The 7 Habits of Successful Entrepreneurs

Building a thriving business is not just about strategy and systems, it’s about the habits you practice every single day. At Salt Strategic, we believe success starts with two essential foundations:

• Your Numbers Model – the financial structure that ensures your business is profitable and sustainable.

• Your Operations Model – the daily actions, systems, and processes that bring those numbers to life.

Woven through both are the 7 habits of successful entrepreneurs that separate those who thrive from those who merely survive.

The 7 Habits for Success in Today’s Modern Business World

1. Be a leader

2. Be tech savvy

3. Be organized

4. Be a planner

5. Be a goal setter

6. Be prolific, not perfect

7. Be proactive

It’s widely recognized that mindset and habits are the hidden drivers of success. The right habit will accelerate your business growth, while the wrong one can hold you back for years.

So, let’s focus on the fundamentals of building these great habits.

From Monkey Brain to Empire Builder Brain

To form powerful habits, you first need to recognise the mindset that shapes them. We often operate in what I call Monkey Brain - a reactive, autopilot state where we respond to whatever comes our way.

• The kids call out, you react.

• The phone rings, you react.

• The email dings, you react.

• Social media pings, you react.

This constant reactivity keeps you stuck in technician mode instead of stepping into your role as a business owner.

The alternative is the Empire Builder Brain - a proactive mode where you stop reacting and start leading. Empire Builder Brain thinking means:

• Planning before doing

• Structuring your time instead of letting notifications rule it

• Choosing when to respond to emails and requests instead of letting them interrupt your focus

As author Daniel Pink explains in When: The Scientific Secrets of Perfect Timing, timing your tasks can unlock peak productivity. (and, if you’re like me, grab the highlights of this book on Blinkist).

Training Your Empire Builder Brain

The foundation of the Empire Builder Brain is proactivity, which naturally leads to planning, goal setting, and organisation - the very habits that drive long-term success.

When we work with clients on developing these habits, we begin with the 3 A’s of Change:

1. Awareness – Notice when you’re in Monkey Brain. Ask yourself, “What would have happened if I didn’t react right away? Could this have been handled later with more focus?”

2. Acceptance – Recognize that your business won’t fall apart if you stop reacting immediately.

3. Action – Start planning your week and day. Use tools like Kanban boards to stay productive and focused.

These small shifts compound into the big habits that create entrepreneurial freedom.

Your Next Step to Build Successful Habits

Training your Empire Builder Brain and practicing these 7 habits is the path to sustainable success as a lifestyle entrepreneur. But you don’t have to do it on your own.

Download your free copy of 7 habits of successful entrepreneurs and start applying these habits in a practical way to strengthen both your mindset and your business.

Inside, you will also discover how each habit connects directly to your financial success, giving you the clarity and confidence to make smarter decisions and build true entrepreneurial freedom.