First challenge: Doubt
At the beginning, building a business is exciting. That's when most people tell you you're doing the right thing, and all of the forecasts you create show you becoming a millionaire in no time. It's when the first potential customer says "No way, why would I want that?" that you have to face doubt. Until you have dozens of employees and have been operating for several years, the entrepreneur IS the business. Doubt will kill your personal mental drive, and as a result, it will kill your business. Fight against self-doubt. That doesn't mean you should blindly pursue impossible goals, but don't allow irrational self-doubt to cloud your quest for success.
At the beginning, building a business is exciting. That's when most people tell you you're doing the right thing, and all of the forecasts you create show you becoming a millionaire in no time. It's when the first potential customer says "No way, why would I want that?" that you have to face doubt. Until you have dozens of employees and have been operating for several years, the entrepreneur IS the business. Doubt will kill your personal mental drive, and as a result, it will kill your business. Fight against self-doubt. That doesn't mean you should blindly pursue impossible goals, but don't allow irrational self-doubt to cloud your quest for success.
Second challenge: Product-market fit
It's hard to find a good market that has a problem and money to pay for a solution, and then to match that market up with your product in a way that fits perfectly. We call this "product-market fit". The thing that makes it particularly hard is that there aren't often clear signals telling you when you've got product-market fit or not. It takes a lot of experimentation with product design, pricing, distribution, etc. before you really have something that PERFECTLY fills a niche that needs to be filled. This is what entrepreneurship is all about. I don't know all the answers on this, but I'd recommend reading "The Lean Startup", which is a book that talks a lot about product-market fit.
It's hard to find a good market that has a problem and money to pay for a solution, and then to match that market up with your product in a way that fits perfectly. We call this "product-market fit". The thing that makes it particularly hard is that there aren't often clear signals telling you when you've got product-market fit or not. It takes a lot of experimentation with product design, pricing, distribution, etc. before you really have something that PERFECTLY fills a niche that needs to be filled. This is what entrepreneurship is all about. I don't know all the answers on this, but I'd recommend reading "The Lean Startup", which is a book that talks a lot about product-market fit.
Third challenge: Recruiting
There aren't many businesses that will operate on the back of one single student. You have classes to attend to, and one person can only do so much. You need help. That means you have to convince other people to join you in your project. But recruiting is a significant challenge. How do you motivate people to join you in achieving your vision? How do you make sure you're getting quality people? Overcoming this challenge means building your leadership skills. It's one of the hardest challenges, which is why I put it into my top four.
There aren't many businesses that will operate on the back of one single student. You have classes to attend to, and one person can only do so much. You need help. That means you have to convince other people to join you in your project. But recruiting is a significant challenge. How do you motivate people to join you in achieving your vision? How do you make sure you're getting quality people? Overcoming this challenge means building your leadership skills. It's one of the hardest challenges, which is why I put it into my top four.
Fourth challenge: Capital
Capital is money. You need capital. Your business needs capital. If you don't have capital, you need to get it, and until you have it, your business is on life-support. How do you get capital? Sell something. Earn some funds and keep them in the business. Get investors to give you capital. Find someone with capital and convince them to co-invest in your business. Borrow money if you have to. Protect your relationships with the people who loan you money or invest with you - always pay them back on time. You need them (and their networks) to be there to support you with more capital for the rest of your life, so always treat them well.
Capital is money. You need capital. Your business needs capital. If you don't have capital, you need to get it, and until you have it, your business is on life-support. How do you get capital? Sell something. Earn some funds and keep them in the business. Get investors to give you capital. Find someone with capital and convince them to co-invest in your business. Borrow money if you have to. Protect your relationships with the people who loan you money or invest with you - always pay them back on time. You need them (and their networks) to be there to support you with more capital for the rest of your life, so always treat them well.
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