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Step 1
Believe in yourself
Being an entrepreneur is a lot more risky than the conventional job routine. The countries most established men and women are driven by the fact that there is no regular salary; and you have to find customers on your own. Marketing your product/service and financing the project are also of concern. I noticed that most established men and women in business use a combination of due diligence and gut instincts while evaluating their product/service. They are good at spotting a need in the market and then backing themselves up to believe that their idea can fill that void.
Lesson one -- Believe in your idea. Never underestimate what you can do. You may surprise yourself. -
Step 2
Work with the right people
Most established men and women of any industry highlighted this as the toughest aspect of building a business. Sanjay Bhargava, who co-founded Pay-Pal, recommended entrepreneurs to bring in people who are really good at what they do and also to focus on ensuring the team members get along with each other.
Some entrepreneurs confessed they made the initial mistake of hiring friends and people they liked, but soon realized that friends were not always the best employees.
Lesson two -- Build your team with people possessing complementary skills, not 'yes men' who are always showering praise. You need employees, partners and mentors you trust, who will give you honest feedback and take your company to the next level. -
Step 3
Be money wise
While some very successful and well established men and women of business went in for conventional sources of funding from a venture capitalist or banks, etc, quite a few started out with their savings or by borrowing money from friends and family. Most entrepreneurs said they focused on increasing efficiency and optimizing costs and overheads. One entrepreneur shared that he consciously stayed away from non-essentials like an extravagant office, equipments, etc. The focus was on superior execution and high quality service.
Lesson three -- It's tempting to dream of a corner office, a pool table and expensive chairs, but you should give it some time. Start small and start efficient. Being better is more important than being bigger. -
Step 4
Concentrate on the message
"As a small business, most of our marketing is word-of-mouth. Our clients appreciate the kind of work we do and our reputation for delivering results," said Vidhanshu Bansal, founder of an information-technology company called Pixel Webtech.
Most established men and women in business said that in the early days, their tendency was to focus on sales activities and as they grew, they started looking at various marketing initiatives, as that is the cement that gels customers, vendors and success together. Their strategy kept changing, depending on what worked -- direct mailers, e-mail marketing, presentations at seminars, etc.
Lesson four -- Marketing a start-up business is a 24/7 activity and you need to pay attention to the message you're sending out to existing and prospective clients. Your message has to be tailored to meet the customer's expectations. -
Step 5
Keep yourself motivated
Do not indulge in fault-finding or blame games. That was a clear message from most established men and women in business. Pigeonholing a particular situation negative vibes begin to fester and cost you time and quality. Celebrating every small success and appreciating them will build a sense of accomplishment.
Lesson five -- Be a coach, rather than the star player. Appreciate and acknowledge the positive behaviors of others so that the behaviors turn into consistent practices. -
Step 6
Make mistakes
"If you ain't a little bit scared, you ain't driving fast enough," said Deepak Wadhwa, another entrepreneur. Most entrepreneurs agreed. Give your people the license to fail. It's ok to make a mistake as long as they are succeeding 9 out of 10 times, and making sure that they don't repeat those mistakes in the future.
Lesson six -- The worst mistake is the one that gets repeated. Create a culture of learning and experimentation right at the start of the business. This will become a powerful value with the growth of the business. -
Step 7
Be passionate
Most successful and established men and women of business accepted that the rewards of being an entrepreneur can be terrific but they were also of the opinion that there is no 'secret sauce.' There are a lot of magazines, self-help books and biographies of successful entrepreneurs that one can read, but at the end of the day, it's about execution. What you really need is to be passionate about your work.
Lesson seven -- If you are doing something and the day flies by, if you are surrounded with people you like to work with, then you have most of the ingredients for entrepreneurial success.
