‘Entrepreneur’ is a person who is already running a business, while, ‘Wannapreneur’ is a person who has some idea, and is looking to start his entrepreneurial journey. The definition clearly defines the difference between an entrepreneur and wannapreneur. You may be talking, thinking or doing endless other things like an entrepreneur, but you will be considered as an aspiring entrepreneur because the entrepreneurs take complete responsibility for their actions and have an “I do” factor. Even if you belong to the bandwagon of Wannapreneur, don’t worry! You have taken the first step towards your goal and willing to take the next step to your entrepreneurial journey.
Being an entrepreneur sounds exciting, but entrepreneurship comes along with its own set of challenges. Every single day comes with new opportunities, new challenges, and a plan of action. The first thing required to become a true entrepreneur is “Do what you love to do”. Well, it is easier said than heard because being an entrepreneur in India still raises eyebrows, especially when you belong to a middle-class family and do not have any history in the business world. Your family is worried about your income stability and a hundred other things. It is just to show the reality that the journey of becoming a successful entrepreneur is not a cakewalk but the great thing is that all entrepreneurs were once wannapreneurs. Entrepreneurship is a tough journey but gives you the scope to continue to learn and grow every day!!
Here are a few takeaways from my experience of being an entrepreneur.
Testing Waters
Test your idea and take action. Don’t overthink your business idea and get contemplated with various scenarios. Put together your best and test with a small number of potential customers. This process will allow you to understand the real feedback so that you can polish your idea for better.
Have short-term goals
For initial 5-10 years, business plans don’t work much for the business as you are working in the dynamic market landscape. Make short term plans and stick to them at least in the near future. Plan for six months or maximum a year, because circumstances keep on changing and you should be prepared for it. So, don’t waste time drafting long term plans.
Adopt a systematic way of thinking
Every startup tries to find the secret to success, but the fact is that, there are no readymade plans or secrets. Develop a systematic way of thinking, refine it every day, follow your first set of principles, and solve the problems that come your way to success.
Learn more about yourself
Think about yourself, know your strengths and weaknesses. Failure gives you the motivation to learn new things, redo it better and thrive towards achieving success. Entrepreneurship is a journey of incidents, where you have to deal with many situations simultaneously. Think about how you can overcome everyday problems and make way to solve them as well. Last but not least, believe in yourself.
Outcomes matter, not the intentions
Every day you meet people or prospective clients, and they might praise you for who you are, and USPs of your business, but that does not make any sense if your balance sheet does reflect positives. Work hard for your revenues, you might not achieve it in the short term, but be supercritical with executions in your business.
Develop your Intuitions
The ability to make decisions is one of the most vital parts in business, especially when the data and facts are not available; there are higher chances that you won’t have any data insights when you are starting up something new. Develop your intuition and use it often to improve further. Start making decisions on the basis of your intuitions along with the advice of your mentors. The key is to analyze your performance and improve it every time.
(Prateek Agarwal is a Business Coach, and Founder of Success World. Views expressed in the article are of the author.)
