Who's better than US based, born and bred entrepreneurs, to tell us what the struggles are and how to solve them, in growing a startup company?
Many will tell you it takes balls of steel and nerves of iron. Many are not wrong. But there are a few salient characteristics of a successful startup entrepreneur such as:
1. They don't complain 2. They are resourceful 3. They start off small in order to grow bigger
Take Evona Niewiadomska, founder and head of Undiscovered Kitchen. When she first started out, she launched Summalist as a premium paying service. As time went by, she realized that it wasn't getting the traction she wanted and reverted it to a free service with a hopeful view that most of the subscribers would upgrade to a premium paying account. It paid off and her business is souring to new heights.
Wordpress has become one of the most popular and leaders in easy-to-use platforms to run your website from. Phil Derksen, founder and developer, based in Fresno, California in the US, is all about offering tips, shortcuts and tricks that create a further hunger for more. He believes in giving free advise in the form of blogs and short videos which then prompt customers to sign up for web based seminars and live Webinar's. The clinics he hosts give customers the chance to bring their pains so that he can assist with providing a solution.
And that is what most of the startup entrepreneurs are saying. Find a solution, a solution for your business issues and/or a solution for your customers. If you can solve a problem for a potential client then you are one step closer to bringing that client under your wing, one step closer to securing a new sale and an increase in revenue.
Keep it simple. Start out small and you will go far. All solid advise from already established and successful leaders in the entrepreneur world.
Brian Kurth, the founder of PivotPlanet and Revere, of Austin, Texas, US, has some nuggets of value to share with us too. Oddly, his advice is based around relaxing, getting enough sleep and re-energizing yourself. Balance is something that most of us struggle with and he wasn't immune to this, but over time realized that he couldn't function without a good solid sleep and finding ways to wind down.
Most of the problem, he claims, is in not taking regular breaks, even if this just means standing up from your desk or taking a brief walk to make a cup of Java. The eyes get a breather as well as our bodies. Sitting can be hellish on the muscles and bones.
At night, he is a firm believer in switching off all media devices, from Smart Phones to televisions. He does this 2 hours before he is going to go to sleep. Brian doesn't even set an alarm nowadays to wake up. His body knows, that if it gets the required amount of sleep and proper switch-off time, it will wake up when he needs it to. Waking up refreshed and ready to rock the world is just a given in his life.
Another powerful tip to distressing is that he lengthens the deadline date on projects. While he may know a certain project will take approximately 3 days to complete, he doubles it up to 6 days, which he feels gives him plenty leeway should there be issues. He tells his clients that the project will take 6 days and when he delivers early, they are properly stoked.
This all sounds wonderful and it would be nice to be able to tick off even one of his de-stress methods, but we all know it takes time to change a bad habit. Brian is in full agreement and confirms that this didn't all magically happen overnight. Be patient with yourself and give it time.
Sometimes, it is simply money or the lack thereof that hinders our progress to grow our startup business, but sometimes all we need is a little innovation. A good idea and a polite smile may be all one needs to get a project off the ground.
Know what's not working in your business and know what is working.
Many novice entrepreneurs have begged, borrowed and no, not stolen, from those around them, to produce the most innovative ventures. From hiring a train at no charge to publicize a brand new endeavor, to calling on other successful startups for their hunks of knowledge and expertise, for a new, seemingly silly exploit to get off the ground.
Use your resources. And by resources, this can be who you know but also what you know. Your brain is filled with tons of ideas. Mad ideas! Crazy-ass ideas! Ideas that make you lay awake at night. Ideas that form like little buds but which can blossom into full on rose bushes.
But if you don't try them out then how will you know if they will work or not?