What Kind of Small Business Owner Are You?

For small business owners, their company is often a reflection of themselves. It’s personal. More than their larger counterparts, small businesses embody the goals, priorities and personalities of their owners. People who choose to start a business instead of working for someone else are unique. No surprise — running a small business requires an enormous amount of drive and commitment.

Every business owner’s individual personality traits influence how they run their business and make decisions about the future. Small business owners can play to their strengths by gaining a deeper understanding of different types of small business leaders and the management approach each type takes.

Here are the four distinct types:

• The Visionary — puts their vision and values first when making decisions about strategy, hiring employees and selecting suppliers.
• The Problem-Solver — addresses both routine problems and unexpected obstacles by designing and implementing creative solutions.
• The Director —applies a thoughtful and pragmatic process to business strategy and decisions; effective at optimizing available resources.
• The Hands-Free Owner — sets a high level course, but tends to be removed from daily decisions.