Building entrepreneurial success is not easy. If it was, everyone would do it. And unfortunately, there is no single key to success when building your own business. Finding success as an entrepreneur comes from a culmination of different lessons, values, and hard work ethic. And while everyone’s journey will inevitably be different, there are a few constants. Here are a few of those lessons that are especially important:
1. Choose something that you love.
As we’ve established, starting a business is hard. It is commonly said that 90% of startups end in failure. If that should teach us anything, it’s that you have to be passionate about whatever it is that you do – the product or service your business offers.
If you aren’t even totally sold on your own idea, why would your consumers be? Business and marketing psychology tells us that it only takes a potential customer a few minutes to decide if you’re selling just to earn a check or if you sincerely believe in your product or service. How much you believe in your business matters and will directly affect your bottom line.
2. Work hard. There’s no way around it.
So now that you have a business idea you’re passionate about, what next?
Anyone can come up with an idea, but it takes entrepreneurial talent and education to turn an idea into a functioning, profitable business. You will need to make an unwavering commitment to your vision and simply start working.
Plan to be the person who wants this business to work more than anyone else and, therefore, is going to work harder than anyone else to achieve it. You will also have to be okay with assuming quite a bit of risk that is inevitable when building a startup. The journey will not be easy, but it will be worth it. So buckle in for some long hours and good old-fashioned hard work.
3. Failure is your best teacher.
Failure should be expected as an entrepreneur. As much as possible, prepare for the unexpected, and build your business to be adaptable when faced with adversity. Your failures will not define your business, but how you handle and recover from them will. Oftentimes, the lessons that result from your failures will be career-defining and essential to your business.
Don’t let yourself be discouraged when failure arises. The most successful people genuinely view failures as learning opportunities. Some might even say that failure excites them. That may sound crazy, but that’s truly how valuable the lessons from failure are to businesses.
4. Learning never stops.
Many entrepreneurs are prone to making this mistake early in their career. When starting your own business, you are being pulled in so many different directions. Resources become limited, and you become stretched. But learning and development should remain at the top of your priority list regardless of your business environment. If you can manage to consistently reserve time for learning opportunities, the return on your investment in this area will be huge, and the success of your business may depend on it.
Even once you feel you are an established business owner – your company is profitable, and things seem to be running smoothly – you have to stay on top of your industry, constantly chasing what is cutting edge. This will keep you relevant and will sustain your success since you continue to be knowledgeable about your consumer base.
Entrepreneurship is not easy, but it sure is rewarding. These four lessons will serve you well in your entrepreneurial career.