When you set out to become an entrepreneur, you can sometimes feel as if you are jumping off a cliff. It doesn’t seem to matter if you are the most organized person out there, have a degree in logistics and are perfectly well aware of what you want to achieve. You want to know how to make God laugh? Tell him you have a plan and in this case tell him that you are going to be a successful entrepreneur! You undoubtedly have a lot of adventure ahead of you as many of your predecessors will testify. Just remember that there is no such thing as a final plan and you will have to keep amending it, even as you find some emotional and psychological strength and have to put up with developing a business during all your waking hours.
Whatever idea you have for a business, think really long and hard. Are you just pandering to your own needs and likes, trying to create a business around your hobby because you are interested in it, or are you truly creating a solution to a problem for potential clients? Unless you’re able to solve the problem and have some kind of unique approach as well, the sad truth is you are probably going to get swallowed up among the competition. What is your unique selling proposition?
Aim to always give more than you get back when you start off, as part of your creative interpretation of your business environment. Social proof dictates that people will only want to do business with an organization that they really understand and trust. When you get customers, treat them like pure gold and make sure that you get positive testimonials and feedback. Always over deliver when it comes to giving value.
When you start out you are going to have to take on every conceivable role within your business, unless you have a considerable amount of money to back you up. Outsourcing will only be a dreamland, and you will find that your time is really stretched thinly. There are certainly not enough hours in an entrepreneur’s day, so be prepared to work at a minimum 60 hours a week. Are you ready to work seven days a week? You will quickly find that time is worth more than money, which can be very frustrating when you’re devoting much more of that time to operations rather than development.
So long as you have come up with a realistic business model, stay on course and you will be able to document the allocated time, the return that you are currently getting and a common-sense projection for the future. You need to be brutally honest with yourself and don’t underestimate the issues and problems that take up valuable time and eat into your productivity ratios.
Keep your feet firmly anchored on the ground, because you will go through tremendous ups and downs as your business unfolds. Don’t lose faith however, as everyone would be doing it, if it were easy!
Adam Toren, Co-Founder of Young Entrepreneur, specializes in developing the profitability of struggling businesses with a specialized and ‘bottom line’ approach. Adam, along with his brother, have created, purchased and sold a variety of companies over the years. At the moment, they own and manage a highly successful publishing company and several dedicated online enterprises.
