Written by: Nida Leardprasopsuk, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Every entrepreneur has a story to tell. It does not matter whether they are successful or not, they all have stories. There are lessons to learn from the journey to entrepreneurship. The truth is that nothing prepares you for what you will experience as an entrepreneur. No matter how many books you read, no matter how many courses you take, or seminars you attend. They may cushion the effect of the experiences, but never give you complete edge over everything that could happen.
Many people become entrepreneurs with the hopes of having smooth sails. But things aren’t always as they seem, and they don’t always go according to plan. It has been an interesting journey for me, one that has exposed me to experiences, some pleasant, and others that are not so pleasant.
I can write a big book about my experiences. But I have selected 8 of the major lessons I learned from being an entrepreneur. I am sharing them with you, because they can help you on your journey through the world of being an entrepreneur.
1. Hire Slow & Fire Fast
This is a popular rule that so many successful entrepreneurs and professionals follow. It may seem harsh. As humans we are social beings- we tend to create social bonds with people for different reasons. We are emotional empaths who are considerate about the other person’s plight. But, if the emotions are not checked, it could have a negative effect on your business.
I love to give people opportunities to show what they can do. I also expect them to grow while at it. I believe in the fact that skillsets and mindsets can be improved over time. Yet, in times past, I gave people too much time to grow and prove themselves. But they refused to be accountable for even their own growth and benefit, and that took a toll on my business. The solution is to take your time in hiring. Ensure that you hire the best hands that buy in to your vision and are ready to give 110% (Yes, 110% is what I said) of themselves. If the people you hire are underperforming, it is very okay to let them go. You should do it without emotions or sentiments. Rather, see it as you helping them learn the lessons they need to grow and evolve. They say that you are wasting four times the cost of hiring someone when you hire the wrong person.
The takeaway from the lesson is that you should ensure you hire the best. But, let them go if they still do not perform, even after giving them time to learn and improve on themselves. Bad hires will send productivity and efficiency on a downward spiral. When that happens, it has a negative effect on the company's progress at achieving its vision. It is important that you focus on the big picture. You need to realize that keeping the wrong people in your business will affect the whole business and not only one person.
2. Think Big
There are so many businesses out there with the potential to grow into very big ventures. But, it looks like they have refused to grow. It is important to note that growth strategies may fail if the mindset to grow is not there. The truth is that there is no way you can elevate your business if you do not elevate your mindset. Your mind is a powerful tool to help you and your business grow. You only need to know how to harness it. One of the ways to harness the power of your mind for the growth of your business is to think big.
Everything that we see around us, every big company, and every successful business did not just spring up from nowhere. Rather, they began as a thought, an idea, and a vision that was thought through and planned for. The people behind these companies had a growth and an abundant mindset. An entrepreneur who is building a 6-figure business will not have the same mindset as the entrepreneur who is building a 7-figure business. An entrepreneur that wants to be a global brand, does not have the same mindset as the entrepreneur who wants to meet the needs of a few customers. Most times when entrepreneurs are not able to grow their businesses, it is not only the strategies that may be faulty. But the mindset they about themselves and what they can achieve.
3. Build your Power Circle
You cannot do it on your own. One mistake every entrepreneur should avoid is wanting to go through entrepreneurship alone. You will get burned out before you achieve much. You need to build a power circle that will function as a support system. A power circle is important for the growth of your business. It will also help you magnify the impact of your business and extend its reach to a wider audience.
As an introvert, it took me many years to realize this, and if I had known earlier, I would have avoided some mistakes. One common thing with introverts is that they feel drained when they have to socialize and interact with people for a long time. I love reading books and finding solace in my solitude. I love spending time alone with my thoughts, as I recharge my mind to achieve my goals, and most introverts are like that. Introverts love being alone in their world.
There are no doubts about the fact that socializing is a big challenge for a lot of introverts, including me. Jim Rohn’s famous quote says that you become the average of the five people you spend the most time with. It is very important to ensure that you have a power circle that is filled with people that love you, uplift you, and want to see you grow. As an entrepreneur, it is important that you get a support system. You need people who believe in you and are ready to support as you surmount the challenges of entrepreneurship. One of the good things about power circles is the fact that everyone supports each other. That paves the way for the growth of the people within the circle. It is like working together according to the principle of the law of reciprocity where favors are returned.
4. Be a Specialist and not a Generalist
You have probably heard the term “Jack of all trades, master of none.” I don’t think any entrepreneur deliberately sets out to be a Jack of all trades. But, it is not surprising to see so many entrepreneurs try to do so many things at the same time- yes! I was one of those entrepreneurs that wanted to explore different ventures. But I learned my lessons, and that is why I am sharing them with you. We live in a world where the digitization of so many processes has paved the way for people to do so many things that would be difficult or impossible. That has made it easier for multi-skilled, multi-passionate, and multi-talented people to explore. Digitization has also paved the way for them to discover hidden abilities in themselves. Many entrepreneurs have brought these traits into entrepreneurship. They are always reinventing themselves and wanting to get involved with different things at the same time. It has become so easy for a person to be a bestselling author today, a YouTuber tomorrow, and a coach next month. It feels like the possibilities and opportunities are endless. In some cases, being able to do different things at the same time may be good. But in entrepreneurship, it can cause a lot of problems. When you are juggling several ideas and projects at the same time, it becomes difficult to focus on all of them at the same time. It becomes difficult to see a project through until it gets to its peak potentials, because you are putting effort into different things.
It is important to note that resources are limited, and you are no robot. It is best to focus on one niche at a time, and grow till you become one of the bests in that field. Be the best in that niche. Let your clients know your business is the only one that offers the best services within that industry. It is not about being a Jack of all trades; rather it is about how well you are performing with the ones you have mastered.
5. Be Different
Remember that you are not the only one in the industry, and so there are competitors who are trying to do all they can to perform better than you. While you may get pointers from their strategies, it is important to focus on originality.
One of the keys to thriving in the business world is to make competition irrelevant. And you can achieve that by being a business that is irreplaceable. Coco Chanel says that in order to become irreplaceable, you need to be different. And being different means constantly innovating your business by thinking outside the box. Major companies in different parts of the world and across different industries stood out because they dared to be different. There are so many examples of them. Tesla came and caused disruptions in the manufacture of electric cars. And now different car manufacturers are trying to keep up with the company. Apple has maintained its standards since inception and has continued to provide their customers with high-end devices and services, their major competitors being Android phone manufacturers. Apple created the iOS and therefore no one can offer what they do. Their innovation and uniqueness has helped them stay ahead of the competition.
There are so many companies and businesses out there that are thriving because they dared to be different. Examples of such companies include Netflix, Amazon, Airbnb, etc. These companies were able to do things differently because they projected into the future. They provided solutions to problems that even customers did not know existed. Exceptional businesses do not follow the lead. Rather they create the lead by building on forward-thinking and progressive ideas. The key to being different is through creativity and innovation, as well as having a strong desire to be ruthless problem solvers.
If you are going to build a successful business as an entrepreneur, you need to be a solution provider that dares to be different.
6. Leave Your Comfort Zone; Don’t Avoid Challenges
From my experience, the thing you avoid the most is what you need to do the most. We, humans, avoid challenges and avoid getting out of our comfort zones because we fear failure and naturally want to avoid feeling uncomfortable.
For some people, they are skeptical about hiring people. Even though they may have their reasons, the truth still remains that you need people to move your dream forward. And so there is the need to face that challenge and surmount it. Some others are so comfortable in their cocoons that they do not see the need to step out, explore and conquer more grounds. When you do not leave your comfort zone, you limit the potential of your business and the impact you can make in the world. The only way to grow is outside of your comfort zone. Remember when I told you I’m an introvert? I had to learn to leave my comfort zone if I was going to achieve what I wanted.
There is a quote from Marshall Goldsmith that I love, and it says “What got you here won’t get you there.” That is a profound statement that carries some weight. It means that whatever helped you surmount previous challenges was based on what you knew and what you had. But in order to push past the next hurdle to the next level, you will need a different mindset, different skills, and different strategies.
You should get your note out, and make a list of the things that you are trying to avoid. Most times you may not be conscious of the fact that you are avoiding some things until you write them out. After listing them out, take some time to identify why you are avoiding them, and ask yourself if there are actual solutions.
Often times when you think about your fears and take actions to conquer them, you will realize that they are not as scary as they seem. And even if the worse happens, you will be able to deal with it. There’s no challenge without a solution. I put it to you that you can overcome that challenge.
7. Invest in Excellence
This right here is a very important lesson; you need to make it a habit to invest in excellence as you make your way through the world of entrepreneurship. One thing I have come to realize is that excellence will take you places, and so you need to invest all you can in excellence. From your hiring processes up to service delivery to your customers and clients, excellence should be your standard.
Whether you are investing in state-of-the-art technology, investing in yourself, designing and developing the best products for your clients, or innovating amazing solutions that other people have not thought about, you should always strive for excellence. You need to know that excellence is what will keep you up there ahead of the curve. In psychology, the pursuit of excellence in all things is called positive perfectionism. And it is one of life’s philosophies that have been responsible for the many successes I have experienced in different areas of my life from education to working in the corporate world, to starting and running my own businesses.
Investing in excellence will allow you to maintain your competitive edge, especially when others deliver subpar services. Whether it is your time, financial resources, intellect, skills, or talents, you should always ensure that you are investing to be the best and deliver nothing but the best. In whatever you do, it is imperative that you do not compromise for less.
8. Don’t Try To Be an Expert at Everything
While other lessons are very important, this is one of the most important lessons. It is one lesson I wish I learned earlier on my entrepreneurial journey. As I mentioned earlier, being an introvert put me in a position where I wanted to do everything alone. That limited the growth of my business and I came to the realization that I could not go on the journey alone.
Many entrepreneurs make the mistake of thinking they are experts at everything. They think they can handle everything by themselves; they feel like they know the ropes and do not need mentors, consultants, or coaches. If you pay attention to the stories of successful entrepreneurs, you will notice that they all had mentors to guide them through the journey.
These mentors showed them the ropes and offered them support. Having a coach or mentor can save you from wasting so many years in trying to find your footing as an entrepreneur. And it can also save you the hassles of making so many avoidable mistakes.
You need to save your time, resources and energy as an entrepreneur. One of the best ways to do this is to learn from people that have garnered lots of experiences from entrepreneurship.
When you have a good mentor, they will provide you with the easiest ways to achieve your goals. And you will see the results faster. There is this popular saying “if you want to go fast, go alone; if you want to go far, go together.” Going fast does not guarantee success; you could go fast, but not get anything tangible. When you go together, you are able to draw strength from others, and thus able to go farther than you would have if you went alone.
These are some important lessons that I have learned on my journey as an entrepreneur, and I hope they help you on your journey too. Many entrepreneurs have made mistakes that were avoidable. If they had foreknowledge about what they were getting into they would have used a different approach. While experience may be one of the best teachers, you can learn from people’s experiences too.
You can grow to become one of the greatest entrepreneurs the world ever knows. You have what it takes, you need to know how to use your abilities. I wish you the best on your entrepreneurial journey and hope that someday you are able to also share your experiences with others too.
If you’d like to find out about your entrepreneurial edge and what sets you up for success, I’ve created a quiz for purpose-driven coaches, consultants, and experts that are ready to build a legacy business and take their income to new heights. You can complete the quiz here and get your own blueprint for success!
Follow Nida on Instagram, Facebook, Clubhouse, Linkedin, and visit her website for more info!
Get business and mindset tips from her podcast show — The One to Millions Entrepreneur here (iTunes, Spotify)
Nida Leardprasopsuk, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Nida is a top-tier business consultant, mindset coach, and former Fortune 500 executive with more than two decades of experience in marketing, business, research, consumer behavior, and human psychology. Her consulting and coaching business centers around innovation and customer centricity, a key factor in her own success. She helps forward thinking and purpose driven coaches, consultants, experts, thought leaders, and service-providers reinvent, innovate, differentiate themselves from the rest of the competition and become a category of one by: 1.) Discovering and utilizing their ultra-geniuses 2.) Creating groundbreaking solutions that solve clients’ problems in an innovative way 3.) Using a short and long-term innovative marketing strategy that magnifies their thought leadership overtime and 4.) Help entrepreneurs innovate their business and build a culture of excellence.
She is the author of the One to Millions Entrepreneur and host of the One to Millions Entrepreneur Podcast show. She also has a master’s and bachelor’s degree in Business and Marketing and is currently completing her research for a Ph.D. in Social Psychology.
Nida offers 1:1 consulting and coaching services that help forward thinking and purpose driven entrepreneurs build a world-class legacy brand and hyper-grow their businesses through innovation and out-of-the-box thinking.
