A potential entrepreneur isn't going to create a business without first encountering a few obstacles and bumps in the road along the way. This is a fact of life for any startup – problems do happen, and the response to these issues will often define whether or not the company will succeed.
With that in mind, all entrepreneurs will want to figure out how to avoid some common mistakes, and ensure a financial plan is sturdy enough to withstand any of these early errors. Plenty can still go wrong, even with a great idea and a lot of motivation, so it pays to be prepared and temper expectations. However, these slip-ups will provide valuable educational opportunities for a small business, and it can also help to learn from other people's mistakes as well.
In order to do just that, here are a few tips and tricks to make sure a startup survives its first year:
Bring in the right people
For a small business, one of the most important steps is the hiring process. A startup isn't full of hundreds of employees, so each one of that initial cast needs to be high quality and driven. If there is a weak link, it could pose a significant problem for the health of the venture and its financial plan.
Noah Breslow, CEO of technology company OnDeck, wrote for Inc. magazine that a startup is likely to make both great hires and poor ones when getting underway. For example, his company sought out versatile workers at the beginning – people who could perform multiple roles and weren't afraid of a challenge. This paid off, because one person was brought in to do business development, but ended up becoming the CFO.
However, mistakes still happened. Breslow explained that another original member disappeared after three months, and after a little bit of research it was discovered that he had a history of problems that would have indicated something like this was possible. To prevent a similar incident from happening again, Breslow recommended background checks, because the relatively small upfront cost is definitely worth the added knowledge about a potential hire.
Always enjoy the journey
Entrepreneurs have a tendency to work too hard. In fact, many people spend all their time at the office when crafting a startup, and this can actually have a negative impact on business banking, the financial plan and other important aspects of the company. So, it can often be best to remember to sit back and enjoy the journey.
According to Young Entrepreneur Council, one common mistake made by a startup is the inability to let things go. For instance, business owners want to do everything themselves, focus on all the details and avoid delegating to other employees. This shouldn't always be the case, though. Instead, it can be incredibly beneficial to share the workload with others, which will free up time to spend with family, relax or focus on other tasks. Tunnel vision has the unfortunate side effect of causing entrepreneurs to miss out on team bonding, as well as industry trends and news and potential networking opportunities.
In addition, too many workers don't enjoy the ride while building a startup, the news source noted. Having fun is one of the most important steps along the way, and leaders have to be enjoying themselves or else other employees will pick up on those negative emotions. The best part about creating a small business is the reward at the end of it all, when the first sale is made and those customers walk through the door. Not taking the time to appreciate those moments can be disastrous.