These Are the 5 Levels of Entrepreneurial Development

Just like in every other career or aspiration, being an entrepreneur also has its levels. If you are now someone who is self-employed and running your own business, you can level up your game through focusing on developing your entrepreneurial intensity so you can reach the ultimate goal of becoming a true entrepreneur. 

Brad Sugars, world-renowned business author and founder of ActionCOACH, the world’s largest business coaching firm with nearly 1,000 offices worldwide, identifies five different levels of entrepreneurial mindsets, patterns of thinking, and belief systems.

Different degrees or levels of entrepreneurial intensity and drive depend upon how much independence one exhibits, the level of leadership and innovation they demonstrate, how much responsibility they shoulder, and how creative they become in envisioning and executing their business plans. By identifying what level you’re in, and what level you want to be on, you will be able to adjust your actions and mindset to bring out the full potential of entrepreneurship.

These are the five levels of entrepreneurial development: 

LEVEL 1: The Self-Employed Mindset

The first level pertains to self-employed persons who desire to have greater control over their lives, careers, and destinies by independently braving their own path into business.

They believe that they could do their job just as well without an employer—and perhaps, without the need for other employees. They want more autonomy. They want to do things their own way.

LEVEL 2: The Managerial Perspective

The second level, in contrast to the first mindset, has a greater position to succeed as an entrepreneur because of the belief that business is all about managing people.

Managers who become leaders succeed because they accept the challenge and responsibility of ensuring that others under their wings also succeed and flourish. By getting the most out of employees, managers themselves are able to delegate aspects of their business to others and set higher goals. 

LEVEL 3: The Attitude of Owner/Leader

The third level relates to entrepreneurs who have become an owner or leader of a business with a well-established organization.

This entrepreneur enjoys remarkable benefits by knowing how to step aside and let the business—and those employees working in it—operate as a profit center that is not reliant upon the owner’s constant hands-on participation. This kind of entrepreneur has created an organization that is more self-sufficient and self-sustaining.

LEVEL 4: The Entrepreneurial Investor

The fourth level is all about entrepreneurs who are investing and managing their money to produce more money and to elevate the business. Franchising is one of the key tools of those who are in this level of entrepreneurial mindset.

By franchising the original venture or buying up other healthy businesses, the investor can get into the career of not just selling basic products and services, but of selling entire businesses. The goal, of course, is still to turn a profit.

So rather than remaining at the helm of these companies, the investor will buy them, ensure that they have valuable equity or attractive allure and potential, and then sell them to other entrepreneurs or would-be entrepreneurs. The focus becomes finding, buying, and perhaps refurbishing, businesses.

LEVEL 5: The True Entrepreneur

The fifth and last level pertains to an entrepreneur who turns goals and dreams into reality and who earns through extensive passive income. These people profit in all situations and add to their wealth by acquiring more profit centers, more paper assets, and more entrepreneurial power.

The true entrepreneur uses a four-step approach to thinking:

1) idealization of dream;

2) visualization of goals;

3) verbalization of the vision

4) materialization of the dream

Idealization involves imagining ideal world dreams while visualization is all about picturing the ideal world as a reality in order to work on goals. Verbalization pertains to putting the dream and the vision into words and materialization is when that dream becomes real and tangible. 

Having learned new things every step of the way and evolved through various stages of entrepreneurial accomplishment and insight, true entrepreneurs reach the ultimate goal and realize one’s dreams in a really life-changing way. 

ActionCOACH is the world’s largest business coaching firm, helping over 18,000 business owners create more profitable businesses in over 80 countries. In the Philippines, ActionCOACH is partnered with Francorp Philippines in its continued pursuit of Growing Brands from One to Many. Get a Free Business Health Check today to see if Business Coaching is right for you.