What do you need to know to be an entrepreneur? Well, being an entrepreneur is as challenging as it is rewarding. There is nothing quite like the feeling of ownership you get over your work and reaping its fruits. But being an entrepreneur is by no means a cakewalk.

That said, there are five areas an entrepreneur can focus on to drive increased success:

1. Build a strong network: Entrepreneurs are often known by the quality of connections. Right business connections are built better with an impressive and updated public profile – on ones own website and on networking platforms.

2. Be recognised as a thought leader: Entrepreneurs are generally driven by passion to address a pain point. By extension, they are thought leaders in their domain of expertise. Writing articles, tweeting, or blogging about the subject and stating original views can help appropriately position them. This also helps amplify their voice. They could someday get to a point where they may even be invited to shape key policies impacting their industry.

3. Build a vibrant team driven by a common vision: Entrepreneurs are most successful when they are also great leaders. When a highly empowered and motivated team complements their leadership and vision, magic happens. Teams that are seeking to deliver to a large yet achievable vision, work with an infectious passion and sense of purpose. An old quote says it best - “If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up people together to collect wood and don’t assign them tasks and work, but rather teach them to long for the endless immensity of the sea.”

4. Focus energies on ‘core’ tasks:There are always reasons for entrepreneurs to be distracted from their core activities, given the plethora of responsibilities they shoulder. The more they delegate non-core tasks to specialists and partners, the more opportunities they will have to deliver to their vision, sooner.

5. Keep learning: An entrepreneur, in today’s knowledge economy, one must keep learning to even stay current. Meeting experts and constantly observing new and improved ways in how things function or are done as a great source of learning. Such interactions and observations will help challenge their current thinking and also help breed new and innovative ideas.