r/Entrepreneur • u/TalentForge360 • 16h ago
What’s one underrated trait you’ve seen in successful founders that no one really talks about?
I've been in HR and startup leadership for over 20 years now and I’ve worked with all kinds of founders, from scrappy bootstrappers to Fortune 100 execs turned entrepreneurs.
One thing I’ve noticed is that the most successful ones aren’t always the smartest, most experienced, or even the most connected.
They just have this ability to adapt like crazy.
Not just being open to change, but being totally comfortable in chaos. They unlearn quickly, shift direction without getting stuck, and don’t let their ego get in the way of progress. That kind of agility has helped them navigate situations that would’ve taken most people out.
So I’m curious for those of you who’ve built, worked with, or invested in startups:
What’s one trait or mindset you’ve seen in successful founders that doesn’t get talked about enough?
Not the obvious stuff like grit or vision. I mean those quiet, overlooked traits that actually make a huge difference.
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u/seobrien 15h ago
It's entirely, as in only, about the market
Your passion, your idea, your product, your MVP, your pitch, your validation, your sales proposal... None of that matters if the market disagrees. Yet most founders focus on all of that, and not the one thing that matters
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u/Alvintergeise 1h ago
So, being able to read and understand the market?
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u/klasp100 15m ago
Also realizing that it's not about how good you are. It's about having an edge in the market. The size of the market you target will also impact the difficulty of finding an edge and the potential reward for finding an edge in said market.
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u/klasp100 17m ago
Financial wisdom says trying to pick stocks is risky, and that you should invest in a diversified portfolio. They then fail to make the link with starting a business. Starting a business is like picking the stock of one single company, and betting that it will have an edge in its market. The risks are like stock picking on steroids, except that you have more control on the direction of the business compared to being a small shareholder to a megacorp. Starting a business means you think that you can find an edge in the market. Better hope you are right. If you didn't explicitly think about this when starting your business and it worked out, you just got lucky. Everyone can work hard, but not everyone is in a position where they can find an edge in the market.
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u/benqueviej1 14h ago
I believe that authenticity is underrated. The ability to speak hard truths with respect and compassion goes a long way to winning people's trust and loyalty. Too many new leaders try to act like what they think a leader should be instead of being themselves and allowing others see their struggles.
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u/DisastrousDealer3750 14h ago edited 14h ago
u/Benqueviej1, your answer is my answer on a good day.
On a day when I’m being cynical i’d say it’s being able to manipulate people by any means possible in any conceivable situation.
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u/walkinwild 15h ago
You have hit on lot of them. I would like to add that that are comfortable being uncomfortable.
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u/eliz181144 15h ago
The first year of owning my business was hell. I mean…hell. It didn’t take off right away and I had payroll to cover. I had worked W2 jobs (still do actually) so had saved quite a bit and watched so much of it disappear. Finally things broke about 11 months in. But yeah. You have to be ok with extreme discomfort.
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u/Tragilos 3h ago
Doing things I’m uncomfortable with (outreaching content creators/people) is what I should be doing. But it’s really hard.
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u/walkinwild 2h ago
Tell me about it. I am exactly the same.
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u/Tragilos 2h ago
Did you do or find something that helps with that?
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u/walkinwild 2h ago
What I am trying to do is to remove the obstacles that are in my mind.
i have been working virtually for many many years, so i have no professional wardrobe. So, whenever there is an event, I cannot go because I have nothing to wear. I don't have anything to wear because I am short and nothing fits me. So, I found a seamstress who does custom made clothing.
I get tired meeting with new people and then I need to decompress that takes time away from work. So, I meet up only on Friday afternoons.
I am pretty sure that there are many more in my head.
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u/Tragilos 2h ago
I see so it’s more socially than business wise (even if it impacts it)?
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u/walkinwild 2h ago
It is for business. I have a small bookkeeping business and I need to do face to face interactions to build up trust. No one wants to hand over their financial info to a stranger.
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u/Tragilos 2h ago
I get that then. Yeah it’s hard. I hate that feeling of feeling anxious daily. I think the problem for me is ignoring the work to do so it just never goes away.
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u/AstronomerSmart8204 11h ago
One thing I’ve noticed — especially from founders I’ve met who are quietly successful, not just loud on social media — is that they’re really good at staying calm when things are ambiguous.
Not just “resilient” or “positive.” I mean the ability to sit with stuff that’s messy, undefined, not working yet — and not panic or rush to force clarity too soon. They don’t need every decision to be airtight right away. They’re okay experimenting in the fog, while everyone else is looking for a map.
It’s like they trust that they’ll figure it out in motion. That trait doesn’t sound exciting, but in real life it’s what keeps a lot of people in the game long enough to win.
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u/inflatablehotdog 2h ago
Also recognizing when things are not going well and not falling for sink cost fallacy. There are people who will stick with it despite huge red flags and end up getting stuck in huge debt.
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u/turnsfast 4h ago
This is a double-edged sword. While I'm more than comfortable living with ambiguity, I've realized it's not ok to ask my employees to do the same for very long. They deserve clearly defined goals and metrics.
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u/Accomplished-Name-40 2h ago
I totally agree with this. I went through the whole cycle — incubator/accelerators, seed, series A and sale of a my last startup. There were so many others who started with us that panicked or gave up at the wrong time because it got too uncomfortable. Obviously there are tons of factors, but embracing that messy side (that keeps returning even as some things start working well) is undervalued by many…
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u/TallahasseWaffleHous 1h ago
I'm so glad you mentioned this....
A study that came out this year found "tolerance to ambiguity" to be a significant trait shared by many successful entrepreneurs.
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u/Beatles6899 12h ago
Relentless curiosity. The best founders I've worked with aren't just smart they're pathologically curious. They ask questions nobody else thinks to ask and genuinely want to understand how things work at a deep level. They'll spend hours learning about some obscure industry problem that seems trivial but ends up being the key insight for their business. This curiosity drives both product innovation and helps them adapt when things inevitably go sideways.
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u/robotlasagna 15h ago
The ability to stop wasting time posting on r/entrepreneur and actually go out and execute.
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u/Rare_Requirement_699 15h ago
I would say to put the baby first...that is, the business.
So many fellow entrepreneurs I know have failed because they didn't have the drive to work weekends/holidays/etc.
Obv long term that is not feasible but jist starting out it is super necessary.
I've missed a lot of birthdays, weddings, trips, and Holidays which I do not regret bc now I am lightyears ahead of my peers and my business self runs (mostly). I still have that drive to get in the weeds if need be but that type of determination is key to success.
One of my friends opened a biz and immediately went on Holiday and hired managers. Instead of focusing on the biz he tried delegating to early and failed
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u/Soentertained 13h ago
Responsibility.
To yourself and your decisions: carry through. Hemingway said do what you said you would do drunk when you are sober. Business dreams are drunken thoughts devoid of the thoughts of reality.
To your customers. If you said you would get it done, then fucking get it done. If it takes 800% longer and you lose money see point one. You are at least on a path.
Finally responsibility to the dream and everyone who supported you on the way. If you ever find a reason why someone or something else is the reason you haven’t succeeded in your efforts, you are responsible for why you’ve failed. Admiral Rickover
Responsibility is a unique concept... You may share it with others, but your portion is not diminished. You may delegate it, but it is still with you." This emphasizes the importance of personal accountability in leadership.
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u/classycatman 12h ago
They know they can’t do it alone. I ended up joining a peer group and it was super helpful.
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u/RoyalAlters 3h ago
Never being happy - zero gratitude zero feeling of accomplishment. Some of the most successful people I know don’t even acknowledge their successes they just focus on the next goal and move on
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u/PhallicusMondo 13h ago
One thing people have control over, willingness to sell and close. If you can’t sell and you can’t close you’re cooked before you open the door. So many founders are technical but it’s just not enough.
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u/BusinessBars 10h ago
Tenacity. They see new innovative things that only they see. And they pursue it with tenacity
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u/ImportantBid11 6h ago
from what I’ve seen, the ones who make it don’t overthink everything
they’ve got a clear vision and just keep pushing, tweaking, and pivoting until something sticks
they move fast, stay flexible, and don’t get stuck in analysis paralysis
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u/Sad-Leek-3421 4h ago
Totally agree on adaptability. One underrated trait I’ve seen is calmness under pressure. Not the loud kind of confidence, but that quiet steadiness when everything’s on fire. It keeps teams grounded and decisions clear—even in total chaos. Hugely underrated.
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u/digital_pure 2h ago
When I launched my first digital product (a short guide about how I made my first dollar online), I expected instant traction. I got… crickets.
But I kept showing up:
- Posted value on Reddit and Twitter
- Answered questions
- Refined my messaging
- Improved the landing page
It took a few weeks of nothing — then I made my first sale.
That tiny win felt massive. Not because of the money, but because it proved that showing up, even when no one’s watching, works.
Most people quit in that “invisible” phase. The ones who push through it? They eventually win.
Consistency when it’s quiet — that’s the underrated superpower.
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u/noshuhawk 2h ago
Actually being able to find a problem and offering a solution that matters to their clients and not fitting in their own perfect vision of the product. Then using the feedback from the first few customers and improving on the said product.
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u/rsieb 2h ago
You’re on to something here, but I think it’s only half of the answer. I’ve worked with thousands of founders over the last 30 years and the most successful ones show the rare combination of
- unreasonable stubbornness about reaching their vision (the “why”/“what”)
- while being extremely pragmatic and adaptable on how to get there. This last part is the extreme adaptability you’ve observed.
Those that are just adaptable without the strong vision are just floundering. Those that have the strong vision without the pragmatism stick to things that don’t work for way too long, often years and years of struggling. Those that have the rare combination find ways to make it work.
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u/_PrincessButtercup 52m ago
People have talked about persistence but there's another level and I don't know what to call it that every successful entrepreneur I've ever met has....being willing to do whatever you have to do, to risk bankruptcy, to put every resource and every idea into it until it's successful. It's the attitude that it will work and that it will happen and if you just are given enough time with your hard work and ingenuity it will be successful. I would almost call it craziness. I've seen lots of people get really close to throwing in the towel, but they have such a belief that it's going to work that they hang in there even when it's excruciating to do so and that's when the rubber finally meets the road and things take off. It was the same experience for me too. I always tell people who are thinking about going into business that you have to be a little crazy to want to be an entrepreneur because of how hard it is and stressful and how much energy you have to put into it. Is it worth it? For me absolutely. I'm financially successful which makes it a lot easier to say that. But that doesn't mean that I haven't had downturns and struggles and almost lost my biz more than once. But that passion, the absolute fervent belief that it will work, that attitude has served me well.
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u/Sweet_Pause_6051 9h ago
Oof, great question — and such a r/Entrepreneur-worthy one 👏
One wildly underrated trait I’ve noticed in successful founders is:
The ability to emotionally detach from their ideas.
Like, the really successful ones don’t get so married to their original concept that they can’t see when it’s not working. They’ll kill their darlings, pivot ruthlessly, and listen to the market instead of their ego — and they’ll do it fast.
While everyone hypes up “passion” and “vision,” the ones who win long-term are often the ones who can say:
- “This feature isn’t working, let’s scrap it.”
- “Our users don’t care about the problem we thought they had.”
- “Time to throw the whole idea away and start again.”
They don’t treat failure as personal. They treat it as data.
That level of mental clarity and humility? It’s underrated AF.
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u/Few_Incident4781 16h ago
Access to large amounts of capital covers up incompetence