Having interacted with so many directory owners, both highly successful ones and not-so-successful ones, I thought it was interesting to highlight what I observed to be common traits shared by many of the successful directory owners. Of course, not everyone will have the exact same traits, but it is probably good to know the areas of my life that I could work on improving in order to enhance the successfulness of my directories.

1. Patience - The ability to wait for your investments to bear fruit and not looking for immediate gratification of your time & energy spent. Successful directory owners know that this is a marathon and not a sprint, and those who sprint too fast too early will burn out soon and be left by the side of the road.
2. Conviction - Successful directory owners must believe whole-heartedly that the service their directories are providing are effective, useful and will continue to be so in the long run. Without this conviction, it is impossible to continue investing in your directories without sight of when the returns will come back. Usually, those without conviction will only be prepared to put in a small amount of investment, which will only see very small returns. As the chinese saying goes, ‘You can only catch a big fish, if you use a big bait’.
3. Foresight & Adaptability - Directories are constantly evolving and successful directory owners must have the vision to see how the internet is changing and be prepared to change along with it. I put these two traits together as one is useless without the other. You must be prepared to abandon what once works and is comfortable and adopt new strategies when the need arises. Successful directory owners are also able to implement changes even before it is required in order to stay ahead.
4. Interpersonal Skill - No man is an island. Ask any successful directory owner and he will most likely tell you that he needed help from others at some point in their business or another. Successful directory owners usually have great interpersonal skills and are able to develop a strong network of friends both within and without the industry, on whom he can call upon for support and help when the need arises. Successful directory must know how to tap upon the talents and skills of others in order to help each other succeed.
5. Hardworking - Starting a directory is easy, growing it is hard. Successful directory owners know that it takes alot of effort and time to achieve success and they are not afraid of it.

These are the top 5 traits I have observed of many successful directory owners. How do you fare compared with these traits? Of course, there are other traits that are helpful to have, but these are the 5 I feel are essential for any directory owner to be successful. Take the time to strengthen the areas that you are lacking and you will likely see returns beyond your expectations.

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