How Low Agreeableness (Antagonism) Shapes Entrepreneurial Behavior

In business, playing nice isn’t always the winning strategy. Entrepreneurs who question, challenge, and push boundaries often find themselves ahead of the curve. This article explores how low agreeableness can be a hidden advantage in leadership and innovation.

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Agreeableness, one of the Big Five personality traits, plays an essential role in entrepreneurship, influencing leadership style, decision-making process, and overall team dynamics. Scientific literature indicates that people scoring low in Agreeableness are likelier to become entrepreneurs.

Low Agreeableness, also known as Antagonism, is one of the most widespread traits in successful entrepreneurs. There is a consensus in the scientific literature that most entrepreneurs tend to have high extraversion, high openness, low neuroticism, and low Agreeableness, which is unsurprising. So, if you have these traits, you are a natural-born entrepreneur, and your chances of success are higher.

But what makes antagonism so effective in business? Read on to find out.

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How Does Low Agreeableness Impact Entrepreneurial Style?

The personality trait of Low Agreeableness (Antagonism) can have a profound impact on an entrepreneur's leadership style and decision-making. Those with higher levels of it may be more combative, resolute, and egocentric, thus favoring authoritative or autocratic approaches to leading. This could cause them to go ahead without consulting others to pursue their own interests, often taking risks which, if successful, can bring great rewards but equally high losses too.

Plus, people with low Agreeableness may find it easier to challenge the status quo as they are curious and skeptical. They are unafraid of conflicts and making radical decisions that others are afraid to make.

A healthy dose of antagonism can benefit an entrepreneurial approach, fueling a competitive attitude and making one more resilient. This assertiveness and resilience can prove invaluable in the unforgiving landscape of entrepreneurship, where beating obstacles and persevering despite failure is essential for succeeding. Nothing can stop people with low Agreeableness; even if everything or everyone is against them, they won't give up. They will work even harder to prove that others are wrong.

Tips for Achieving Success as an Entrepreneur with Low Agreeableness

While others often view entrepreneurs with low Agreeableness as overly critical and even hostile, antagonism is beneficial in various business-related scenarios. Successful entrepreneurs often make difficult decisions and face interpersonal problems. Antagonism helps them lower the emotional burden and stress associated with entrepreneurship and provides numerous other benefits.

Let's look at how and why entrepreneurs with low Agreeableness become successful and how this personality trait can be leveraged to achieve the best results possible.

Competitive Edge: Those with a low score on Agreeableness are often highly competitive. This drive to be the best can serve as the motivation for success in entrepreneurship, pushing one ahead of their competition and inspiring them to innovate and improve products or services continually.
Directness as an Advantage: Clear and concise communication is an essential part of doing business. Less agreeable people are direct in their communication. This ability allows them to negotiate effectively by clearly communicating their objectives so that partners or investors fully comprehend what it is that they want out of any given situation.
Taking Credit for Work: Those with low Agreeableness are great at ensuring their hard work and contributions don't go unrecognized. This trait can be quite advantageous in business, where one must learn to stand up for oneself while striving to ensure one receives credit for one's work.
Critical Thinking Skills: A lower level of Agreeableness can often be indicative of critical thinking skills. This helps to spark creativity, leading to groundbreaking ideas that disrupt existing industry norms.
Negotiation as an Art: Entrepreneurs with lower Agreeableness tend to be quite self-assured when it comes to asserting their interests. While this trait can sometimes lead to conflict, it can also be an asset during negotiations. Antagonistic entrepreneurs get the best deals as they can resist the pressure of the negotiation process.

As you can see, Agreeableness is not necessarily a prerequisite for success in the entrepreneurial world. Having lower scores on this trait can actually be beneficial. By applying the “It's not personal, it's just business” approach, antagonistic individuals always prioritize their interests — they won't and don't care if others like it or not.

Cons of Having Low Agreeableness as an Entrepreneur

Now, let's move on to the potential downside of the antagonism trait. Due to lower empathy and emotional intelligence, antagonistic entrepreneurs may find it difficult to deal with people, which may cause potential issues. Here is the list of the most common issues entrepreneurs with low agreeableness face.

Difficulty in Building Relationships: Those who are low in Agreeableness may struggle to understand others' emotions, thus making it difficult to create or sustain relationships — whether they're personal or professional. Forming meaningful connections can be challenging without being mindful of other people's feelings.
Lower Customer Loyalty: Creating a strong bond with customers is integral to success, and it can be achieved through positive interactions that evoke emotion. However, those less inclined towards Agreeableness may find themselves challenged in fostering these experiences. So, delegating interactions with customers to other employees with better people skills is always better.
Difficulty Embracing Diversity: With a low Agreeableness score, it could be difficult to accept diverse ideas, cultures, and perspectives. This could undermine innovation and creativity in the organization in certain contexts. It can benefit antagonistic individuals to practice listening and encourage others to talk, even if your number one rule is "I'm always right."
Trouble Embracing Feedback: Feedback is key for any business to thrive. If you lack the ability to take constructive criticism due to low Agreeableness, it can hamper progress and stop important changes from being made to products, services, or strategies.
Challenges in Maintaining Work-Life Balance: Given their competitive nature, entrepreneurs with lower levels of Agreeableness may find it challenging to maintain a healthy work-life balance. If this issue is not addressed in time, the entrepreneur could become overwhelmed and experience burnout, decreasing productivity and potentially putting the success of their business at risk.

To wrap up, having a low Agreeableness score can bring some obstacles to the entrepreneurial venture. However, these challenges can be addressed with proper delegation of tasks and self-awareness.

Famous Entrepreneurs with Low Agreeableness

Most successful entrepreneurs across various industries have low Agreeableness. In some cases, people love them, while in others, hate pours upon their heads, but they are all extremely successful and talented.

Here are a few entrepreneurs who have been known for their antagonistic traits, or at least for displaying such traits in certain circumstances:

Steve Jobs: Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple Inc., was renowned for his tireless ambition and far-reaching vision. Nonetheless, many of those he worked with reported him to be challenging to deal with, often displaying an aggressive attitude combined with stringent demands and harsh criticism.
Mark Zuckerberg: Mark Zuckerberg, the co-founder of Facebook (now Meta Platforms), has been viewed as unfriendly and uncooperative in light of several controversies surrounding privacy protection and competition. Nevertheless, he is also the first person to create a social media platform and make billions of users scroll their feed for hours
Al Dunlap: Nicknamed "Chainsaw Al" for dramatically cutting costs and raising shareholder value in different companies. Some applauded Al, but others saw him as a hostile force due to his often brutal tactics, such as mass layoffs and dramatic cuts in employee benefits.
Sam Walton: Sam Walton, the visionary behind Walmart, revolutionized retail by making low prices his primary focus. Unfortunately, this unrelenting emphasis on cost-cutting often led to clashes with suppliers and sparked heavy criticism of Walmart's labor practices.
Henry Ford: Henry Ford, the founder of the iconic Ford Motor Company, had a profound impact on automobile production with his revolutionary introduction of an assembly line. Although successful in business and highly respected by many, he was notoriously challenging to work alongside. He didn’t care about other people's thoughts or ideas, as manifested in this famous quote — “If I had asked people what they wanted, they would have said 'faster horses'."
Jack Welch: Former CEO of General Electric, Jack Welch was renowned for his controversial "rank and yank" system, a technique that could be viewed as controversial. This method entailed evaluating staff members annually, with the lowest 10% being fired without question.
John McAfee: This British-American businessman created the world's first commercial antivirus software and had a reputation for being brash and unpredictable. His clashes with authorities and controversial public declarations frequently created tension between him and those in the tech industry.

Scoring high on the Big Five Antagonism trait provides numerous benefits in the business world. Those with such characteristics can have immense drive and success and are not afraid to implement innovative strategies, even if others view them as controversial.

Low Agreeableness Trait Businesses and Industries

Entrepreneurs with low Agreeableness can be successful in almost any industry. They can scale their businesses quickly and create unique business models, giving them a solid competitive advantage. Plus, low Agreeableness allows one to manage large companies more effectively. Here are a few industries and types of businesses where this trait may be especially beneficial:

Venture Capital/Investment: This industry is highly competitive, so it pays to be assertive when negotiating deals and securing funds. Being able to stand up for oneself and one's opinions can give low-agreeable entrepreneurs an edge over the competition.
High Tech Startups: In the rapidly evolving and highly competitive world of tech startups, those with a more competitive nature can find themselves well-suited. The need to scale quickly and outpace rivals by introducing new breakthroughs is where entrepreneurs with low Agreeableness are likely to thrive.
Political Consulting: Politics can be a cutthroat field where those with assertive and confrontational tendencies often excel. Being able to stand up for one's candidate or cause, unafraid of opposition, is invaluable in achieving success.
High-Stakes Sales: Competing in industries such as high-value enterprise software, luxury goods, or financial services requires a different strategy than most. An approach that emphasizes negotiation and competition may be best. This could mean taking on more of an antagonistic stance to get ahead.
Private Security Companies: Launching a business in this field often requires an individual to be strong-willed and confident. Those who venture into it should expect confrontational encounters, making it perfect for those who have low Agreeableness.
Mining and Extraction Industries: The competition in these industries is fierce, requiring a confident approach to succeed. It's often necessary to navigate intricate rules and regulations, consider environmental issues, and even face off against local communities or governments, making it an incredibly demanding field.
Telemarketing: Although the industry isn't especially beloved for its intrusiveness, being assertive could prove beneficial when it comes to handling rejections and persuading prospective customers.

It's worth noting that although antagonism can be advantageous in certain industries, it is still essential to balance this trait with other professional behaviors. For a deeper look at how personality traits like Agreeableness influence leadership styles, read our article on communication and leadership in the Big 5 framework.