4 Traits Every Entrepreneur Needs to Survive and Thrive

4 Traits Every New Entrepreneur Needs to Survive and Thrive

July 11, 2026

Being an entrepreneur is the most rewarding and fulfilling experience I’ve had in the past six years (almost seven) of my life.

Even before I began taking risk and experimenting with new startups, I had the urge to learn and at the very least, develop some entrepreneurial traits.

I’ve started and failed, started again, did something better this time, failed again. Eventually coming across my current mountain.

If you’re a new entrepreneur, I know exactly how you feel.

The uncertainty, the doubt, the fear of jumping into the unknown — an imaginary pitch-black veil in front of you, not knowing what is going to happen when you do.

The feeling of making the jump can feel scary and paralyzing.

I went through the exact same feelings and I’ll spoil this; it goes away only after you experience a few of the inevitable in entrepreneurship, which I’ll break down below.

Who am I?

Simply put, I’m someone who is passionate about creating. And in my creative process, I’ve experienced massive financial success, a following, big media mentions, and all the incredible things one thinks about is on the other side of success.

Today, what drives me isn’t so much the money anymore. But rather the experience of being an entrepreneur. The experience of getting to do what I do.

I’m more fulfilled now in this new chapter of my entrepreneurial journey than when I was at my peak.

Below are what I believe to be the single most important traits every new entrepreneur needs to not only survive, but to also thrive.

Let’s get started!

Ambition: Hunger, Drive, and Commitment

We become entrepreneurs because we simply want more.

We do not settle for our current situation. A 9-5 job is not for us.

The thought of being chained to someone else’s creation is unfathomable to some extent until you do this long enough and you can never go back.

December 29,2022: Celebrating another year of entrepreneurship without a boss.

Some of us grew up with little, were exposed to success at some point and were inspired or had no other option.

What sparks somebody to become an entrepreneur usually begins with a hunger and drive to attain or achieve something bigger.

Usually, it’s money. We all want to make the big bucks. We get tired of just getting by and settling for what we have.

Money is a great motivator in the beginning of your journey, don’t ever feel bad or let anyone tell you it’s wrong.

What you feel inside your chest though, that’s your drive. There’s something deeper inside you that wants to come out.

It could be one of many things: the need to express yourself through a creative, the need to prove yourself, or a mission you feel you must complete.

This drive is a superpower.

But of course, none of it matters if you cannot be committed.

When you create your brand or business, you must remain committed all the way through. You cannot stop at the first signs of road bumps, or even major ones.

You must go through it all.

Most entrepreneurs do not get to the next part of this read simply because they couldn’t commit long enough.

This is different than starting something, restarting it again only better this time, calculating this is not the path for XYZ reasons, and going full force into something greater.

You will eventually find your mountain to climb.

As entrepreneurs, we have a history of experimenting with startups, that’s okay.

When you find that ‘thing’, you’ll know. That’s when you must commit.

Also Read: Here’s How Our Small Business Made 5-Figures in 90 Days

Vulnerability: The Willingness to Step Outside Your Comfort Zone

Ladies and gentlemen, you cannot get away with this one.

If you made it this far into the read, you might just be able to make it out there.

If you want to survive and thrive as an entrepreneur, you must be willing to step outside your comfort zone.

Let me start by saying this, I know the dread, the feeling of not wanting to do something that makes you feel slightly uncomfortable.

Stay with me here.

That exact feeling that you and I have both felt, is what it feels like to grow.

That exact feeling is what gives you experience points (exp+2, exp+10).

See, the entrepreneur version of yourself that already lives the way you yearn to live has had to gain an incredible amount of experience.

So, meet them there. Every, single, day.

These are your reps. You must be willing to step outside your comfort zone every day, whatever that is to you.

It might be making a cold call or sending cold emails. It might look like booking online or in-person meetings.

Every time you feel that anxiety of stepping outside your comfort zone, it’s actually your body responding to developing a new skillset; one that wasn’t there before.

This is why it feels the way it does. You’re changing. You’re becoming something more. And to obtain more, you must become more than what you currently are.

Grit: Every Successful Entrepreneur Must Be Able to Weather Chaos

Chaos comes in many forms in the world of entrepreneurship.

Chaos may look like a temporary failure, a temporary rerouting, or a complete decimation of everything you’ve built.

The force us to make decisions, and they show us who we really are.

We live in a world of probabilities. Never forget this.

Business can be going great for a year, two, five even, and then something in the industry shifts.

A successful entrepreneur is only successful because they choose to be.

When my media asset took off in 2021, I aspired for more. And I got more, everything I wanted.

My dream car, $30K – $70K per month working from home; I was finally building at scale living the life I envisioned for myself.

And then everything came crashing down in 2025 when a series of events, including an algorithm knocked me off one hundred stories high.

This was the biggest chaos I’ve had to endure in my journey, though there were many prior, which I’ll share in another blog post.

While I won’t share that pain here at this time, I’ve been able to build something stronger. Something less volatile and more unshakeable.

Frank Nez - Entrepreneur motivation — 4 traits every entrepreneur needs to survive and thrive.

My business partner and I were able to take our new business to 5-figures per month in only 90 days, with our highest month at the time of this writing being $18.8K so far and this month already having over $20K in the sales pipeline.

I didn’t quit my media asset, but the landscape shifted, the circumstances changed, and I was forced to make a decision: pivot and grow through the pain or throw in the towel in entrepreneurship and apply for a safe job.

Even in spirt-shattering pain, I made the decision to be successful. You CAN choose to be successful, even during difficult moments.

Every successful entrepreneur must be able to weather chaos.

Chaos brings forth experience points (exp+100), and opportunities.

Your success, business, and brand cannot be unshakeable unless you are unshakeable.

It does not mean you cannot feel, but rather you must develop the strength to move forward while you feel.

Discipline: A Strong Work Ethic Will Propel You Years Ahead

Having a strong work ethic and the discipline to get things done no matter what is happening in the background will propel you years ahead.

From my experience in entrepreneurship, being able to outwork everyone has always been a recipe for my success.

The long hours, the long nights, working past your emotions, simply getting sh*t done.

To thrive as an entrepreneur, you must have the discipline to do the things most people are not willing to do. And yes, it really is simpler said than done, but it does not change the fact.

Success and all your visions will require your disciple to stay strong through the tough moments and to remain consistent throughout the good ones.

Andy Frisella was one of the first entrepreneurs I heard in my earlier years preach to never let off the gas pedal, even when you are experiencing success.

See, you must always be feeding the pipeline, you must always be growing. Tony Robbins said if you’re not growing, you’re dying.

You cannot get comfortable once you get a taste of success. You must double down.