Mark Twain said, “Do the thing you fear most and the death of fear is certain.” For a lot of aspiring entrepreneurs, the fear of failure is what stops them from chasing their dreams. They allow this fear to stop them from ever even trying. One characteristic of successful entrepreneurs is the ability to view failures as learning opportunities that will teach them something and will help them progress on the path towards their dreams. Looking at failures from this viewpoint gives them the courage to push-on despite the knowledge that failures will come. Tom Kelley, the General Manger at IDEO, gave a lecture on the importance of viewing life as an experiment. All of us are probably pretty familiar with the scientific method. The scientific method includes five key steps – observation/research, hypothesis, prediction, experimentation, and conclusion. The prediction and experimentation steps within the scientific method may end up being completed multiple times before a sound theory is developed. The first time the experimentation is completed is not considered to be a failure, but rather an experience that is helping to refine the hypothesis. When we look at life through scientific method lenses, we realize that what we consider to be failures actually help us to progress towards our end goal. With regards to failures Randy Pausch once said, “Brick walls are there for a reason: they let us prove how badly we want things.” Never let failures or brick walls get in the way or achieving what you really want in life!
I once had a conversation with a professor at Tufts University in Massachusetts, and he said that the number one thing he has observed about successful business people is their ability to identify a need in a market and fulfill that need. In other words, they identify a problem, or paint point, and provide a solution. If you base your business around providing a product or service that provides a must-have to your potential customers rather than just a nice-to-have, you will be successful. An example of a business that is currently trying to do this is Uber. Uber is an on-demand transportation service that directly competes with taxis. Anyone who lives in a big city knows that taxis are a major source of pain. They’re dirty, the drivers tend to be unfriendly, and they can be very expensive. Uber created a convenient app that customers use to connect them to a reliable ride that takes them to their destination, and it’s almost always cheaper than a taxi They also have a rating system in which customers can rate their driver, and very poorly rated drivers will lose the ability to transport customers. Uber has so far been pretty successful in spreading their business to major cities, and lot of people are seeing the value they provide and are no longer using taxis. You don’t want to start a business that won’t survive. Make sure that whatever product or service your business provides is solving a real problem that people will value.
Lastly, make sure that what you do is your passion. Being an entrepreneur takes perseverance. Steve Jobs said, “I am convinced that about half of what separates the successful entrepreneurs from the non-successful ones is pure perseverance.” This perseverance more easily comes when you are passionate about the mission of what your company is doing. When you find something in life that you love – do it! It will become a source of happiness and pride in your life.
