Dan Martell on Three Characteristics that Make World-Class Entrepreneurs

What are the requirements to be a quality entrepreneur? Dan Martell, Clarity’s CEO and Founder, Flowtown’s Co-Founder, Spheric Tech’s Founder, 500 Startups’ mentor, and investor in more than 30 startups, revealed his own version on the criteria of being a quality entrepreneur. He claimed that there are at least three characteristics that every entrepreneur must have. What are they?

1. Exceptional Passion

“People say that you have to determine your own passion in doing something. My Dad once told me that if I can find something which won’t backfire and I really have my passion planted on it, then I’ll do splendid things in life. They were right! When I found my passion in technology and code writing, my life drastically changed,” he recounted.

What is passion exactly? No one can define the word as good as Steve Jobs, as he described passion as a power that drives you to accomplish something even when you’re in the most unfavorable situations. Dan claimed that such passion was what he extracted from successful entrepreneurs.

2. Loyal to Their own Products

Dan constantly meet with entrepreneurs and ask them whether they still consume their own products or not. “Many startups are established to solve problems. When you stop using your own products, that’s a problem! Once you quit being a consumer of your products, you’ll lose your feedback and direct user experience,” he explained.

3. Have Huge Problems

“Great entrepreneurs always think to solve big problems that are hard to be solved. I’m not talking about mediocres, who get satisfied with their status quo or plain accomplishments. Take a look at Elon Musk, who keeps designing electric-powered car,” Dan referred.

He added, ”You may use the masterpieces of great investors and say ‘wow, this product is awesome’, but you would never imagine how majestic the sacrifice of people like Steve Jobs (Apple), Ryan Holmes (Hootsuite), or Aaron Levie (Box) was when they work on creating those top-drawer products.”