Successful entrepreneurs, the true rockstars of business, all share certain habits that set them apart.

The most significant of those habits is the way great entrepreneurs approach their work. There are two fundamental styles:

1. Flat out, fast paced and crazy
2. Zen-focused, thoughtful and introspective

Do you fit into one of these categories? Let’s find out why and how you’re conditioned to work (and what you can do about it).

Style one is suitable for entrepreneurs running rocket-ship businesses – especially in the crucial “start up” phase. This is where you need to be all over your business like white on rice. Taking action, ticking off (hundreds) of “to-do’s” and keeping the business alive.

Any entrepreneur who has successfully launched a start up is a master of this work style. Solopreneurs even more so (they have to be all over everything, all the time.)

The great thing about this style? Mastering it means that your actions will have an enormously wide impact. You can make crucial sales calls, follow up emails, attend meetings and make sure your business machine runs smoothly.

The entrepreneurs who master this get a kick out of running around like a headless chicken (they call it multitasking) and are incredibly effective at it.

The second entrepreneurial approach to work is totally different. This is a style that will enable you to do work that counts – the significant, game-changing stuff that sets you apart from every competitor. This is where you switch off to distractions and zoom your mental focus in on the one crucial project in front of you.

This style is for working on that book you’ve been excited about starting, or for planning your business strategy for the next 12 months… or maybe that exciting new marketing campaign.

When you master the zen-focus style, you’ll tap into your true potential to turn out fantastic ideas, products, strategy or “art”. It means focusing deeply on highly specific item.

Which style do you rock?

All business owners are (actually, everyone is) conditioned to be better at one style than the other.

I’ve seen startups that run on pure rocket-fuel… where the CEO is pouring in enormous energy and enthusiasm. They move quick (and often make great money) at the cost of burn-out for that individual.

Then, when it comes to doing work that counts and being a game-changer, the entrepreneur is so caught up in day-to-day operations that they find no time to give their creative work the attention it deserves. That work and ultimately the business, suffers as a result of this.

On the other end, there are the people who are natural born artists. These folks just love focusing on making things perfect and spend loads of time developing a genuinely awesome product.

Problem is, the tactical day to day side of their business is neglected, so while they’re off doing “work that counts,” vital tasks are procrastinated, existing customers are ignored or, even worse, no sales are coming in!

The psychological conditioning that makes each individual entrepreneur lean in one direction or another is pretty tough to overcome.

It’s also worth mentioning that the solution isn’t to simply “be somewhere in the middle”, but rather to know when it’s the most effective to be in either state. If you have both styles at your disposal and can consciously switch between the two, then you’re whole miles ahead of 90% of the wannabe business people out there.

So, what style are you preconditioned to?

For me, it has to be the first “all over things like dog-poop on velcro” style. Just like dog-pop, it’s real tough to get me off (every little task).

I’ve found changing my immediate environment and taking short “power breaks” are both effective techniques for when I want to “switch” and get more focused.

What about you? How do you ensure you get the best out of both work styles? Let me know via a comment…