Top 10 Tips for Becoming a Successful Entrepreneur

By Jason McClain | August 10, 2015 | 1 Comment

I have been asked on a number of occasions how I wound up the successful entrepreneur I am today.  Although several factors contributed, with myself and many well-known entrepreneurs, I have found certain characteristics and experiences seem to pave the way for business success.  For those looking to start a company or who just want to see if they are on the right track for success, I wanted to share my top 10 tips for becoming a successful entrepreneur.

Tip 1: Celebrate the micro achievements in your grandiose plan.

It is good to start out with an overarching concept and business plan so you have direction, but you could become disillusioned and disappointed if you keep waiting to hit the big end goal. Work backwards from that goal with a plan of attack. Create achievable and realistic milestones to hit along the way and celebrate those micro achievements. It will help give you the confidence to continue on and they will be much easier to conquer.

Tip 2: Anticipate the risks and have a few backup plans.

No doubt there are a lot of risks in running your own business and things may not always go according to plan. Make sure you do a thorough SWAT or risk analysis in advance. Set up a few back up plans to mitigate or lessen the risk, should the worst case scenario take place. Don’t let all your hard work be for naught. It is almost inevitable that with steps forward may be a few back, but you can make sure those steps back are small enough to recover from.

Tip 3: Be agile and continue learning as the environment and market changes.

As much as one might try to predict and control outcomes, the environment and market changes. It behooves us to be agile and continually learn not just about our business landscape, but also about ourselves. For instance, the digital marketing landscape is always developing – so to claim any expertise, my team is constantly researching and applying the latest and greatest. Invest in your education and continued growth. It may open doors to new opportunities to expand your business.

Tip 4: Get up and out of the ivory tower.

People connect with people, and more and more top executives have begun engaging directly with their audience. Don’t just build a brand voice; build your voice by learning how to self-promote in a less overly “salesy” manner. First seek to educate and excite your audience, build trust and share your experience, and then tell them about how you business meets their needs. Take public speaking classes, start hosting webinars, blog on your off hours, or send a personalized email out to various members of your target audience – so they feel like you genuinely care about them and their needs.

Tip 5: Take action constantly.

Action spurs action. Thus, entrepreneurs are movers and shakers who don’t just wait for the perfect moment to act. You can always refine strategies and tactics, but sometimes acting in some manner is better than not at all. Accept you can’t anticipate every possible outcome and take a step somewhere. Don’t let your competitors sweep the rug from under your feet.

Tip 6: Build a qualified team of individuals to support you.

Having a great support system with individuals who share your enthusiasm and vision is extremely important. You can’t run a successful business on your own; there is just too much to do.  If a growth opportunity comes along, you aren’t going to want to turn it down due to not having the right resources and manpower in place to produce the deliverables or results necessary. Play to your team’s strengths and hire those who mesh well with the company culture.

Tip 7: Stay positive even when times get tough.

Know that tough times are not a sign of failure; to fail is not to try. Stay positive not just for yourself, but your team. When things aren’t going according to plan, your team needs to be motivated more than ever. If their leader is showing doubt, it could spread like wildfire throughout a company. Being an entrepreneur takes perseverance, determination, and the belief in what your business has to offer.  Be the leader your team is seeking!

Tip 8: Discover the need within the passion.

There are lots of ideas for businesses spurring up everywhere, but the ones I often see being the most successful are the ones backed by someone who has a passion for what they are marketing or promoting. If you don’t believe in your product or service, how can you expect others to? People can see through when your words aren’t entirely genuine. Having a personal connection to what you do makes it that much easier to sell, because you are speaking from your heart and not just your pockets. Find your passion and discover what might be missing within it to appeal to your audience.

Tip 9: Be frugal with your business funds.

Money can get spent quicker than you might have imagined or anticipated. Unplanned costs arise and it is good to have some head room in your budget for times when this might be the case. Invest your money back into your business to grow it and sustain through market fluxes. The long-term rewards can outweigh the immediate satisfaction of pocketing the money you make for fancy trips and unnecessary items.

Tip 10: Think outside the box to find your competitive advantage.

A business starts with the conception of an idea you bring to fruition. It takes creativity to find your key advantage in a competitive industry space. There are so many online resources providing research and DIY, a cookie cutter solution or service isn’t going to draw people into spending their hard earned money. You can’t buy creativity and people will pay top dollar for the idea that hasn’t been done yet.

To every individual success is measured differently. For some, it is based on how much they make. For others, it may be more about supporting a love for the craft. You could be like me, where being a key contributor to building a business up from nothing is enough of a reward in and of itself. However you choose to measure success, I hope you have found at least some of the above tips to be helpful in your business endeavors.

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