You hear it over and over. Maybe you keep saying it to yourself: “Someday, I’m going to quit this stupid day job and be my own boss.” It’s all just talk until you finally get the guts to throw down on this capitalist fiesta and start dancin’ your own dance.
But before you begin boogieing down with your start-up two-step, just be sure you’ve got a good grasp of exactly what it’s going to take to create a winner. The treacherous shoals of the business Bermuda Triangle are littered with the dream-wrecks of great ideas that did not heed the warnings of mistakes that so many start-ups make.
Who’s going to run this thing?
So, since you’re the one who came up with this fantastic new idea, you’re the one most qualified to run the whole shebang, right? Not necessarily. Entrepreneurs who can conjure everything from killer apps to mortgage-finders to Custom Flags might not be the perfect fit for the CEO who actually has to run the company, day to day, once it gets going.
As a matter of fact, some of the top causes for CEO burnout are the repetitive tasks and procedures that are so crucial to the success of the position – like the steadying influence of predictable strategies for servicing the internal mechanisms of a typical business, particularly a start-up.
Once you’ve worked out the kinks and get your start-up company up and grinding out those super products, take a step back and ask yourself: “Am I really the very best person for making sure HR procedures and regulations are followed to the letter of the law?”
Or would someone else be better at captaining those rote chores, so as to free you up for, perhaps, getting back down to Research and Development, in order to craft some new product? Some perfect complement to your original baby that got this whole thing going in the first place?
After the top 30 under 30, then what?
Every year, Forbes magazine has an issue entirely devoted to finding, identifying and describing the 30 top new companies that were started by people under 30-years-old. These are companies and entrepreneurs that the editors feel will make a difference in the business world in the coming year. There are 20 different categories of businesses and, thus, 600 entrepreneurs who are singled out for their insight perception and plain, old-fashioned dedication to hard work.
When these young business dynamos are asked what attributes that they feel are most important to the success of their individual start-ups, their answers reveal a fascinating insight into the inner workings of the most creative, meticulous young minds.
When asked how they would define success; 53% of them answered with “Achieving your potential.”
43% of them said that they were “at home” when they launched their start-up.
What do they think is the most important trait for entrepreneurs? 40% of them answered: “Grit.”
How many hours per week do they average working? 41% of them answered: “60.”
So the pictures these new business owners paint of themselves is one of total dedication to their objective – to produce the top new product, bar none, in the world that year. If you’re going to dump your day job and follow your dreams, just be mindful of the competition that’s out there.
When can I kick back and smell the roses?
It’s pretty easy to see that the youngsters that make the Top 30 Under 30 lists aren’t much into kicking back and enjoying the fruits of their labors once they get some recognition. That recognition usually just makes them simply come faster and harder.
So a good rule of thumb for your start-up efforts would probably be: do not let up, even a little bit, once your idea gains momentum and, especially if it gets funded. There will be plenty of opportunities to take some time off to party and re-charge the batteries – much, much later.
For now, you’ve got to take advantage of every opportunity and networking prospect that your company’s newfound success presents. Make that new contact, take that additional meeting, attend that innovative seminar, go that extra mile because you very well might not have this large of a surge in exposure for a long time to come.
Being seen and heard often around the cutting edge of your particular field familiarizes other entrepreneurs, and business journalists, with your particular skill set. They will respect and remember you and, most importantly, your new start-up company.
Just being a really successful entrepreneur becomes a full-time job, along with running your company, once you hit the big-time.