Startups: A note to fellow founders

Welcome to entrepreneurship. In fact, you have been doing it for quite some time now. Part excellence, part on automated flow. Truth laid, most of the times, entrepreneurs are creatures of faith, deep rooted faith. If I were not one, I would call all of you INSANE.

Love and cherish your time

Well, if this is the best way to stress it : DO NOT ATTEND TO EVERY OCCURRENCE IN YOUR FIELD OF INTEREST. Especially networking events. Reason being alot of those are structured to show how better one is doing than the other. It does good to know what the other players are involved in. However, it does harm to get involved in their business as audience. Keep your time, do what you do best. Then put it out there as a bench mark for the rest. Boom! You formed your own networking event there. Choose what proposals to work on, the industry is full of wannabes who are willing to put you to endless work.

Cost Management

Congratulations! You were able to gunner enough capital to kickoff operations for your entity. Sadly, you can never cover everything in all your scenario calculations. If you do, then the initial capital will be too high. Depending on who funds you, this can be an issue or not. So you got some money in the bank, get to start your entity, then you get a big surprise! Better means of doing what you do already exists. It is a temptation to always buy the latest equipment, software or increase the number of skilled personel. However, it is prudent that if you can do without something, then please do not engage in it

Social proof and well-being

Let it be cardinal law that you have to always realise a business exists in an ecosystem. Be good with your neighbours, competitors and most importantly, let them share an idea of where you are headed to. Forget the idea that "He or she will still and run with my idea". Once you get invested in business, you come to realise that no idea comes up that is really good that it gets stolen in a day or week. If your idea gets implemented by another in such a span, then was it good enough? Share it comrade! Difference is in the implementation

Believe in creating a business, not a company

Companies that start from the roots and find their market niche tend to survive shocks that come along. Connections and networks work a great deal at some level or phase that is later to your existence as an entity. When you reach a level of an identified need - solution sustenance, then you have created a business. Push and be willing to get muddy to that level. Your entity will keep surviving as long as the holder of the dream is believing. Caution be thrown: Also be willing to listen on expertise in areas you might be doing poorly.

Be obsessed by what you do

Eat, drink and live your hustle. Get to be hands on with whatever you offer to the level you relate to the product in a manner no one else offers you that understanding. It boosts investor trust in your entity. It inspires interns, employees and any other participant in your business to do better than you. Read, Read, Read and Read! You will never go wrong with knowledge. However, chose what to put into application as it can be costly.

You are blessed, if the people you care believe in you

Any entrepreneur reading this would agree that startups into your welfare. Your marriage, your friendships and even your other investments. Go deep, but go well with explanations to the people you care about on what is your dream. Trust me, they are your speed meter, sanity check, reminders that you have another part of your existence you may not be indulging into. The opposite of this is resentment from your lover, family and even friends you share much with. Do not work it out so much for them to be on board, at-least let them know and understand.

Do not chase the competition

It feels good to do better and be the talk of town. However, feelings do not settle your bills, achieve revenue targets or create sustainable employment and returns on investments. Your competitor is there to put a check on you. But do not be so engulfed in beating him or her at their game to the extent of forgetting why you got into that business in the first place: Profit making. Put in a better way, "It is not about getting better than the other man, it is continually improving ourselves"

Stay healthy, make your work fun

I cannot stress this enough. Reason why most founders end up with terminal illness is being so dug into something that health becomes second in priority. The most important investment to your entity is your well-being. Furthermore, you are creating a business to enjoy the fruits.

Above all, make your investment life playful. Have fun while doing it. Hopefully, you have hired the right people and put them in the right places. Most times, you will be required to sacrifice your personal interest and join forces to achieve the goal. A smaller percentage of a bigger pie is better than a bigger percentage of a smaller pie.

I could give you more and more advice, then again I would be doing the same thing everyone is doing: Being experts in this thing. We are all trying to create a better world through sustainable businesses

So see you on the other end. Make it that if someone does not fall in love with your business, let them fall in love with the dedication.