Only in 3 months of starting up your own business you will learn more then what you have learned in 3 years of any business school.
If you are a person who wants to create value out of nothing, want to do something innovative and can see the opportunity for the world to behave and work little differently, and are set to stand up and get out do it, chances are that you will have to face a stack of odds.
Its not easy will never and have ever been. Yet its always a possibility to avoid those pitfalls and win against the odds.
Pitfall 1: Marrying your idea
Never ever assume that your business idea is unbeatable and needs no improvement or alterations. Every idea is unique and must be tested through an entire vigorous process by doing research, by speaking to other business owners and really testing to see if it is a viable business. Its not healthy to stick to your idea and not alter it according to the market and target audience. Remember, if you be rigid in your idea, the market would be rigid for you to penetrate.
Pitfall 2: Buying a job rather than a business.
In the start of your business, every entrepreneur must get involved in the routine tasks. The daily operations such as handling the cash to even cleaning up your office space. But remember the ultimate goal is to get yourself out of these routine tasks where you work hands-on every day. You must remember the fact that you are an entrepreneur; you must work on the business and not in the business. Gradually, as your business and your team go, you must let go operational tasks and focus on the overall business strategy.
Pitfall 3: Insufficient Capital
In order to function, organizations need cash, and a decent share of it. New companies normally experience difficulty finding the assets to begin – either finding funding, attaining credit or pooling personal financial resources to try and make ends meet. More experienced organizations more often than not experience the ill effects of insufficient capital when their spending begins to exceed their income.
Keep an idea about your capital circumstance by checking your income. Nearly screen your costs, and don’t be hesitant to make slices in the event that you have to. The earliest phases of any business are the most defenseless against deficient capital, yet that doesn’t mean you’re out of the woods once you’ve been around a few years. Watch your numbers closely.
Pitfall 4: Ignoring Marketing
Marketing is frequently seen as an optional need—and that couldn’t possibly be more off-base. Your customer has more choice than ever these days and you can bet your competitors are eager to capture their attention. A solid marketing strategy is based on mindfulness and planning. Be conscious in picking your marketing channels. The golden guideline: make sense of where your clients are and go there! You additionally need to arrange out strategies after some time with the goal that you’re not simply pulling the trigger on things willy nilly. Set up KPIs (key execution pointers) for your marketing methodology and persistently screen and assess the accomplishment of your efforts. And then bring it all back full circle: ask your customers how they heard about you!
Pitfall 5: You Think You Know
What happens when a doctor misdiagnose a disease? The same are the results when the entrepreneur proceed on a path out of conviction rather than evidence, its mostly a disaster!
It is unrealistic and without evidence to say that entrepreneurs are fearless risk taker. Successful entrepreneurs, are always well planned, very well aware and prepared of real problems and have complete authority over the problem by collecting and assessing, structured questions with real data from real customers. You are on the better path once you start collecting evidence to support your idea and plans.
Entrepreneurial pitfalls don’t have to drag you down. Stay organized, stay focused. Whatever you do remember to avoid these common pitfalls.