[ad_1]
Opinion holder entrepreneur Contributors are their own.
The road to entrepreneurship isn’t as glamorous as the one depicted on the #entrepreneur side of Instagram. The formula for success doesn’t include jet planes and flashy clothes and cars, but it does include a good deal of guts and belief. Growing the company from her two-person team to her 30-person team presented some challenges. Things like product iterations, fundraising, and even hiring people to join the journey were posed as mountains that our team had to overcome. is on a wild road!
I don’t claim to be an expert, but I wanted to spread these thoughts and help people with a lot of business ownership. (Or even on the cusp of it!)
Here are five lessons I learned as a first-time female founder.
RELATED: Avoid These 3 Common Entrepreneur Death Traps
Don’t wait for “perfect”.
Waiting for the stars to align to start moving toward your business goals is wishful thinking. It might seem like overkill, but when you’re building a business, iteration speed is your best friend to success. Start somewhere. No decision is perfect. Few decisions lead to the death of the company. It’s important to take small, actionable steps each day to reach your goals.
Perfection is the enemy of progress. The first iteration of a product can be difficult. But Beta, he brought the product to market with his testers and ended up with a product that we are very proud of today. Without feedback, effective iteration is impossible. I regularly ask myself, “What can I do today to be better than I was yesterday?”
RELATED: Perfection doesn’t exist. Here’s how to stop wishing and start a business.
bring the right people
It’s easy? I believe that good people make good teams, and good teams make good products. Building a team is one of the cornerstones of business success. The secret behind Smartrr’s growth is the team we’ve built. Finding that talent from scratch is one of the most difficult things I’ve faced. I know I said don’t wait for perfection. Still, it’s imperative to be clear about the type of culture you’re building your business in, and focus on having the right people to add value to that particular culture.
Starting a company is a challenge. Any internal misalignment will only distract you from your goals and can lead to your downfall. Take time to choose who is in your inner circle. This includes not only your team, but all other stakeholders. your investors, your partners and your customers. Surround yourself with well-meaning, ambitious, and intelligent people who are dedicated to solving the problems you are trying to build.
Then align the people behind the customer-oriented mindset. It may sound simplistic, but it’s easy to get distracted by who’s doing the latest shiny objects and clever marketing campaigns in this space. Constantly surface customer pain points and feedback, avoid looking at what other competitors are doing, and set sail towards needs that can be met for customers and prospects.
As a result, we continue to develop innovative solutions and stay aligned with our internal mission and goals. If there’s one thing you should learn from this article, it’s that everyone in your company (regardless of the product or service they offer) should be focused on the end consumer.
When this is done right, teams not only build great things, they inspire each other every day to drive a strong culture, increased productivity, and a stronger business.
reflection is important
Everyone has different ways of alleviating the different levels of anxiety caused by everyday business tasks. Two things that work for me are sleep (more of a short-term solution) and reflection.
It’s easy to block bad calls, days, etc. Over time, you’ll look back on the same events that made you feel bad, look back on the things that once ruffled your wings, and laugh (trust me Please, we’ve all been there. You’re not alone.).
As a founder, stopping when things go wrong is not an option. Again, I was there. When you overcome the next challenge, you will look back and see that you are better. You can reconcile bad things and even laugh at things that have caused you in the past.When faced with new challenges, take these steps and focus on what you can control. Previous challenges help you know you can overcome another.
RELATED: 8 Entrepreneurs Reveal How They Tell Reflection From Regret
Capital isn’t the only thing that can raise money
I could write another article on how to effectively raise money for your business, but in the space I have, with investors who have years of experience in your space I know there’s a lot to be gained from being in the room.In my opinion, good investor relations are not based on the base of capital provided.
In the early stages, the “best” investors are those who have a true partnership. They are people we can turn to for help for any reason. They aren’t investing just to fill a bucket of investment papers. They’ll be thrilled with what you’re doing and will take the time to learn about you and your vision for the company. They don’t wait for you to reach out. They take the initiative to introduce potential clients or see how the life of a founder treats you.
When actively fundraising, remember the following: In addition to communicating your vision, need to do it tell you about them Pay close attention and ask difficult questions. Find out who they support, their current portfolio companies, who they can connect with you, and their stance on trends in your market.
Create non-business goals
You will undoubtedly be tested, pushed beyond your limits, and challenged to overcome many mental barriers. is. One thing I’ve found particularly helpful while working on Smartrr is challenging myself to find purpose beyond work. Short-term wins are essential as we focus on very big things like scaling what we hope the business will continue to thrive.
One example is a weekend hike. A breath of fresh air is amazing, but reaching the peak of a hike that is “winning” in a way is a great victory that helps fuel my mind for the upcoming week. It’s hard to believe when you’re deep in the trenches, but winning doesn’t always come from business. Set goals and achieve them inside and outside your organization!
As a first-time founder, these five lessons have brought me joy and success on my entrepreneurial journey. This is not your “success formula”, but I hope you will learn and apply the lessons that will drive your business and life growth. Success is not linear and won’t appear the same in all cases, but apply these principles how they fit into your daily life. I hope you can cut it.
[ad_2]
Source link
