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You started your own startup company. You’re basking in the glow of being an entrepreneur and building a business from scratch, but have a sneaking suspicion there might be trouble on the horizon. Before you let the glory of entrepreneurship go to your head, you would be well-advised to pay attention to those doubts occasionally nagging at you in your unguarded moments. If any of the following seven signs are present, your startup company could be heading down the path of destruction.
Burn Rate Too High
Whether you run a bootstrapped startup or are Investor funded, managing your burn rate is crucial for long-term viability. Entrepreneurs who fail to monitor their startup’s burn rate are sentencing their company to the dreaded crash-and-bum end result. Many good companies havo failed simply because they failed to manage the rate at which they were plowing through cash. Don’t let this be your undoing.
Your Team is Losing Focus
If you find your team is continually losing focus and working on projects not aligned with your original vision.
Investors
So you’re building a startup. You have a business idea, your MVP is launched, and you’re contemplating raising a small seed round to build out your team. Before you fall prey to the fallacies of Startupland, there are a few harsh truths you need to know. Not all investors are as admirable as their Twitter profile would have you believe. You’re better off learning the following truths sooner rather than later.
Don’t trust investors based upon their social media reputation. Startupland is famous for big talkers and big spenders. Do your own due diligence when considering going into business with an investor. Just because they tweet a lot or sit on judging panels at startup conferences, that doesn’t mean you want their investment capital or their advice.
As a small business owner, you’ll be faced with countless challenges. Some enormous, some minor, but all draining. They’ll wear you down overtime, unless you’re prepared to face them properly. Here are a few resiliency and perseverance strategies that will help you keep your mental and emotional strength on point and emotional strength on point
Imitate Success
When you’re having trouble figuring out the next step for your startup, It may be time to look outside yourself. There’s no shame In looking to more successful companies and entrepreneurs for the next step. There are plenty of places you can look to, from autobiographies, videos, and even an actual mentor. Seeing that it’s been done before doesn’t just give you a method to imitate, it can inspire you and renew your passion.
Entrepreneurship is Supposed to Be Difficult
If you’re having a tough time running your startup, there’s nothing wrong with you. It doesn’t matter how strong, or nothing wrong with you. It doesn’t matter how strong, or resilient, or smart you are. Running a company is hard work. Internalizing that idea can make you mentally and emotionally stronger for a number of reasons.
First, knowing that It’s supposed to be difficult braces you for the challenges ahead. There’s no disappointment or shock when wave after wave of problems approach -you’ve expected them from the start. Secondly, it can help you preserve your confidence. It’s hard to feel confident when you stumble on simple tat, but falling against a tough challenge just means you have room to grow.
Think Positive
One of the biggest differences between a successful entrepreneur and one who falls involves the way they think. Mile It’s not the only factor, having a negative mindset Mile It’s not the only factor, having a negative mindset can make it difficult to see or seize opportunities. A negative or pessimistic mindset often results in hesitant or risk-averse behavior, making it difficult to catch up With well-established companies.
On the other hand, being positive not only means that you can see the path to victory more often, but that you’re more willing to take risks to get there. You’ll also be a more inspiring leader to your troops. Getting up In the morning Is a lot easier because you believe there’s always a way to succeed. A negative viewpoint, on the other hand, makes it difficult to think things will ever work out, thus weakening your resolve.
Go Big and Believe In Yourself
A lack of confidence can stymie any and all of your small business efforts. It’s been said that whether you believe you can or can’t, you’re right. Confidence will allow you to do things that you could always accomplish, while the lack of it will keep you from being at your full potential.
Confidence will also make you resistant to the trials and tribulations of running your own business. Instead of getting down on yourself, confidence allows you to absorb the blows and keep going. It will also keep morale at the office high. Your team’s morale will stay high if yours does
Learn to Roll with the Hits
You’re going to go through a lot of things as an entrepreneur. Every day, some new issue’s going to pop up, and you’ll have to deal with it. Many people have succumbed to that pressure. They dosed their startups and moved on to that pressure. They dosed their startups and moved on to other things You don’t have to be like them. You can instead roll with the punches instead of focusing on your failures, focus instead on what you can learn from it. It’s a snail distinction, but this difference in focus is important. Learning what you can from your mistakes keeps your eyes on the horizon, while wallowing in your mistakes is often depressing and can severely undermine your confidence and performance. When the hits come, roll with them and come up running towards the next task.