The top 10 Challenges new Entrepreneurs face

The top 10 Challenges new Entrepreneurs face

Starting a business and keeping it afloat can be very difficult. It’s much easier to throw in the towel and get a regular job but don’t let the rough patches pull you down, the gains are far greater than them. A single win can wipe out 10 losses easily plus one will remember the losses anyway. We asked a few entrepreneurs about the hardest thing they experienced when starting and this is what we got.

Finding capital

One of the biggest challenges an entrepreneur can face is finding start-up capital. This is the money it takes to get the business started and running until it can support itself. This is a test of resourcefulness that new entrepreneurs must pass. My advice is to find investors who believe in your business idea and furthermore believe in you. You will have to create a convincing argument and persuade others but it’s worth it. Along with seeking to get investors from friends, family, and the bank there are websites that you can use that are great for this as well. A few of them are https://www.kickstarter.com, https://fundrazr.com, https://www.patreon.com, https://www.indiegogo.com, https://wefunder.com .

Starting

You have decided to become a business owner and have a few great ideas, family and friends also have a few ideas and are all letting you know what they think would work. Now you’re stuck on pause because you have too many ideas to consider and don’t know which one is best to do. As an Entrepreneur you have to be decisive, listen to your gut, and make an informed decision. After you’ve made a decision stick with it, executing and building the idea is what is really important.

Base of operations

Depending on the type of business you wish to set up, the location can make or break your business. It can be very expensive to get a good rental space in the city area. My advice to you is to go online. Online real-estate is fairly cheap. If that’s not possible then try looking at spaces on the outskirts of the city or places that are going to be developed.

Good staff

Employees are the backbone of every company. Without good staff business becomes impossible. Having good people with the correct attitude and willingness to learn is the primary job of every CEO. If that is done properly everything else falls into place. Making a motivated qualified employee work alongside a slacker is the worse sin a CEO can commit. Treat and pay your staff very well and they will take you to heights you never dreamed of.

Taking the financial risk.

Upon starting a new business venture the money you use to fund it will most likely be yours. Not only will you have to find the start-up cost money but the monthly expenses of the business have to be paid for until it starts to make enough money to cover them. During this time there will be no paycheck at the end of the month for you either from this business. The chance of the company failing after all that investment is the risk you take. My advice is to stay positive, keep your end goal in mind, and keep putting in the work. Hard work always pays off sometimes in different forms.

Work-life balance

As an entrepreneur, we are driven to achieve and are willing to spend any amount of time getting there. But money nor success can’t buy back the time we don’t spend with our loved ones. That time could be worth more than we know. My advice is to schedule some family time at least once a week.

Saying No and Staying Focused

One of the hardest things that I didn’t expect was learning when to say no and staying focused. When you start a business, people will start pitching their ideas to you in hope of helping you or becoming your partner, many of those ideas have nothing to do with your current target and will take time and energy away from what you really need to focus on.

uncertainty

There is always some constant uncertainty about the business. You have big dreams for your business when you start it and you do everything you can to help it grow and succeed.

But in reality, it’s like exploring outer space, you just don’t know what’s out there. There are just too many variables, so my advice is to think far ahead while working at the moment at the same time.

Wearing all hats at the beginning

One of the hardest things about running a business is that, in the beginning, you are everything for that business. People are familiar with the norm of picking a career path and then staying in their lane of expertise. But when you’re starting your own business, you’re not just the content creator, the face, and the sales guy. You’re all those things, plus the bookkeeper and the admin. With so many hats to wear it can get overwhelming and cause you to get sidetracked trying to learn something new that you don’t really need to know. Some things are best to outsource like website development etc. What’s important in the beginning is to figure out what’s urgent and what’s important but could be done another day.

Being a big fish in a small pond

The hardest thing about running a business is the fact that I am a little fish in a big pond. I offer the same services as larger agencies; however, I pride myself in that I provide my clients with the personal attention they may not receive at larger organizations. I knew this would be an ongoing challenge, so I’ve relied on my passion for my industry to overcome this obstacle. Utilizing my passion in all that I do has proved to be a wonderful and successful way to show clients size does not matter.

A difficulty many businesses face is the fact that they have huge competitors. There are big companies that offer similar products and services. This is one of those ongoing challenges but it can be overcome with passion and a bit of creativity. Utilizing passion in all that I do has proved to be a great asset as well as providing individualized experiences and products for customers.