Five Things New Entrepreneurs Must Know
As a new entrepreneur, you are probably getting a lot of advice from a lot of different people. Whether it’s welcomed or not, you’re going to get many opinions on how you should run your business.
Want some advice that’s actually helpful? Canadian Business recently featured an article about the five things new entrepreneurs must know. Here’s a summary of what they had to say.
If you watch Shark Tank or Dragon’s Den, you will have heard this one over and over again. The number one thing you must consider before moving forward is ensuring you have a viable product. In other words, your product or service needs to be something that people will buy. If your idea won’t generate revenue, you don’t have a viable business.
Before you turn to other people, make sure you invest your own money, time, and sweat before asking for capital. Investors need to see that you believe in your idea or they aren’t going to pony up the dough.
Do yourself a favour and make it easy for investors to help finance your business. As James Smith, firm partner and a leading lawyer for technology startups says, “Keep your legal boring. If you’re creating unique, or highly stylized capital structures…the narrower the audience of people that would be interested. A standard ownership structure is best for attracting potential investors.”
Great inventions aren’t created overnight. They are perfected overtime and often require many refinements. That being said, don’t be afraid to change it up if things aren’t working. According to Shawn Abbott of iNovia Capital, “Dedication is a must, but only when combined with agility. In order to steadfastly work toward a goal, you can’t just do that blindly. You have to know when to cut bait, when to switch your strategy.”
The last and probably the most important thing new entrepreneurs must know (or ‘feel’ in this case) is passion. Be passionate, or don’t do it at all. The divide between self and work is non-existent when you’re an entrepreneur. If you’re only in it for the money, the likelihood of long term success is low. Make sure you’re 100% invested in your idea before deciding to make it your livelihood.
