As I have the pleasure of working with people when they are on the initial stage of their start up journey, I speak with years of experience of some of the scenarios that I have encountered. I have encountered excited, eager, ambitious, determined, energetic, creative risk takers.

I have also encountered deluded, selfish, opinionated, arrogant chancers.

I have taken so much advice from people and tried to put it into practice. However there is no school like the school of hard knocks to really teach you the lessons that you need to know.

Let's meet these people individually.

The Ambitious.

Don't get me wrong, one needs ambition in spades, however when the ambition comes in the form of a cut throat determination for success that involves knocking everyone out of the way, watch out. This person is the one at the networking event, working the room with such gusto that no genuine conversations take place as their ultimate goal is to find the most powerful person in the room. They are just talking to you until they can corner them. They keep looking over your shoulder and not really listening to you as you have nothing to offer them. We have all encountered them. They can be intimidating to a newbie entrepreneur who feels inadequate by their ability to schmooze the masses, however they usually get found out, so relax and be yourself.

The Determined.

Determination is required in spades. The entrepreneur will need it. Sometimes the determination can be so strong that it blinds the individual, it stops them from listening to reason. They will be given advice around many topics and they will not listen to any of it. Sometimes they are right and sometimes they are wrong.

The Excited.

These are the people you want to be around. They are so proud of the amazing thing that they have just created their enthusiasm is infectious. They are also usually modest, self deprecating and a little bit shocked that they have managed to come up with a great idea. They will be excited but they will not be so confident that they claim the credit alone. They will attribute their success to a whole host of other people who they say did the heavy lifting.

The Risk Takers

Every person in business is a risk taker. If you don't like being around risk takers, don't go into business. Every day is filled with decisions that need to be made, decisions they are not always sure about. Is the project going to be a success? Will I get paid? Can I afford to take on extra staff? Should I buy that new piece of equipment? Should I take that risk on the marketing spend? Should I write a blog and tell people about these fears? Should I be honest about failure.?

The Creatives.

If you are creative, you can't help yourself. You don't create for money, you create for the joy it gives you in creating things. BUT. When you are busy creating products that nobody wants to buy and you need to pay the rent or the mortgage, you sometimes need to listen to advice. Being creative and realistic is an amazing combination. Being creative and practical. Being creative and rich is the combination you are really striving for. Nothing stifles the creative process more than being forced to create for money. it's a very hard lesson to learn starting out in business that you need to value your time and the money you spend in creating a product. Hearing that you need to get a return on your investment can be soul destroying for some people as their labours' of love are dismissed as not really being financially viable or lucrative.

The Chancers

These are the people who open a business and market themselves as the next guru or expert or ninja. They have no real experience at what they are doing. They are not going to let a little detail like that get in the way. These people frustrate the people who spent a lot of money on their education or qualifications or training. For the people who spent years learning their craft and studying, they can feel blindsided when someone runs past them at the speed of light promising the sun moon and the stars and delivering very little.

These people usually get found out. (Not always though)

The Good Eggs.

These people do exist. They are creative , hard working, nice and generous . They are confident enough in their own ability to help others on the way up. They remember what it was like starting out and even though they may have become very successful, they haven't forgotten the hard times. They do nice things like introduce you to people who may help you. They will cheer you up when you are having a hard time. They possess integrity and likeability. When you find these people, hang onto them and appreciate them, they are the best.

Feel free to comment (scroll down for comments )and tell me of any examples you have encountered, good or bad.