Startup myths and misconception
In this guide, we highlight six major entrepreneurial mistakes to avoid, offering insights on how to start a business successfully.
The path of an entrepreneur may be rocky, with exhilarating peaks and frustrating valleys. It doesn't help that the startup industry is rife with excitement and misunderstandings that may infiltrate novices minds and lead them down a few incorrect paths.
Hence to clear your myths about starting a business, here are 6 mistakes that young entrepreneurs are likely to make when they start their own venture:
Leaders Need to do all the work
It is often observed that entrepreneurs and startup founders become too self-dependent and decide upon taking all the responsibilities of the business on their shoulders. Whether it is sales and operations or marketing and development they try to do everything on their own.
You need to keep in mind that a startup is like a human body, and just like the human body a different employee should take the responsibility of different tasks for efficient and accurate completion of work.
The idea is the only king
Just like a kingdom cannot function with just its ruler, a startup also cannot work out with just a great idea. No doubt Idea is a must and it should be nerve-wracking but it is not the only thing that will make you a successful entrepreneur.
Proper planning, employment, financial management, leadership, communication, play a vital role in the implementation of any great idea and make it successful.
Starting your own business grants freedom
Becoming an entrepreneur may seem very fascinating and freedom granting. The ‘I can be my own boss’ thought is very provoking to leave your conventional job and jump to entrepreneurship. But your bubble will burst as soon as you enter the space of entrepreneurship and reality will hit you.
Starting up your own business requires more time and effort than your job might require. There are no fixed working hours and no fixed income. Huge risks are involved and there is no guarantee of success. Even after knowing all this you still want to run your own business, then is it definitely worth a shot.
You need a degree to be a master
A lot of young entrepreneurs have this misconception in their minds that they need master's and doctorate degrees from ivy league schools and big business houses to run a successful business.
The only mastery you need is in the product\service you have created and you are good to go. You need to know the requirements and whereabouts of your target audience, good leadership and communication skills, a deep-rooted vision, and the willingness to accomplish what you started.
Failing means giving up
When you are an entrepreneur you have to keep in mind that you have to see the face of failure at least once every day. The only thing that will make you stand out from the crowd is that you face your failure, accept it, correct it and move on.
On most days you would feel like giving up, and thoughts like ‘Did I make a mistake by giving up my job to pursue my dream?’ or ‘I don’t think I have it in me’ will creep in your head and make you unmotivated to move ahead. Never let the fear of failure allow you to back out from your dream.
Non-diverse hiring
If your company is software-based and you hire only IT professionals to run the company then your startup will never thrive. You need to have a marketing and sales professional to work on the sales front, you need an HR for the hiring process, you need a business consultant for customer service, etc.
Non-diverse hiring is another very big mistake that entrepreneurs make, which sometimes becomes the major reason for their failure.
Hence starting your business might seem like a fancy endeavour at the beginning, but the journey from ideation to implementation is not a cakewalk. It can get chaotic and stressful at times. But by keeping everything that is stated above in mind you can ease out your work a little bit, but new obstacles will arise every day, and you will need to come up with fresh and imaginative solutions to conquer them.