10 keys to persevere as an entrepreneur

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]You have decided to set up your own business to be your own boss, to work in what you like, to complement your income or because you are tired of being an employee. Whatever may be your reason, and although you might not want to hear it, it will not be easy to persevere.

You will need loads of enthusiasm, stamina and to manage your energy and time effectively. Because you will most probably go through different phases and ups and downs. Although it may not exactly happen in this order, the phases can be the following.

Initial phases of entrepreneurship

Phase of falling in love

I think all of us who launch ourselves into entrepreneurship start with a lot of enthusiasm and excitement. We have come up with a fantastic idea and are thrilled with our project. We are full of ideas and cannot wait to turn it into a reality.

Phase of getting started

You start to do the things you come up with and give shape to what you are clear about. It seems you are progressing at a good pace and seeing the first results of your work.

Phase of doubts

After the initial crush and getting started you start to realise how much there is to do. You try to shape your project and elaborate a business plan. That is when probably the first doubts and the feeling of not knowing where to continue arise. You realise how much you do not know and how much you need to research and learn.

Phase of feeling overwhelmed

Although you have managed to give shape to something that looks like a business plan and invest hour after hour, tasks seem to pile up. It seems more tasks come up than you are able to get done.

That is when you realise that you are the general, finance, marketing, communication, IT manager and more… you are a company lacking human, time and financial resources. So you no longer feel you progress at a good pace. Instead you feel you actually will not get anywhere anytime soon. You might feel overloaded or powerless.

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What are you made of?

When doubts arise and you feel you have taken on more than you can chew, it is when you will be able to prove the stuff you are made of. Will you give up on your project or keep going? Do you have what it takes to be an entrepreneur or do get discouraged by difficulties?

How not to lose the enthusiasm

In order not to lose the enthusiasm and excitement when things get complicated and we do not progress as fast as we would like, it is essential to have a very good reason for what we are doing and what we want to achieve.

1. Which are your reasons and purpose?

What is your reason for starting your business? What is the purpose of launching yourself into this adventure? How do you image your life when you manage to get your business off the ground?

If you did not pose these questions when you decided to undertake, I recommend you take time to think about them. Write down your replies or create a collage with images representing the future you image or a mind map with your ideas and answers. Whatever you prefer or have more fun doing.

It is also important to know the purpose of your business. What do we intend to provide our clients with? How will we help them? Which problem or need do we solve? If you have worked on a business plan you will certainly have replied to these questions. But beyond the business plan, knowing that and how you are helping others will also contribute to your motivation.

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2. Be patient

You will have to be patient, very patient. As I have said, you will realise that you do not make progress as quickly as you would like to. Also you will notice that things take more time than you expect. As John Lennon said: “Life is what happens while you are busy making other plans.” Things to do will come up not only related to your project but also to other aspects of your life.

3. Persevere

In addition to patience, you will need a lot of tenacity in order not to falter before obstacles that might arise. This staying power can be the difference between a person who gives up prematurely and the one who finally succeeds. The moment of most complications, doubts and even fear can be the one prior to a great step forward. If we feel insecure it is due to stepping out of our comfort zone towards the unknown.

Only on rare occasions big achievements are obtained easily and with luck. In most cases it rather means we have overcome fears and obstacles, not lost confidence and persevered until succeeding.

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4. Look for a balance

Some will throw themselves into working long nights in order to get things done. But that will not work for all of us. Some of us will prefer to build our business without sacrificing our health and wellbeing on the way.

Binging on work can lead us to a feeling of repletion, of not being able to continue. In other words you run the risk of ending up exhausted, tired, fed up or frustrated. Therefore it is important to be aware of our energy levels in order not to wear ourselves out. Because when feeling exhausted you will have less patience and persistence. So I suggest you remember to include breaks as well as fun, inspirational and wellness activities into your planning.

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5. Prioritise, prioritise and prioritise

In order not to get discouraged it is key to maintain the focus. Therefore you need to be clear about what your core business is. From there, determine the priorities and key tasks that will bring you most results. Remember the Pareto rule according to which 20% of the tasks bring 80% of the results. These percentages may vary, of course. But ask yourself which is this approximate 20% in your case which will make you more effective.

6. Ask for help and delegate

Each of us has different talents. Also it is great and important to learn new things. However do not let your eagerness to learn lead you to invest hours after hours in tasks that an expert could solve better and quicker than you. Therefore remember what your expertise and core business is and ask a professional for help for other issues.

Determine your #priorities and #keytasks depending on your #corebusiness and #delegate other Share on X

7. Review and plan

Another point to reduce stress on one hand and keep the focus and motivation on the other hand is taking time to review each day and week the tasks done and plan the next steps. You might consider it a bore or a waste of time when there is so much to do.

But coming to a halt to review consciously everything achieved and obstacles encountered, in order to learn from them, will help our motivation. Then deciding on our next steps with our priorities in mind will help us apply the Pareto principle and, thus, be more productive. Review and planning is the tandem of productivity.

8. Celebrate the milestones

When reviewing your day or week, congratulate yourself for your achievements and learnings. If you have never done so, it might sound strange. But our mind tends to remember mainly complications and obstacles. That means it gives less importance to what has gone well, especially if it required less effort.

If we take time for a pat on the back for our achievements, we will train our mind to pay more attention to good things. And this will, of course, help our motivation.

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9. You may have models but do not compare yourself

On internet you will find success stories of people who have fulfilled their dreams. But those are the most visible cases of entrepreneurship because they have obtained many followers on internet. Those of us who are starting do not have that much visibility and few share the difficulties they encounter.

You might have a model who has achieved what you aspire to. But be careful not to compare your current situation with his or her success. It will surely have taken them years to get where they are. Therefore, it is risky to compare yourself with that person from your situation. Because this may discourage you. What is recommendable on the other hand is studying what they have done to achieve it in order to learn from it.

10. Surround yourself by inspiring people

Although you will be really busy building your business, I recommend you take the time for networking. Networking meetings are great opportunities to get to know other entrepreneurs. You may meet like-minded people, people to collaborate with, potential clients or providers. Or simply people who understand your situation or are a source of inspiration for you.

There are also networking meetups and groups on the internet, for example on Facebook or LinkedIn, with the aim of giving mutual support. Those will help you not to feel alone in your adventure and may share doubts. Other groups’ purpose is to share your blog and help each other obtain more visibility.

Another good idea can be joining or creating a Mastermind group. The aim of these groups of a limited number of participants is to help each other follow up on progress. I believe many of us have hard time setting ourselves goals and deadlines and really accomplishing them. But feeling that other people keep an eye on whether you achieve what you intended to, helps to procrastrinate less and be more effective and productive.

#Keys to #persevere: surround yourself with #InspiringPeople, have #models but #DoNotCompare Share on X

Recap

Starting a business is not easy and requires certain soft skills. Patience, perseverance and self-motivation are key in order not to lose the enthusiasm for our project. Likewise it is essential to know our purpose and priorities in order to determine the most important tasks and work more effectively.

Last but not least, remember that you are not alone in the world. Look for a way to surround yourself by inspiring people and delegate tasks that are not your expertise.

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