The Third Factor- A Third Eye?

For several years my writing and speaking has focused on two factors that are indispensable for entrepreneurs; creativity and tenacity.

Creativity is the drive that not only makes entrepreneurs see opportunities, but also makes them consider every problem or challenge as solvable. It is the part of the business that entrepreneurs enjoy so much. That’s why so many of them are poor managers.

Tenacity is the refusal to accept failure. Any successful entrepreneur has been told at some time that it just won’t work. Most have felt at some point that things were hopeless. The phenomenon is widespread enough to have axioms that entrepreneurs use frequently. “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” Or Nietzsche’s “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.”

These two traits come together often. Let’s call it “tenacious creativity.” When faced with challenges, entrepreneurs think of solutions. If the solution doesn’t work, they think of another, and another, and another. That’s how they survive long enough to become successful.

The Third Eye
The other day my friend and client, Steve O’Donnell of Hill Country Bakery, offered a third required trait: the ability to navigate in the fog. What a great way to phrase it!

Some folks call it vision, but it is more than just knowing where you want your business to go. It’s knowing how to get it there without sign posts. It’s understanding innately what will get you closer to your goals and what won’t. It’s knowing when to listen to advice, and when to ignore it. It’s having a sense of direction in your gut that lets you instinctively choose the right path.

Many religions have the third eye concept. It appears in Taoism, Hinduism, Confucism and Gnostic Christianity. It refers to an instinctive knowledge that can’t be explained by the usual five senses. It may be clairvoyance, or psychic vision, or foretelling the future. It may be all of those things.

But the Third Eye is clearly part of what makes an entrepreneur successful.

Somehow, when Steve said it, I just knew he was right.