10 lies that keep would-be entrepreneurs from starting
I was originally going to call this post, “The Stupid Isms of Entrepreneurs.”
There’s an unlimited number of excuses and beliefs that prevent you from becoming an entrepreneur. Inactivity is easily justified.
You’ll get around to it someday, right? Whether it was a college research paper or a difficult conversation, the future seems more appealing. But someday won’t provide a better opportunity. If anything, the inspiration has expired and it’ll be even more difficult to begin.
AppSumo has a free course called the “Watrepreneur Business Outline.” It’s a practical exercise that helps you realize how much easier it is to launch your idea. It was one of the things that helped me move beyond the limiting beliefs preventing me from starting.
The sea of entrepreneurialism rarely provides perfect waters. So, if you’re waiting for perfect timing, the perfect amount of money in your bank account, or any number of ideal situations before you’ll start, I’m sorry to tell you, but you’ll be in the same place ten years from now.
One reality you need to accept is that right now is the perfect time to start. An idea has a shelf life. After a while it becomes stale. Emotion won’t carry you, but it will help you get started. Emotions can provide the initial excitement you need to get started.
Calculated Risks
Starting “your own thing” requires a certain level of risk no matter how much uncertainty you remove.
But then again, so does your 9 to 5. You might think you’re in good with your boss. But what happens when he or she retires and someone with a lesser view of you takes over? Or what happens when your company gets bought out? Or what happens when your job is outsourced or sent overseas?
Call if personal accountability or self-respect, you owe it to yourself to give this thing a chance. Are you going to be the “idea” guy the rest of your life? Do you really want to be the guy (or gal) always telling your friends, “I got this idea for the next [insert hypothetical new product].” Or “I had the idea for [insert product that’s already on the market].” Ideas are cheap – action talks.
10 lies that keep would-be entrepreneurs from starting
Are you ready to take the first step? Then stop believing these 10 lies you’ve been listening to.
Thinking you need to learn more
Do you feel unprepared to start? Like a sophomore in a sea of upperclassmen, you feel unqualified. But guess what...even the most seasoned veterans feel ill-equipped when they start.
Previous roles and experiences can help prepare you for certain aspects of entrepreneurship, but only being an entrepreneur can prepare you for being an entrepreneur. There’s not a manual for starting your own thing, so take it one step at a time. You don’t need a ten-year plan to start.
Truth: You’ll learn along the way. Start with what you have and what you know.
Aiming for perfection when an MVP is sufficient
You can waste so much time tinkering with the little details of your product before taking it to market. Instead of wasting time and energy making the perfect product you could take your product to market as it is and continue to iterate and develop, learning valuable insights along the way.
The Hustle, a daily newsletter (you need to go here an sign up right now), is the perfect example of launching an MVP. They began with an idea and let their fans watch the development along the way.
Truth: Don’t aim for perfection – good is good enough.
Waiting for the perfect time
There’s never a perfect time. You’ll always be too busy, too young, too old, or [insert your excuse here].
Truth: Put a big red X on the calendar to mark your start date and work backward creating the steps to get there. “Perfect time” doesn’t exist.
A victim mentality
One thing I’ve learned from battling sickness is that someone always has it worse than you. There’s been someone less fortunate than you who chased their dreams and succeeded. There’s been someone with less time than you who figured out how to optimize their time in order to succeed.
I love J.K. Rowling’s story, not because she’s an amazing author, but because of her tenacity in the face of difficulty. A single mother living on welfare who became one of the greatest novelists of all time.
Truth: Don’t let the obstacles ahead of you stop you. If you look hard enough you can find a way to get around them.
Believing in overnight success
Achieving success in entrepreneurship is the result of sustained tenacity. Overnight success is a lie. Just because someone seemed to pop up overnight doesn’t mean they’re success was instantaneous. What you don’t see are the countless hours of plodding leading up to that result. You need to be willing to grind.
Truth: Be willing to grind and figure out how to sustain.
Relying on ideas
After graduating from college I realized that the real world doesn’t value ideas. Everyone has an idea. Ideas are cheap. But you know what’s not cheap? Execution.
Ideas will remain an idea until they’re met with execution. It’s the difference between “what if” and reality. It’s the difference between your neighbor and concept for the next “smart garage door opener” and billionaire tech founder in San Francisco.
Truth: Stop talking about your idea until you put a plan in place to make it a reality.
Waiting for the “Aha moment”
The “aha moment” isn’t as much of a fallacy as the execution of that momentary flash of genius. It’s what you do with your “aha moment” that counts. Being an entrepreneur doesn’t come with a handbook. People speak of these moments as if they were struck with a brilliant idea and found a yellow brick road ahead.
An “aha moment” is often just an idea. It’s what you do next that turns it into something.
Truth: Don’t get hung up on hoping to be struck with a brilliant idea.
“If you love what you do you’ll never work a day in your life.”
I love being a parent, but it’s a lot of work. And to be honest, I don’t enjoy all the aspects of it. I’m not looking at the world with a rose-colored filter when my three-year-old is having a meltdown at the store.
Loving what you do doesn’t mean it won’t require work. I love being a parent. And because of that, I realize there are things I have to do that won’t be enjoyable. But that’s okay. If you love the work, you won’t mind the extra effort.
Truth: In the midst of the unenjoyable aspects, focus on the target you’re aiming for, not the immediate task. Even dream jobs require work.
Listening to the advice of your peers
You have to be careful to whom you listen to. Your peers will often provide unintentional misguided advice. They don’t intend to, but they don’t know how to give the advice you need. Most of the time they haven’t experienced what you’re going through in order to provide the council you need.
Truth: Be careful who you listen to.
Believing you need "X" before you can start
You want optimal conditions before you start – I get it. That means the latest computer, a new website, the software, and everything else to help you look and feel the part. But you don’t need all of that when you first get started.
With a little creativity, you can gain free access to exactly what you need in today’s world. When I first started developing content, my wife and I had one computer between the two of us. She already had her own business and worked from home. That meant that she often had priority on the computer. If I was going to write, it often meant I had to use my phone. But thanks to my iPhone and Google Sheets, I was able to crank out a lot of content right there on my phone. It also meant I could work on content no matter where I was – even during breaks at my 9 to 5 at the time.
Truth: You don’t need the latest and greatest – look for an alternative.
Stop overthinking it. Put the plan in place that will take you from where you are to where you want to be. Follow your passion – life is too short to be doing something you don’t enjoy!