While the thought of being an entrepreneur is a glamorous one, actually being one is a lot different. It is complete with all the rigor and the stress, the glory comes much later. Everyone can think about being an entrepreneur but not everyone can be one. The ups and downs that an entrepreneur faces to build their business can only be understood by another entrepreneur. Below are 8 things only an entrepreneur would understand:

1. Work is on their mind 24×7: An entrepreneur thinks about work all the time. They are always looking for solutions to problems. They literally eat, drink and sleep work. This is not because they lack interest in everything else, instead, they are so engrossed in setting up or keeping their business on track, that work becomes their number 1 priority. When they  are starting out, they are mostly all by themselves and they have to take care of multiple business functions, this makes it imperative for them to work overtime and work related problems and issues are on their mind all the time. In fact, they are so passionate about their work, that they can find work related inspiration and new ideas in even coffee table conversations.
2. They want work to happen at supersonic speeds: An entrepreneur does have patience for setting up their work and seeing it grow. However, they are so full of ideas that they want the work to happen much faster than it often does. Moreover, they are often experts in what they do and hence, are faster than any other average worker. Their own speed of work raises their expectation of the speed at which others must work. Another thing is that they want to implement a zillion ideas sparking in their brain. But executing all ideas at once is not possible, therefore they want work to happen at supersonic speeds.
3. Involved in all business functions: A business has different functions such as production, operations, sales, marketing, supply chain, finance and HR. An entrepreneur makes sure they have complete knowledge of each aspect thoroughly. In fact, while starting out, they often handle all these aspects by themselves. In this way they are aware of each aspect and how it connects with the overall business goals and where, if any, change might be required to enhance business growth.
4. Taking risk comes easy to them: An entrepreneur is someone who has risk-taking capacity. Being an entrepreneur is not all about just being successful and rich. Being an entrepreneur requires the capacity to undergo the grind that comes before tasting success. Entrepreneurship is not a linear path, one has to go through the crests and troughs. They enjoy their success but they also learn from their failures.
5. Firing employees is part of their job: They may not always like it, but they do not keep underperforming or non-performing employees as part of their team. They are in the business to write a success story, and they actively weed out the weak links. This may lead to taking some decisions, at times even having to fire someone who is their friend. But business takes precedence over friendship.
6. Sickness doesn’t wear them down: They do not like to take sick leaves. Their passion for work runs deep and they can’t afford to miss a single day at work. Some of them can actually get guilt pangs on missing work due to sickness. They understand the money-value of time and thus, every moment they take off work is akin to money lost. However, entrepreneurs must not just be workaholics. Maintaining good health is important to continue to work and resting when one’s sick is at times necessary.
7. Failure does not scare them: Entrepreneurs know and understand that failures are inevitable and that they won’t be successful in everything they do. Hence, they take failures in their stride instead of being scared of them. An entrepreneur’s mind looks for opportunities and ideas within a failure as well.
8. Ideating is a constant in their lives: Entrepreneurs never stop thinking. They are enamored by life and every little thing in life can be a inspiration for them. Their idea triggers can sometimes be absolutely inane but that is what makes them different from the non-entrepreneurs. New business ideas are always pouring in their heads and they don’t miss to write them down, lest they forget.

The determination, passion and drive in entrepreneurs is at a different level and it separates them from the rest. They believe in doing things here and now. They are tough people and life’s vagaries don’t bog them down. If you think there is entrepreneurship in your blood, you’ll do well to pick from one of the many available entrepreneurship courses to start your entrepreneurship journey.