Traversing to the journey of entrepreneurship is exhilarating and intimidating at the same time. Nevertheless, there are a number of reasons to take this adventurous road full of bumpy and joyous rides. First of all, of course, the thrill of taking off to a new journey. Next in line comes the freedom of being independent and in control. It also offers the probability of building significant personal wealth. Apart from this, it also provides the chance to bring a difference in the world.
However, it comes with its own set of challenges. You have to dive into the unknown territory by coming out of your comfort zone. Also, there is a lack of a stable and expectable income. Apart from this, cynicism by people around us about entrepreneurship as a career choice, can lead to stress and anxiety.
Sort out your financial situation
If an idea is cooking in your grey cells, expect that your brainchild will consumer anywhere from 12 to 24 months to start making revenue or reach a stage where you can ask for external funding. This implies you got to be eager to go without pay for that length of time. Also, you have to be ready to invest some of your own money into the venture. If you are young and single, devoid of many financial responsibilities, you would be capable of handling this on with a little savings or support from family.
However, if you are bagged with responsibilities already, such as healthcare expenses, schooling to support, and a mortgage to pay, you got to have a companion who can take care of the family expenses or have enough saved up to keep your financial obligations. It is witnessed that entrepreneurs are often too optimistic about their idea probability. In being so, they underrate the extent of time it consumes to reach a point where they start gaining financial returns. It is vital to provide yourself and your venture a comfortable runway to take off.
Get a robust support system
Entrepreneurship entails understanding and co-operation from those around you. The financial circumstances may lead to certain limitations. For example, if you love overseas vacations and luxurious purchases, you have to shelve them. Apart from the monetary issues, being an entrepreneur eats up a lot of time. You have to take this into mind that it won’t be a 9AM to 5PM job that you leave behind when you return home. Being an entrepreneur, you are thinking of and working on your idea all the time. This implies you may have less time and mindshare for other activities.
To rejuvenate yourself, you have to manage your schedule and carve out time away from the venture. Nevertheless, you also need to explain your family and friends about the requirements of an entrepreneurial career and clearly ask for their support. This way, when work takes preference, it does not lead to unlikableness. Apart from this, as you traverse the ups and downs of building a venture, entrepreneurship can be an emotionally strenuous experience. The availability to a robust support system will help you steer the journey better.
Pick your co-founders astutely
Many founding teams establish a venture in place of lone entrepreneurs. You would also be deliberating starting up as a team, possibly with a friend or co-worker. The selection of co-founder(s) is a vital decision with long-term consequences. As per many researches, 65% of start-ups fail on account of tension between co-founders.
Many ventures are started by founding teams rather than solo entrepreneurs. You might also be exploring starting up as a team, perhaps with a friend or co-worker. The choice of co-founder(s) is a critical decision with long-term implications. Research has shown that 65 per cent of startups fail due to dispute between co-founders. Hence, founding team creation should be a well-deliberated decision. It should be based on the capability of the persons, their drive for starting up, and their professional values and modus operandi.
You would ponder beginning a venture with a friend, but has very little to know about their professional capability and character. Apart from this, you would select a co-founder based entirely on their professional experience. However, the purpose is spoiled when you find that their motivations and modus operandi don’t align. Experts advise to spend adequate time upfront understanding each co-founder’s drives and professional values, and expounding the role they would play in the venture.
Be willing to learn from the experience
We frequently read about successful startups along with the fortune and fame they bring to entrepreneurs. Nevertheless, in fact, these success stories make a very small percentage in the universe of startups. The truth is that a majority of them fail to make it big. There are a variety of reasons for their failure. Some pertain to the decisions taken pertaining to product, market and other aspects of the business. Also, there could be some external environment responsible in which they conduct operations.
It is also true that success does not come with a guarantee card and is usually beyond the entrepreneur’s control. However, learning from the experience is definitely possible and should be prioritized. As per many researches, as compared to entrepreneurs who blame their failure on luck, those who make a cognizant effort to learn from their failures are far more expected to succeed in their forthcoming ventures. This does not imply that you won’t kiss success in the first attempt. Nevertheless, if things don’t work out as expected, the experience gained offers great learning that can be leveraged for a future venture or in a corporate context where it is highly valued.
No matter if it is a success or failure, with the right groundwork and method, entrepreneurship can be a very gratifying experience.
