You can be on Entrepreneur’s cover!

Advice for the First Time Entrepreneurs Analyze and learn from the experience of others for the success of your venture

By Naval Goel

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.

Shutterstock.com

You may have heard it again and again that entrepreneurship is not a dish which everyone can enjoy. It carries its own taste which is a mixture of sweet and sour spices. The mixture of both spices in a balanced way is the key to become a successful entrepreneur. There are multiple stages that the journey of becoming an entrepreneur will show you. If after analyzing yourself, your aims and what you exactly want to do in your life makes you feel ready for the next big step in business then it is advisable for you to learn a few things before you enter in the world of entrepreneurship.

1. Be practical about your money

The first and the most important thing that all people and upcoming entrepreneurs should keep in mind is related to the practicality when it comes to money. It is the common mistake that most entrepreneurs do when it comes to generating funds and managing profits. Instead of keeping the focus on the present scenario and financial needs that actually assist in building the company, beginners always get busy in thinking about the future like how will they make money in future which is completely impractical. Planning is good but the focus is very important and you have to first build your present instead of thinking about future.

Take cash as oxygen- How much money you require to keep your business active and how long you are going to use the same? Do you have this much of fund in your account through which you can carry the basic expenses associated with your business such as rent and overhead? It is the biggest matter of concern for all first-time entrepreneurs. They should make sure that their actions should respond to the bleeding of funds that take place before they start getting profits.

Mostly the budding entrepreneurs do two mistakes at the start:

(a) Most budding entrepreneurs do not have a funded business and also haven't raised a venture capital. In terms of the money they have only six months and between that, they have to achieve their goal. While they are dreaming of every possible aspect which can assist them in order to attain the goal. Soon the realization hits them and they run out of cash.

(b) Secondly, there are a few who are well funded and they don't make the necessary efforts to generate the revenue. They are so used to the ideas that losing a huge amount in burn rate is completely fine because they have a funded company. Such people focus more on raising their next round instead of actually making the profitable business.

No matter what is the situation, starting with a new plan that completely requires an upfront financial investment and not just your time, drains money. It is very important to understand that you should be financially strong this much in order to pay for necessities like rent, supplies, and inventory (and that doesn't even include your personal expenses). A high level of practicality is very important for the success.

2. Realize that building a business is a huge time commitment

The first thing that budding entrepreneur should keep in mind is that by starting a business of your own, you are allowing yourself to put as many efforts as you can to build your business. This means that you should not waste your time and efforts in any wrong activity and put all your creativity and newness to build your brand further. It will not allow you to watch Game of Thrones, no late night parties, not hanging much with friends for activities. You should be in a code red world where everything works around the growth of your business. It's a big sacrifice for sure but you have to realize the level related to your commitment.

To achieve your goal, you have to make a mental commitment that will be completely devoted to your business. In fact, you should ask yourself that how big of a business you are planning to have. The bigger the business, the more years you'll need to track onto year one.

3. Hold yourself to your word

One of the best pieces of advice that you can ever get in the whole process of building a business is related to the word bond. With this, it means that if you are making any commitment then no matter what happens you have to deliver the same on time. Poor decisions related to business can put your status as an entrepreneur at risk.

Your word is taken as bond.

Looking at the history of startups, it is often clear that most businesses will fail within the first 18 months. The reason behind the same is that people don't know how hard it is to become a successful entrepreneur.

No one can promise that your business will definitely bloom, but with these considerations, your journey will become smooth towards the success.

Naval Goel

CEO, PolicyX.com

Naval Goel is the CEO of PolicyX.com.
Business News

Mark Zuckerberg Says This CEO Is the 'Taylor Swift' of Tech

Meta's CEO posed with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang on Instagram Wednesday.

Growing a Business

To Achieve Sustainable Success, You Need to Stop Focusing on Disruption. Here's Why — and What You Must Focus on Instead.

Instead of zeroing in solely on disruptive innovation, embrace a pragmatic approach to innovation, recognizing and leveraging the potential within ongoing industry shifts.

Money & Finance

5 Simple Wealth-Building Tips For This Generation's Forward-Thinkers

Explore practical finance tips for young professionals striving to overcome economic challenges.

Fundraising

Avoid These 9 Pitch Deck Mistakes When Asking Others For Money

Crafting an efficient pitch deck requires serious effort, but at least it's not wandering in the dark since certain rules are shaped by decades of relationships between startups and investors.

Leadership

What We Have to Gain By Talking About Grief and Loss At Work

I lost my husband to cancer during Covid — here's how it changed how I lead at work.

Real Estate

3 Emerging Trends Shaping the Future of Real Estate

These three innovations are reshaping the real estate industry — discover tips for effectively covering these trends.