Make It Happen!
The old adage “Actions Speak Louder Than Words” goes especially well in the entrepreneurial environment. You have to do something if you expect something to happen, it’s not going to happen by itself.
Don’t get me wrong, I’m big on strategy and planning. I think anyone that hasn’t done an adequate job of planning their business and developing their business model is a fool. That’s a necessary element of a rational person moving forward with a business idea, moving forward in the sense of taking action, spending money and making and selling product.
Just don’t study it to death or worse yet sit around and not study it and just talk about your great idea. There comes a time when you have to put all of that studying, strategizing and planning to good use and start doing it. That’s one of the beauties of having a plan. Taking those first couple of tentative steps can be tough. If you have your plan, you don’t have to think about them, just take them.
Start executing and at a proper check point, evaluate how it’s going. Are you where you thought you would be? The answer is probably not, that doesn’t mean it’s not working. No matter how conservative we think we’re being in the planning process, most of us are still too optimistic. Evaluate what progress you’ve made and what has delivered results and what hasn’t. Make the necessary adjustments and evaluate your resources. Will they hold out at this new pace or do you need more capital or to cut cost.
That’s the easy part, evaluating the results of your actions. The hard part is behind you, getting started. Too many good business opportunities never get off the ground because of fear of taking that first step. People will avoid that like most any other commitment. Yes, that word that gets so many of us in trouble. Actually moving forward with that business plan is a commitment to seeing it through. You can’t be half committed to your business, entrepreneurship isn’t that easy.
Sure, there are examples of people that have kept their day jobs while starting their business and gradually and seamlessly become full-time entrepreneurs, but they’re few and far between. The average successful entrepreneur works a seventy hour week and that doesn’t leave a lot of time for anything other than eating and sleeping.
So either get committed and move forward or admit that you’re just not ready to be an entrepreneur. Save everyone around you the trouble of listening to the endless stream of new ideas for your yet to be conceived business and get on with your life. Don’t waste any more time or money and find yourself a job.
If you’re confident in your concept, your plan and yourself, Do Something! Give your plan a kiss and get committed. Start going through the action plans. Make something happen and start your business. Getting a business license, registering the name and securing your URL doesn’t create a business. The entrepreneur needs to take action and make things happen to create a business.
A dismal percentage of businesses survive the first five years. I have to wonder how many of these failures are a result of lack of commitment. Taking those first baby steps in launching your business are as hard as the ones you took a long time ago when you were learning to walk. We all fell down flat on our faces dozens of times and I’m sure it hurt. But it did pay off.
All of you entrepreneurs out there that are still mustering up the courage to truly commit yourself to your business, do this. Ask yourself what it would take to get you over the edge. Is it a little more money to tide you over, someone to help validate you business model, some additional expertise in a critical area or someone to work with you along the way. Whatever it is, go get it.
Successful entrepreneurs are particularly skilled in surrounding themselves with people vital to the success of their business. Whatever you need, there are people out there than can help you. So stop sitting around and make it happen.
Richard Gabel
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