People think that being an entrepreneur is something new.
And if you think of entrepreneurship as making a new app or combining two products into one, then it certainly is.
But, if you think of entrepreneurship as making a new product or providing a new service to the market, then it is nothing new.
Ever since people started spending money, there have always been inventors and creative thinkers that had bright ideas and worked hard to see them achieved.
Therefore, there is a lot that we can learn from those masters which will help you avoid some of the biggest mistakes entrepreneurs make.
So, let’s not waste time and jump in.
1. Making a bad plan
One of the biggest mistakes entrepreneurs make is making a poor plan. In order to turn your idea into reality, you need to make a solid plan.
No product or service has been made available without careful planning and hard work.
Do not start working on a project until you have a solid plan.
2. Budget issues
One of the first mistakes people make in their plan is to underestimate their budget.
They put on some pink glasses and think that they will be ok with only enough money to eat and keep their lights on.
Well, we are here to tell you that this is bound to cause you issues. The first thing that you need to figure out is how much capital you need to raise for your startup.
Our advice is to think of a price and then add 50% to it. This advice comes from veterans from numerous different industries.
Experienced people ranging from video games to food service startups all agree that figuring out your budget perfectly without any prior experience is impossible.
3. Online research
Do you have a new and bright idea that is going to bring you a lot of money? Great! But, how sure are you that your idea is actually new?
A lot of entrepreneurs make the mistake of jumping right into designing and working. What they ought to do instead is to see if their idea is actually new.
More often than not, someone has already dealt with it (or something quite similar). And, the more research you do, the more prepared you will be.
Especially if you both research your particular project and websites that tell you how to deal with startups in general.
4. Not planning for mistakes entrepreneurs make
This mistake is a part of the budget mistake, but it can easily spread to other parts of your project. Especially if you have other people helping you.
What most young entrepreneurs do is think that they will not make any mistakes. Or that, if they do, they will not be a big deal and that they will manage them along the way.
This is one of the biggest mistakes entrepreneurs make as it easily destroys both their project and budget. What you need to do is to plan for mistakes.
Of course, this doesn’t mean that you have to expect the unexpected (that is an oxymoron). Instead, what you need to do is to give yourself room to handle mistakes.
This means not only room in the budget but also room in schedule and manpower.
5. Having a bad mindset
Being an entrepreneur sounds like a dream. You create new stuff and make a lot of money by doing what you love.
But, as you will soon find out, entrepreneurship means hard work and tenacity, more than anything else.
Not having the right mindset is one of the mistakes entrepreneurs make that forces them to quit their project and even entrepreneurship as a whole.
Learn how successful people think and retrain your mind to think like them.
6. Lack of patience
Being patient is one of the less talked about virtues in today’s world. But, if you choose to deal with a project, you will learn just how important it is.
Working with people particularly requires patience and calmness of mind that few people have. But, not having natural patience is not a problem.
Not being willing to develop it is. So, in order to tackle entrepreneurship as a whole, you better learn what patience is all about.
7. Not getting the job done
The biggest difference between successful and unsuccessful entrepreneurs is the willingness to get the job done.
Successful people have the work ethic and tenacity required to see things through, and they know how important this trait is.
Clueless entrepreneur-wannabes choose to stay on the creative side of project development and not finish anything. Avoid this pitfall at all costs.
8. Mishandling your project
As any experienced entrepreneur can tell you, planning your project is one thing but seeing in through is something else completely.
In order to turn your idea into reality, you need to handle your project properly.
Now, this is easier said than done, as project management is not something a lot of people are born with.
In fact, a project can easily become so complicated that it is hardly a surprise that you can get a degree in project management.
Therefore, in order to avoid all the mistakes entrepreneurs make, a young entrepreneur needs to know how to handle their project.
One of the most common mistakes entrepreneurs make is to mishandle a well thought out project.
9. Lack of focus
The biggest problem creative people tend to have is to stay focused. That is why they usually have bad grades at school.
Not because they do not understand, but because they cannot focus themselves on the task at hand.
But, in order to see a project through, an entrepreneur needs to learn to stay focused. 80% of your entrepreneurs fail simply because they couldn’t be bothered to focus and finish what they started.
They are so eager to tackle something new that they easily put away the problem at hand. If you want to see your project succeed, you need to learn what being focused is all about.
10. Greed
As a young entrepreneur, you probably don’t have a lot of money. Therefore, you will probably try to save as much of it as you can.
While this is a good strategy, there is one thing that you have to keep in mind, and that is that good things cost money for a reason.
This, of course, doesn’t mean that you should rush into debt. But, you need to come to terms with the fact that in order to make something worthwhile, you will need to spend money.
If you start being greedy and try to save your money wherever you can, you will run your project into the ground.
As any tradesperson will tell you, you’ve got to spend money in order to make money.
11. Working with the wrong people
There is rarely a project nowadays that one can complete singlehandedly.
In 99% of the cases, you will need to get people to help you with your project in order to see it through.
Now, this can mean that you get someone locally to help you or that you find people with the required skills online. But, one thing remains the same – you need to find good people to help you.
The people you work with will determine how good your project turns out.
12. Help from friends
One of the mistakes entrepreneurs make is to get their friends to help them.
Unless you are an experienced entrepreneur who knows what they are doing and your friends have the necessary skills, don’t invite them.
Working with a friend can not only put a strain on your relationship, but it can put your project in jeopardy.
Take long distance moving as an example. Sure, you can have your friends help you move down the street.
But, for long distance relocations, you are much better off hiring long distance moving professionals. It takes a professional to make sure that everything goes according to plan.
13. Not dealing with mistakes entrepreneurs make
No matter how much you prepare and plan, there are going to be mistakes that pop up while you are dealing with your project.
And, one of the biggest mistakes entrepreneurs make is not taking care of them when they do pop up.
Being an entrepreneur is not about having an idea and simply working to make it come true.
In order to make your startup grow, you will spend a lot of your time dealing with unforeseen circumstances and mistakes.
Unfortunately, this can be both arduous and boring, which is why so many entrepreneurs choose to postpone dealing with mistakes.
And, they end up doing so at their own peril.
It’s not the mistakes that are the problem, it is not dealing with them that is.
14. Not learning from them
Keep in mind though that not every mistake can be dealt with. A young, confident entrepreneur is bound to make certain mistakes that may even ruin their project.
If that happens, the best thing you can do is to learn from your mistakes.
A lot of people let their vanity get in their way and do not recognize their mistake.
And, since they do not recognize it, they cannot learn from it.
