Transitioning from employee to entrepreneur isn’t an impossible feat, but it does come with its share of obstacles and failures.
To fail, is to succeed at testing an assumption, and this notion is laughably demonstrated in the comic #entrepreneurfail. Due to personal experience, creators Kriti Vichare and Shivraj Vichare, understand the daily extremities founders encounter throughout their career.
“It was inspired by the stupid things we have done and seen in our startup experiences.If you are an entrepreneur, I'm sure you've been faced with - the slow days, the uncertain days, the unexpected days. Laughter, and the fact that others out there have been through it too, keeps you going!”
Whether you’re on the verge of quitting your job to focus on your startup, or in search of funding, we’ve provided tips for conquering each #entrepreneurfail listed below.
Click the hashtag or comics to tweet and share your #entrepreneurfail.
The difference between corporations and entrepreneurship
There’s a sense of pride that develops once a person is hired by a corporation. The prestigious brand name, comfy cubicle, and fancy job title produce a euphoric feeling of victory. However, as each day crashes into the next, you begin to detect the true role you play within the organization; simply a small wheel in the major mechanisms of the company’s clockwork. The day to day becomes repetitive, boredom sets, and the euphoria you once had, seems to diminish greatly.
In comparison, the beginning of an entrepreneurial venture is quite different. Initially, you’re faced with uncertainty, confusion and fear. Then as business prospers, you garnish an immense feeling of fulfillment from working through each difficult obstacle. You’re in control, and your efforts directly impact the outcome of YOUR company. Listed below are three tips from our infographic “How to Make the Leap from Employee to Entrepreneur”:
Pinpoint your talents: Your business should stem from your strengths and passion in order to create an enduring brand.
Launch a project: Start a disposable project, and write out seven variations. Don’t fall in love with your project - instead, look for reasons to dismiss it.
Research and feedback: Get as much feedback on your project as possible. In the words of Adeo Ressi, “No one is going to steal your stupid idea.”
Learn before exploring entrepreneurship
“There are many similarities between learning to driving a car and becoming an entrepreneur.” Quoted on the blog of #entrepreneurfail, the creators further explain the comparison citing, “It takes a while to learn, but once you get the hang of it, you can apply your skills to other cars. Similarly in starting a company, once you know the basics about what works, subsequent ventures are much easier to tackle!”
From buzzwords to industry misconceptions, there are rules and regulations to entrepreneurship. Becoming an entrepreneur means switching over to the fast lane, thus make sure you can read each “sign” along the way. John P. Muldoon, Co-Director of the Dublin Founder Institute, and Daniel Arroyo, Co-Founder and CEO of Flaretag, provide four tactics for preparation:
Expand and update your startup terminology: Reference the best entrepreneurial books and trade magazines.
Surround yourself with genius: Get as many coffees with as many well-connected individuals as you can. Experienced business leaders respect early stage struggle. It’s amazing how many people want to help. You want to work and be around those who are smarter than you.
Embrace mentorship: Don’t limit your interactions with seasoned entrepreneurs. From start to finish, most founders have at least 3 advisors guiding them through their entire journey. Turn coffee dates into consistent email updates and substantial discussions. Daniel quotes, “A network will help you get investors, advisors and top employees - all needed when creating a successful business.”
Be accurate while developing your startup “project”: Be concrete in defining your customers, cost assumptions, and brand story. Ask yourself, then determine, “Are costs calculated accurately? Who will be my customer? What is the guiding principle for starting this business?”
Deciding to become an entrepreneur
Entrepreneurship is a considerable gamble. As stated in the comic, you’ll put your time, money, pride, and comfort all up to bet. You may or may not win during the first round, but the term “Serial Entrepreneur” wasn’t coined out of mere fashion. There is a countless number of entrepreneurs who’ve failed multiple times in efforts of launching the first, second and even third venture.
To fail as an entrepreneur is a rite of passage. It doesn’t matter how many times you fail either, because you’ll be learning invaluable lessons along the way. Never be afraid to be “all in”. Bet on yourself. You’ll be surprised to find out how much you can gain from losing. To help you start thinking like an entrepreneur, we compiled three traits every entrepreneur should have:
Be resilient: Successful entrepreneurs are able to storm through obstacles, quickly discovering solutions. A founder must execute at light speed, “being a first mover and continually exceeding the efforts of your competitors.”
Be confident: A healthy sense of confidence will increase your chance of success. You will face villainous naysayers that will tear down everything you propose. Make sure your product is what the world needs, and you’re the right one to deliver.
Be innovative: An open mind equals creativity, and as an entrepreneur you’ll need be continuously looking for fresh methods, strategies, and ideas to achieve greatness. Keep an open mind for developing brand new ideas and processes.
Turning your project into a business idea
I’m sure you’ve been there; in the middle of a boring event, steamy shower, or traffic jam, when BAM, you’re blindsided with the “the best idea you’ve ever had.” You can’t believe “you’re the first person” to devise such a brilliant solution to a “worldwide problem.” At first, you're hesitant to share the “genius idea,” but your excitement doesn’t allow you to hold your tongue for long. This is when reality sets in.
Co-workers and friends either dismiss or tear apart your idea, naming five different copycat companies. Mentors ridicule the imaginary market you claim is in need of your product. Family members pester you with questions on how you will raise funding. All at once, your bubble has ruptured, but you mustn’t give up. If you’ve failed at thoroughly researching your idea, competition, and market, use the strategy below to help construct a concrete idea:
Attend networking startup, entrepreneur, and business-related events with people who are working on similar projects, and connect with more mentors or business advisors.
Analyze your market and competition. Are the trends favoring your idea? Are you violating any agreements, trademarks or patents? Research why companies in your industry have failed. Figure out what they did wrong, and how you can do better. Speak to the founder on the phone and collect their feedback on the market and your idea.
Find some real potential customers for your product, and take them out to coffee. Do they immediately understand your idea? Does your idea solve a crucial problem for them, or is it just a “nice to have”? Would they pay for it?
Create a simple one-minute pitch and get feedback from friends and colleagues who will be honest with you.
Let’s try this again. Startup ideas.
Doing research on a not so good idea is one thing, but spending 33,280 hours of your life working on a bad startup idea is another. Dave Parker, Co-Founder and CEO of Bundled.com claims, “First timers have difficulty judging the validity of their ideas, and often get stuck in small ideas, or ideas that generally suck. Nevertheless, because we as founders are so close to our own ideas, it is very difficult to judge them with objectivity.” He advises founders to validate their idea by securing answers for these four questions:
Is it a scalable or a lifestyle business? "Lifestyle businesses are typically service companies (vs. product companies), where with every new customer you need to add staff to deliver the product. A scalable business, on the other hand, is a business that can make money while you sleep." Figure out which category you fall under.
Is it a big market? "Is the market you are pursuing a big market or a small market? For example, if your idea becomes a company and dominates the market, is it a billion dollar idea? On the other hand, you can run a 'successful' small business and fill a specific niche, but it just depends on how you define success and what your goals are."
Who exactly is the competition? "If your initial answer is that there isn’t any competition, that’s a problem. This is typical when your idea is too small or squishy… it’s not well defined enough, and you simply haven’t identified the market."
Is this idea worth 80 hours a week for the next 8 years of your life? "80 hours per week X 8 Years = 33,280 Hours! If you are going to spend that much time on your idea be critical of it now… not after two years of working on the idea."
Passion for your startup
Your business is a reflection of who you are. In the words of Amazon Founder Jeff Bezos, “Your brand is what people say about you when you’re not in the room.”
Are you launching a diabetes app because you’ve lost a family member to the illness? Are you creating an in-home care device, because your grandmother lives alone? You should be able to tell a personal story every time you pitch your idea. The foundation of your business is tied to your strengths, dreams and passions, something no one can supplement. As Adeo sometimes says, “people can copy your idea, but nobody can steal your dream.”
In the video series, “How to Build the Foundation for Your Startup,” Marcos Polanco, Director of the Silicon Valley Founder Institute, challenges founders to visualize themselves running a business until their last days on earth:
“For a moment picture that you are are 92 or even 102. The undertaker is about to come. What are you going to tell him? If you plead for more time to manage your company, then you know that you’re pursuing your passion.”
Every time you pitch your idea, remember to sell your passion rather than the product. If you successfully attract people to your startup’s vision, there will be no need for “sales”. Below are four tips to help you tie passion to your business:
Declare your startup’s core purpose.
Construct a strategy to achieve this purpose.
Share your vision with your targeted audience.
Generate sales through your vision, not your product.
Don’t harp over business plans
Startup founders are beginning to put more of an emphasis on pitch and less on business plans. Many say that venture capitalists don’t even read business plans anymore, and that they’re becoming a waste of time. Others claim that business plans are an essential key to success and shouldn't be neglected. Whether who’s right or wrong, LivePlan CEO Sabrina Parsons, created a pitch template combining all the important details that would be featured in a business plan. Your pitch would presumably need to talk about:
Your special sauce. Why your product or service is what this world needs.
Your team. Why you are the ones to make this happen.
The competitive landscape.
The market, and how you will reach it.
How much you will sell, (i.e. your forecast) over the next 12 months, and then the next few years.
How much it will cost you to sell (i.e., your Expenses).
Your implementation plan/timeline to implement.
How you will use the investment you are asking for (most likely it will match a Profit & Loss you have done).
What investors will get for giving you their money.
A day in the life as an entrepreneur.
In the beginning of entrepreneurship, you’re pretty much obligated to do everything. Even if that means running around frantically like a monkey. Once you’ve formulated a well-researched and tested plan; you can begin to outsource and develop a small team. From co-founders to CEOs, you will start depending on people to complete certain tasks. However, there will be duties you won’t be able to hand over as easily during the early stages of business. These tasks will fog your brain, forcing you to think of solutions and strategies each day:
Fundraising: Adeo Ressi quotes, “you’re going to be raising money all the time, so the person that’s doing the fundraising needs to be the CEO. You can’t rely on 3rd party people to do the fundraising for you.”
Traction: Benjamin Chong, a partner at Right Click Capital and a Co-Director of the Sydney Founder Institute claims, “a startup with little to no traction will not pique the interest of investors. Make sure you are establishing a solid customer base and gaining traction over time. This will help investors determine if your startup is viable.”
Hiring: Scott Heiferman, Co-Founder and CEO of Meetup.com quotes, “You need a team that’s going to care about this thing as much as you do.” Your team will be a reflection of who you and your company.
In Bradley Joyce’s (CEO, Socialyzer) 5 Things I Learned as an Entrepreneur This Year, he illustrates the importance of having personal support as an early-stage entrepreneur,
“This year has been filled with massive amounts of stress for me. There have been moments where I’ve been extremely depressed and close to throwing in the towel. The only reason I’ve survived is because I have amazing people in my life that let me vent and complain but still know I love what I do and encourage me to persevere. If you can’t name who that person is for you in a split second, you need to start searching.. fast. I’ll be making changes in my own life so I can be closer to these people.”
Do you need a co-founder?
There’s been much debate over whether companies should derive from both founder and co-founder. Some think that running a business alone is too much work, while others believe it’s more possible than ever before, for one person to effectively lead a company. Geoff Lewis, CEO of TopGuest claims,
“I’m seeing it done first hand by some of my single-founder friends, each of whom I believe will be wildly successful. In lieu of co-founders, these folks are instead assembling strong teams of employees, often in “co-founder-like” roles, after having established their companies.”
A co-founder will do half the work for you, provide emotional support, and have a huge impact on the startup’s culture. With a more diverse skill set, co-founders can fill in the gaps you can’t and contribute more of their own money to the business. Naval Ravikant, Co-founder of Angelist, defines the ideal founding team as,
“Two individuals, with a history of working together, of similar age and financial standing, with mutual respect. One is good at building products and the other is good at selling them.”
Your position within the company as it expands
An excessive number of people who attend Founder Institute events, say they want to become entrepreneurs so that they can be their own boss. That my friend, is the wrong reason. You will not be your own boss. You will take orders from your advisors, team members, and even customers. The #entrepreneurfail blog explains,
“You will be reporting to your customers, vendors, suppliers and your investors. They drive and dictate your promotions, pay raises, perks, annual leave, and responsibility. Welcome to your organization. It's the flip version of the corporate org chart. You are barely hanging on, as it grows larger above you. Be ready to draw it as you go.”
Listen to your customers
Do not be blind to the needs of your customers; they are the ones helping to fund your crazy idea. Make sure you build something they love, so that they keep on coming back. Have your customer build your product for you, with this easy formula:
Determine your Product / Value proposition: When creating your value proposition, be sure to make it something that you think your customers will like or find useful.
Collect emails: Create a strong subscriber list to further conduct split testing campaigns. This tactic will help to decipher the interests of your audience.
Find Where Your Customers Hang Out: You’re still going to have to find the places where your customers spend their time. This may be a niche forum, an industry blog, or other similarly themed locations.
Create Customer Conversations: Get valuable information from your potential customers, through interviews and mailing.
Ask Your Customer Advocates and New Customers: At this point, you should have considerable feedback from your initial customers.
"Gimme" the Money
“The feeling of satisfaction when you get validation for something that is yours alone is unparalleled. Entrepreneurs have an innate need to create, and when there is a sign that the road less taken may be the right one, it means so much more than just a salary.”
Cited on the #entrepreneurfail blog, it’s true that’s there is no greater feeling than acquiring your first paying customers or raising your first round of investment. But how do you keep the repetition of paying customers or curious investors from declining? Here are several pieces of advice from Worthworm to help keep your company financially stable:
Keep investors hooked: "Startup founders need to be able to reasonably talk about the future of their company, including finances."
Do not overvalue your venture: "Overvaluing a venture runs several risks, including appearing inexperienced or unreasonable, attracting incompatible investors, or securing the funding you need only to price yourself out of future funding rounds."
Seek the right funding: "You don’t need millions to get started and keep your startup a float, just the know-how to strategically raise the funds you need and to be able to demonstrate that the money will be spent in the right places."
Think you make the cut?
If you’ve successfully confirmed your decision to become an entrepreneur, make sure to check the phrases below, from off your list of expressions:
“I strongly feel all entrepreneurs need to laugh at themselves to keep things real and keep on going.” - Kriti Vichare
Tell us your biggest #entrepreneurfail below, we promise not to laugh, just relate.
Like this Blog?
Attend an Event
Sign up for the Newsletter