Continued from previous post…
11. Have an elevator pitch handy anytime
As a startup entrepreneur you shouldn’t exist without an elevator pitch you should be able to tell someone about your business in under 2 minutes to urge the person to want to hear more. An elevator pitch is basically a succinct and persuasive sales pitch. Take a lot of time to prepare an elevator pitch. You do not need to describe the business idea fully but you should be able to whip up the listeners interest to want to hear more. i am sure you have heard angel investors (wealthy people) have little time and an elevator pitch just allows you to utilize the 2 minutes you have with a potential investor.
12. Don’t cheapen partnerships
Most startup entrepreneurs are very quick to add on cofounders and partners, most times they share their idea to a few people and the first person to understand and tell them “o thats a great idea” is chosen as a cofounder or partner. don’t be too quick to add people as partners let them pay the price for being a partner let them walk the talk adding a partner to your business could make or unmake your business so you need to think through that decision. Many times i have received conversations about how a cofounder is not pulling his weight and not doing what he should be doing and clearly the one who hired him didn’t take much into consideration. Think before you give them a seat on your board.
13. If being principled means making enemies you need more enemies
Again this is one lesson many up and coming entrepreneurs need to engrave on their chests and live by. As an entrepreneur, you need principles as much as an astronaut needs his suit, not having one just makes you one of those guys and prone to the many bad things that can happen. While you climb the ladder of entrepreneurship you would face many people who would test and try your principles consciously or unconsciously. They would test your time principles, work principles and so forth. Some would not agree with your stand point, others would hail you for them, in all of it be steadfast especially if you know your principles are set in the right frame of mind, do not waver there are people who would approach you to do all sorts of things and without principles you might end up at the wrong side of the entrepreneurship ladder.
14. Do not wait for 100 people to prove your idea
Many people would squint at your idea, some would coil at the sound of your business idea and some well might just be opinionated by the sheer fact that you are trying to do something different. Do not wait for a positive popular opinion, being an entrepreneur is different from being a politician if you need mass approval for your idea you might as well join a political party. mostly the ideas entrepreneurs have are quite revolutionary and innovative and some people may not readily buy into it. I am sure if Mark Zuckerberg had gone round to ask people if his idea would fly his results would have come out 70:30 for the No’s. If you have an idea, Do all the research necessary, employ the lean startup machine approach prove it the right way, ask the right questions and then if you are still convinced your idea can stand before the consumer, you are good to go.
15. If you need motivational speakers to be motivated
I am not trying in anyway to undermine the power of motivational speakers. i think they come in at a point on your entrepreneurial journey. Simply put if as an entrepreneur you cannot motivate yourself enough to do what you do then no amount of motivation juice (whatever that is) can cure your problem. You are better off heading to work for someone as an apprentice cos then you are obliged to go to work at a certain time and to close at a particular time. As an entrepreneur you set the rules and there is not way you can set rules you cannot even follow.
16. Investment is not all you need
Sometimes as a budding entrepreneur with a great idea you are tempted to think that all you need is someone to splash the cash on your idea, most of the time the money sets you off on a good start but you need to understand that money is not all you need. Sometimes i jokingly ask young entrepreneurs and entrepreneur “wannabees” what they would do if they were handed 1m dollars right away for their business idea, some answers were: purchase cars, get an office, hire employees, in no particular order, all these are necessary but trust me apart from needing investment you equally need a plan, an operation plan, marketing plan, customer retention plan etc. You need to plan and strategize these key things. Money splashed on an unplanned idea is money thrown to the wind. So before you go out seeking investors spend some time to device a strategy and a plan to sell your product to your market and to be a force to reckon with.
17. Don’t just hire developers get an accountant
I have seen this much too often, entrepreneurs doubling as the company accountants, being the sole signatory to cheques, keeping your own books, etc whereas they have spent good money in hiring for other roles. Young entrepreneurs always think “an accountant is a blockade to my spending”, on the contrary a good accountant would keep your money well enough for you. It would help you to go out and find an accountant who can tell you when to cut your spend and when to spend. When you are in control of your own finances you most likely cannot deny yourself some luxuries though there are some people who are very disciplined you still need a good accountant to handle the books. Get an accountant to keep your books, handle your taxes and salaries discipline yourself enough to understand the role of your accountant and respect his judgements and focus on building your product and sending the product to market.
18. Don’t fill the office with patronizers rather challengers
As entrepreneurs we most likely love the sound of our own voices we do not like to be challenged by our employees, what we say must be final and no one should question your authority, that attitude would get you nowhere and would shut all innovation. if possible maintain a flat structure in operation and an authority style in principle (Especially startups) let every one tell you their views, listen to everyones opinion, make open ended statements like; what do you think about this idea, how would you rather we approach this hurdle, when they make their point you can say wouldn’t it be better to do it this way than that way. Having a brainstorming approach to solving problems and strategizing allows people to research and give you feedback on what they find. Let your employees feel a part of decision making, allow them to personalize your business, in the end you would realize your decisions are more concrete than half baked owing to the fact that you listened to more than one opinion. I always say your company is most likely made of people from all kinds of background, some rich some poor, some bullied some jerks, all these diverse opinions would help you in making the right decisions so the next time you plan on making a decision give this step a try.
19. You will fail at some point
Do not be failure averse even though you should employ all the skills necessary to prevent some failure others may come without an invitation, it’s imperative to understand it is part of the journey. I am sure we are all privy to how many time Abraham Lincoln stood for public office and how many times Thomas Edison tried to invent the light bulb, they failed countless times but their goals kept them going and they found many ways that didn’t work and i am sure they never repeated those mistakes that made them fail. When you fail, document the failure, learn the lesson, try again. fail again but this time, fail better avoiding those things that made you fail at that one thing, in the end these experiences make you stronger and more tenacious.
20. Choose to be a Doer than a Talker
Talk is a cheap commodity, being a talker just makes you an ordinary person The life of an entrepreneur is no ordinary one, you need to do. Many-a-time entrepreneurs do more talking than walking the talk. Let your actions speak for you more as an entrepreneur, let people recognize you for your deeds and not your talk. If we are to quantify your role as an entrepreneur at a 100% talk should be about 15% and the 85% that remains should be your deeds.
20. Choose to be a Doer than a Talker
Talk is a cheap commodity, being a talker just makes you an ordinary person The life of an entrepreneur is no ordinary one, you need to do. Many-a-time entrepreneurs do more talking than walking the talk. Let your actions speak for you more as an entrepreneur, let people recognize you for your deeds and not your talk. If we are to quantify your role as an entrepreneur at a 100% talk should be about 15% and the 85% that remains should be your deeds.
To be continued…
Author: Klenam Koku Fiadzoe
