Most people realize that success as an entrepreneur is at least to some degree linked directly to one's competence. If you possess the skills you need to run and grow your business, then your chances of success are much greater than if you do not possess those skills. There's just one little problem: few people recognize their own incompetence.

A study by David Dunning and a team of researchers found that not only do incompetent people not recognize their incompetence, they are usually more confident in their abilities than people who really are competent. By itself, this inability to recognize one's shortcomings is certainly an unfortunate thing. However, when you mix this natural shortcoming with starting and operating a business, then you've got a potentially dangerous combination that does not bode well for the long-term survival of the business.

Far too many entrepreneurs think they have the skill to do everything that needs to be done to make their businesses succeed, including such things as developing products and services, marketing and selling, providing customer support, securing necessary financing, and so on. However, this is seldom the case. While entrepreneurs may excel in one or two areas of their business, they often lack in others. These shortfalls in competence may not become apparent until after the business starts to grow, at which point the problems may become so severe that survival of the business itself is put in jeopardy.

Smart entrepreneurs seek candid and honest feedback from others, including friends, colleagues, and industry peers. They then use this feedback to assess their own shortcomings -- hiring talented people to fill the gaps in their own expertise. I have personally noticed that some of the most successful enterprises are not run by their founders. Instead, these smart men and women find a talented CEO to run the business's day-to-day operations while they retain a role that reflects their own expertise, perhaps in product development or marketing.

So, just how competent are you? Chances are you won't know the real answer unless you ask others to weigh in with their own opinions. You may not like what you hear. But if you consider the success of your business to be more important than keeping your ego intact, then you'll take the feedback to heart and act accordingly.