Step 12: Live And Learn

Make smart business decisions by learning from your hands-on experience.

From the moment you set out to launch your own business, you should expect to make a few mistakes as you proceed. Nobody's perfect, despite even the most meticulous research and planning. The key to getting past the occasional blunder is to fix things as best you can, learn from the experience, and remember what has happened so you won't make the same mistake again.

When we launched this column 12 months ago, we stressed the importance of learning from the successes and occasional failures of others who run their own businesses. At that time, we introduced the entrepreneurs who agreed to share their experiences and advice over the course of one year.

The months have passed quickly, and it's time to bid farewell to our entrepreneurs Judy, Marion, and Vic and Suzette. But before they go, they wanted to share some important words of advice, based on the significant lessons they have learned along the way.

A business writer for the past eight years, Kylo-Patrick Hart has run a successful homebased consulting business since 1989.

This article was originally published in the May 1997 print edition of Entrepreneur with the headline: Step 12: Live And Learn.