oh, but Ms Winfrey was a Dreamer. Ms Winfrey was not only a Dreamer but she was also a Doer. She dreamed about her tomorrow, envisioned her futurist self, and had the audacity of hope. She packed up and moved to Chicago. Her audacity delivered on to her – even far beyond what it did for Phil Donahue. Taiye Selasie’s example Let us bring it more home. I recently came across Ghana Must Go, a fascinating book by Taiye Selasie (in feature image). Reading her interviews and her book itself, I was reminded of what Selasie said in one of her interviews on the book: ‘I’m very willing to follow my imagination’. She recalls that the idea for Ghana Must Go came at a yoga retreat in Sweden and got typing. For her, the book was entirely realized. It was a book that she wanted to read, a book whose characters she had dreamt about and conceived, and a book she dared to write. She dared to dream, she dared to write, and the book has delivered much international acclaim. That’s the audacity of hope. Nicole Amarteifio’s example Some of you may have seen the web movie series An African City, created by the fabulous Nicole Amarteifio. The story goes that whilst at University, and having recently seen Sex in the City, Nicole was intrigued to imagine what an African story line may look like. The intrigue literally captivated her, and Ms Amarteifio began the journey of script writing. Research, research, research; script, script and yet more script and a few years down the line (even whilst working an international job), the final script was born. Still working a full time job, Nicole made time and used funds from her savings, friends, and family to gather actresses and all necessary resources to produce the movie, and now the rest is living history. From CNN and BBC interviews, to Forbes Africa Woman features to speaking at the Cambridge University Business School, and being contacted by numerous international TV channels for Season 2 of An African City. Small, deliberate steps. Yes, Oprah Winfrey, Taiye Selasie and Nicole Amarteifio could have fallen flat on their faces, like many others. Yet, the bottom line is that they took small, deliberate steps to actualize their dreams. Small, deliberate steps. They bring us nearer to our hopes and dreams. Images: 1. Oprah Winfrey. Fabrizio Ferri / Harpo Productions. 2. Writer, Producer, and Director Nicole Amarteifio with An African City stars Maame Adjei and Marie Humbert.