EGR 491 High-Tech Entrepreneurship instructor Chris Kuenne recently gave a talk on his book Built for Growth which he co-authored with another Keller Center faculty member, John Danner (EGR 488: Designing Ventures to Change the World). Their book helps us to understand the personality traits of successful entrepreneurs in a way that will build teams and ventures that have growth potential.
Through research and experience, Kuenne and Danner have categorize entrepreneurs by what motivates them, how they make decisions, how they manage, and how they lead. From there, they are grouped into one of four personality types the co-authors have termed: Driver, Explorer, Crusader, or Captain. Understanding the personality dynamics of your team is integral in the success of your venture. Kuenne and Danner have taken Socrates' idea of know thyself a step further and advise entrepreneurs to discover and apply thyself.
The crowd of 50+ students and local entrepreneurs questioned Kuenne on the role of entrepreneurship on Princeton’s campus, the ability to adapt one's personality to fill gaps in a team, what support is out there for students to further delve into the question of entrepreneurial personality, and what it means for a future as an entrepreneur if you don’t fit into one of those personality categories. It was a lively engaged group and many stayed after the talk to continue the conversation.
Curious as to which type of entrepreneur you are? Take the Builder Personality Discovery Quiz.
Related People
Entrepreneurship Specialist; Lecturer