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When setting up a startup, you will undoubtedly encounter obstacles that seem insurmountable. After all, starting your own business is no sinecure. You face constant challenges that test your resolve and ultimately determine the success of your business.
When I started my own company, I was often disappointed with the lack of progress or the problems that arose. Fortunately, I learned how to deal with difficult situations in the right way building a successful business. All it took was time and a willingness to learn and grow from my mistakes.
However, no one should start a company blindly. Like I said, there’s plenty I wish I’d known before starting my own company. Here are five things I would tell myself before building my business that I know will help future entrepreneurs:
Related: 8 things to know before starting a business
1. Admit to your mistakes
Taking responsibility for your mistakes – especially critical ones – is hard. However, acknowledging and investigating your missteps will help you make better, smarter decisions next time.
Don’t blame others for your mistakes. This will create unnecessary tension and ultimately divide the team. When leaders take responsibility for their mistakes, they cultivate a trustworthy culture of teammates who take their responsibilities seriously.
As a leader, you cannot ask more of your employees than responsibility and respect. Those are two driving forces that move your business forward. So admit your mistakes to improve your entire team.
2. Expect things to require more resources than expected
With countless hours of planning put into launching many startups, it’s surprising how often things get messed up. Startups can experience various unforeseen events (e.g. labor shortages, pandemics, wars). Regardless of the conflict, you should always count on needing more resources than previously planned.
For example, bringing a product to market may take longer than you initially planned because the delayed supply chain affects material delivery. Or maybe your product needs more capital than previously estimated because the cost of certain materials has risen due to inflation.
Whatever the event, you should always be prepared for money, time or material shortages. By anticipating it, you can better prepare your team and company to look for a solution if necessary.
3. Consider customer service an integral part of your business
Early in a company’s life, customer service is often overlooked due to a lack of resources. But don’t underestimate the power of great customer service. It should be defined as listening to your customers’ problems, acknowledging them and providing an effective solution.
If you can give early customers a great experience, they will stay customers for life. In turn, you are building a brand that future customers will trust and love. Not to mention, word of mouth is an excellent bonus – it’s free and offers some of the best brand recognition you can build as a business.
4. Check your ego at the door
As a founder of a company, it is best to let go of your ego. Why? Most importantly, an ego dilutes the pool of available candidates when recruiting. Revealing a strong or belligerent ego during an interview will cause the good candidates to reject your offer – or even withdraw their application before hearing your hiring decision.
As a result, you’re left with a team that isn’t as good as it could be. Be sure to let go of your pride when recruiting a team early. If you have a successful core team, you have a successful company.
Related: 10 questions to ask yourself before embarking on your entrepreneurial journey
5. Build an experienced team
It goes without saying that you build an experienced team from the start. However, many startups suffer from favoritism and hire team members because they are friends or family rather than based on experience. Also, some founders simply have no recruiting experience and end up hiring unqualified team members.
In addition, the team members you hire should fit the culture you want to cultivate. Find people with different mindsets who are doers and take ownership of their work. Doing this will grow your business and propel it into a successful startup with a team of synergistic individuals.
While these five tips will help you navigate your startup early on, they don’t cover everything you need to know. In fact, you will get many opportunities along the way to learn from your own experiences and mistakes. This is the only way to better prepare yourself, your team and your company for a successful future.