I am an engineer turned entrepreneur. With that said, I've had my share of stumbles along the way but I've learned a lot. One of these lessons is that business means risk. While it is true that there are varying degrees of risk, you must also agree that there are varying degrees of rewards.For those that argue it's insane to trade our time for the money, how about the notion of being your own boss? Is that an insane thought? With a plethora of research suggesting such a high failure rate among the small businesses, maybe it is.
Before you get swept in the euphoria of starting a business, it's prudent to prepare for a successful launch so that your dream won't come crashing on the ground to shatter your plans. While these tips cannot and will not guarantee success, they will certainly provide some food for thought as you make your way forward.
- Win the battle in your own mind first: Launching a business is akin to shedding the life of comfort that we are accustomed to and starting afresh with a mindset filled with clear and visual goals. Surround yourself with family and friends who share similar vision and to avoid those who have negative attitude. Before you win the fierce battle with your competitors, make sure you've won battle with your own mind to persist no matter what it takes.
- Risk is rewarding: Business involves extensive risk including preparedness to risk all you have to survive in the beginning. Be prepared to pay your employees by taking cash advances on your credit card when time gets tough. Challenges will shape your will and power to stay on the course and to sacrifice all you have to succeed. Success comes to those in business who possess intrepid minds to face the unknown along the way.
- Have a plan, a solid plan: It's mind boggling that many businesses are being launched on a whim. While dreaming to achieve financial freedom is laudable, diving into an ocean without knowing how to swim equally abhors. Find what inspires you most without obsessing on the profit potential of the idea. Studying the competition and preparing detailed pro-forma cash flow analysis are key steps to understanding the risks involved.
- Identify your Niche: If competition is fierce, you have to stand out with a unique service/product to gain a competitive advantage. A unique service becomes your trademark in the niche you serve. For example, in the hotels I own, I serve free breakfast that overwhelms the wildest expectations of the guest. Best breakfast guaranteed is our motto. We strive to outlive our motto.
"Give everyone more in use value than you take from him in cash value. Then you are adding to the life of the world by every business transaction." -Wallace D. Wattles, Science of Getting Rich
- Invest in the success of your customers: Success in business requires capital investment, but it also requires investing in the success of your customers. Try to give customers superior service to exceed their needs. It comes a full circle with a superior return on your investment (ROI) as a repetitive sell requires lot less effort than earning a new sell.
- Be decisive, go with your gut: Embarking on a business preludes the burden of being responsible to take decisions and be confident to face the outcomes later on. You have no boss to ask for a second opinion. You have to call the shots and feel comfortable with making split-second decisions sometimes on the facts available and sometimes solely on your gut feeling.
- Possess the will of an iron: As an old saying goes, "When the going gets tough, the tough gets going." This mantra conveys a powerful message. Despite all of your plans to avoid challenges, you'll be thrown into the tug-of-war between your will power and intense difficulties at some point in your business. Try to remember what inspired you to embark on this journey to begin with. If going back to trade your time for money is not an option, remind yourself that the only option left is to succeed. Visualize the benefits that you'll receive at the onset of success rather than to dwell of the fear of failure by feeling confident that success is soon to arrive. Look at the half-full side of the glass by identifying opportunities that lie amid all of the challenges that you face.
- Hire the best talent: Hire employees who embrace your vision for your business. Motivated employees can always go for an extra mile with their burning desire to succeed in their own career. Collectively, a mass of motivated and bright employees can create an accentuating force to take off your business success.
- Be smart with your money: When it comes to money management, never leave it to others. You'll be a schmuck if you get so busy that you do not have time to look at the ways to increase your top line or sales and to decrease your bottom line or the expenses. Make a constant, conscious effort to focus on increasing sales and decreasing expenses with frugal mind.
- Be transparent: Honesty and integrity are two wheels of the virtues of success. Always be candid with your customers as well as your employees. Have an honest and accountable conversation with your employees and customers alike so that they understand your goals and efforts needed to achieve those goals. By openness, you'll find incredible force of loyalty to work against all the odds to take your business to the peaks of success.
