Mistakes are fine to make, it’s how you learn and grow. But you don’t have to make ALL of the mistakes do you? Especially if someone has made the mistake before you. You can learn from others who have paved the way.
Here are 7 common mistakes other entrepreneurs have made, so you don’t have to.
Mistake #1: Making your hiring decisions solely based on cost.
Avoid trying to hire purely based on how much money you can save on compensation. If you want the best candidates, you’ll need to budget for them. Otherwise, you may find yourself facing higher turnover for the role. We all know that high turnover costs a lot more money than just hiring the best candidate in the first place.
Take a look at what your hiring practices are like. Are they attracting solid candidates the first time around, or is it creating a costly problem in the long-term for your business? Don’t know? That means it’s time to sit down and run the numbers.
Employees require an investment, not just in time, but also compensation. As the saying goes, “You get what you pay for.”
Mistake #2: Being too cheap!
There is a difference between being frugal and being cheap. Frugal is not spending unnecessary funds on things that don’t deliver value to your customer or help improve your company somehow. Being cheap, on the other hand, is not spending money when it would otherwise benefit your customers, your employees or your company.
Don’t get stuck on absolute numbers, you can still be frugal while financially supporting your company for growth and success! Understand your goals, and pursue them without fear.
Mistake #3: Forgetting the competition (you do not have the one and only biz like yours!)
We no longer live in a world where you have the one and only unique business/start-up/million dollar idea! Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. There’s just too much competition to ignore that reality.
Competitors are simply a way to get a clearer view of the customer, their pain points and solutions. The easiest way you can understand customers before you do anything, before you even know exactly what you are going to build/create or the specific problem you are going to solve, is to research competitors.
Adapting ideas from competition can be helpful for your business when you’re looking to gain traction on a new product. It can help you create something truly amazing!
Mistake #4: Expecting immediate results!
We live in an instant gratification world. There is no denying that, and not all instant gratification is bad. There’s nothing wrong with wanting or needing things, experiences, or products in a quick, efficient manner. But, it’s important to balance our desires with a realistic sense of timing and patience.
Expecting immediate results might cause you to feel demotivated when your efforts don’t yield overnight success. This might deter you from working further towards the goal and cause you to abandon projects mid-way.
It’s easy to get discouraged if you don’t see immediate results for your hard work.
Don’t obsess over results. Instead, focus on doing your bit daily and sticking to your goals by starting small, showing up each day, improving a little every day! Don’t obsess over results. They will come.
Mistake #5: Not polishing your skills.
No matter what industry you are in, everyone needs to continue to learn, grow, upskill, and generally polish your skills to help you be a better entrepreneur. Let’s quickly look at a few good examples.
Finance: You don’t need to be a CPA. If you have an accountant to handle all the number crunching, that’s great, but don’t use them as a crutch to keep you from really understanding where your money’s going. It’s in your best interest to keep an eye on your overall financial situation.
Sales: If you run a business, you’re in sales, even if you don’t feel like you are. Every time you talk about your business, or negotiate with a vendor or recruit, you are using sales skills.
Therefore, it’s a good idea to keep your skills sharp, even if it’s not necessarily your speciality.
Mistake #6: Not being adaptable.
Customers are fickle. Yet another challenge for entrepreneurs, the constantly changing customer wants and needs. Meeting customer needs while adapting to changes is one of the most important keys to obtaining and maintaining success. Continuous improvements are necessary as it keeps you changing, innovating and moving in the right direction, UP!
Mistake #7: Thinking you have to do it all.
Entrepreneurs often make this mistake. They take on all of the tasks of starting off and running their business and quickly find themselves in burnout mode. Crashing and burning will not help you achieve your goals. Be open to hiring outside help like a virtual assistant and setting systems in place so when life happens (and it will) your business won’t collapse if you need to step away for a bit.
There you have it! Learn from those before you and don’t make these same mistakes. Reach out to our team of skilled professional virtual assistants if you need any help with achieving your business goals. Check out our team at www.lifebydesignvs.com
