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There’s no way around it: Starting a business is a daunting task. While many have had a big idea before, most entrepreneurs either don’t know where to start, or get sidetracked along the way. If it’s not a lack of investment, it’s not getting enough sleep, or not having the right plan, or a hundred other issues that you couldn’t have foreseen.
But what if you didn’t have to learn all those lessons yourself? See, there are a lot of successful CEOs who have already blazed the trail for you and are happy to dole out advice. We’ve gathered that advice for you right here, to help make your journey a successful one. Are you ready to listen?
“To get good payback on an investment…there needs to be a good strategy, a roadmap, adjusting the course with seven to ten corrections at different stages of the journey. The point is to reduce the cost of going to scale.”
@ronbodkin, Founder & President of Think Big
“Litigation can be a very expensive proposition for a new company. I’ve seen large companies crush their smaller competitors under the weight of legal fees. Any new company with a technology or intellectual property they need to protect, should take the necessary steps to secure it through patents and copyrights. Those tools are there to help level the playing field for small companies.”
@perryclegg, Founder of Trademark Access
“Try it on a small scale — all the business plans in the world don’t compare to actually trying it to understand what your main challenges are going to be. Also, talk about your business to others as if it’s already successful — it buys you a lot of credibility to be confident.”
@jsoffen, Director at Fundera
“If you are running your own business, then act like it! People will take you much more seriously if you run your business in the proper way. It doesn’t matter how old you are in the professional world, age holds no bar unless you make it an issue. Try to avoid using instant messengers and short text language (e.g “how r u?”), after all you are not talking with your friends! Customize your emails with company branding images and logos, reply to inquiries, answer clients questions, etc. All this helps to build up your reputation within your industry and grow your professional network.”
@matt_oit, Founder and Editor of OnlineIncomeTeacher
“Based on my own experience, it pays to be a thought leader in your own industry. In today’s world, it is easy to publish your own information (including videos), but the traditional media outlets still carry a lot of weight. Get positive exposure and help others by sharing your expertise. By building up a following and strategic partners, good things will happen. On a side note, it pays to love what you do. Hard work and dedication can separate success stories from those that do not have their heart in it. As the old Confucius quote goes, “Find something you love to do and you will never have to work for the rest of your life.”
@ByrnesConsultin, Owner of Byrnes Consulting
“Entrepreneurship is a wild ride. Self discipline and self awareness are two things that are absolutely essential but rarely get any air time. To succeed, especially in the early days as an entrepreneur, you need to get comfortable saying “No”. You also need to have the discipline to stick to a strict regimen without a boss looking over your shoulder. Lastly, you’re not going to be able to grow and develop your skills and business if you aren’t aware of what you’re doing wrong and what you’re doing right. This sense of self-awareness is huge.”
@DifferentHunger, Founder of Different Hunger
“Making a decision on your company name can be exhausting. Anything you can do to reduce the number of viable options for your choice helps you save time and make a better decision. By viable you should make sure the name is available and quickly attainable. This allows you to make faster decisions, so you can be lean and concentrate on what matter most, building your company.”
@margotb, Founder of Boxador & BrandBucket
“Network! Make connections and keep a record on each person you meet. Ask for their advice and help. Keep in touch with them along the way and build your network before you need it! Quality relationships are the keys to the kingdom.”
@ClareDreyer, Founder of The Courage Formula
“You have to build in time to workout and manage your health. A typical day for me involves a set number of working hours, time to actually make or grab something healthy to eat, and I schedule in (yes, actually schedule in) my workout hours. Even though I’m working less, I have a higher output and I’m more responsive and helpful to my clients.”
@selenavidya, founder of Orthris
“A young business is like a child. You need to be able to drop everything for your child and devote your time and attention to moulding them and helping them grow, excel and achieve their full potential. As an entrepreneur, you need to be nurturing to your business and be ready to stand by its side and protect it through thick and thin.”
@PhilipKeezer, CEO of Playster
“The best advice I have been given is to only hire people you would trust to hire other people for you. When building a team, you can easily bring the wrong people in, which can do a lot of damage to the company. To be sure you bring in only the best, make sure you would trust everyone you hire to bring another person into the company.”
@benln, Cofounder of Mapme
“The only advice I have is sell. You have to sell. I go to food trade shows probably eight times a year and exhibit. Anyone that comes to our booth during a trade show will tell you that we actively seek out customers. We’re standing outside of our booth asking every single person, whether they’re a buyer or not, would they like to try our product?”
@IamEricaBarrett, Owner of Southern Culture Artisan Foods
Have any advice you’d add? Share it with us in the comments.