Like many millennials working the 9 - 5 just wasn't something I could do for very long. I was only a member of the work force for 4 years after graduating and I felt I had had enough. It was time to try something new and go out on my own. I was 26 when I jumped ship and thought I had it all figured out. I was going to start my own tech company, have an amazing website and make tons of money I mean how hard could it be?
There are plenty of people out there who would like to take the leap but its not for everyone. What separates the “wantrepreneurs” from the entrepreneurs is action. A great idea is worthless without execution. I've spoken to many people who thought of an idea for a business and think they've made it already like they have some divine right to the idea without putting any effort or money and committing to see it thought.
The day my entrepreneurial seed was planted was the day I started reading Outliers by Malcolm Gladwell. It helped me reassess where I was going with my career and that the path I was on was not going to ever be a satisfying one. It started jotting down ideas and It would take me over a year later to think of a business idea that I felt confident in pursuing.
Starting your own businesses you'll encounter plenty of opinions some good some bad, but and as annoying as it may be. I encourage you to take it in, you can and will learn from both insight and ignorance.
It's been 3 years since I left the safety of a monthly salary and I haven't looked back since. What I've lost in monetary value I've gained in experience. So what have learned thus far? I learned you need to start as early as possible every day you wait is potential revenue you're walking away from.
1. You're going to fail
You'll start your business with every confidence in the world, this idea is simply too good to fail it's a full proof money maker right? In rainbow land, it would be, but this isn't rainbow land and you're going to fail and not once but many times. Starting early gives you the benefit of time and allows you to fail faster and learn from it.
Having your business fail is hard for anyone but rather fail when there is less on the line than try to keep it going and you drag down employees with you on this unsustainable venture. Once you're able to find your groove and generate revenue you can then look to scale the businesses.
2. Live lean
When we’re young, we generally have fewer responsibilities. You probably don’t have a family or a mortgage to pay, and if you’re lucky, you’re still on your parents’ medical insurance. Starting a business puts a lot at risk. Aside from your finances, you’re also going to commit 110 percent of your time. Giving up a year when you’re splitting a room with your co-founder versus a year when you’re supporting a family is a huge difference. When you start early you also don't know what its like to enjoy the comforts of a fat salary, you can still live on a students budget and it is in no way uncomfortable for you.
Living lean also allows you to chase longer-term targets instead of trying to make sure all your bills are paid every month and forces you into making rash decisions that can bring down your business.
3. Think long-term
If done right, a business can be one of the best long-term assets you can build. Put in the time now, to make a passive income for the rest of your life. If you’re a millennial like me, you need to get started building assets as early as possible. If you simply trade your time for money, by earning a salary, you just won’t get ahead in life. While it’s tough, building long-term assets is always worth it. That said, you need to start as early as possible.
4. You’ll get a taste of the "real world"
Working in an office keeps you silo'd and you're not exposed to other sides of the business. You complete your tasks, you get your paycheque and you go home, well at least thats how it was for me. I was very sheltered during the early stages of my career and because of that I lacked plenty of real world experience.
Starting a business is the perfect way to get your "real world" education. There’s no teacher or manager telling you what needs to be done. You need to come up with your own ideas, marketing plans, fundraising goals, hire employees and much more. When you make a mistake, there won’t be anyone to cover for you either so these lessons will be ingrained in you and you will work around scar'd but wiser.
5. Don't bet your entire hand
Starting your own business comes with plenty of risks. The risk that needs to be mitigated with stability in other forms. This could mean you keep your day job and work on your business after hours, once you see what part-time work in your business can do, you can make a case for jumping in full time.
Make sure you have other revenue streams or savings put away and don't rely on your new businesses to feed you and keep the lights on, this just puts unnecessary strain on the business and you'll start making decisions based on finances and not based on your original vision of the company you started.
6. Iteration takes time
Your idea may be perfect but it's still only an idea and once you start taking the steps to manifest real-life working product you'll see it won't be plain sailing. You will have to jump through hoops, reduce your product scope into a workable MVP, you will need to look at how your product reacts to the market and from that insight begin to refine and iterate. In extreme situations, you may even need to pivot the businesses into something new or take your old concept and apply it to a new market.
One thing is for sure it will not be a straight road to success.
Have your say
Do you have a business idea you've been sitting on for a while? What is holding you back? Have you started your own business in the past? What lessons did you learn from it?
Drop me a comment and let me know what you think!
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