Failure is not the end of the world. It’s all about learning from mistakes, applying the lessons learned, and doing better next time
Success and failure are two sides of one coin. Whether it is momentarily failure, financial failure, stability failure, or any failure for that matter, failures never fail to provide a number of valuable lessons. Contemporarily there are a variety of startups that are mushrooming; however, not many manage to survive and contend in a highly competitive market.
So what are these valuable lessons?
1. Research it before and after
Arranging finance and accommodating resources shouldn’t be the first step of startup set up. Indeed, the first and foremost step has to be research. You need a lot of data and information that cover various facets of the business — right from the idea’s trial or proof-of-concept, functionalities, to a study of the market trends. Countless startup failures occur because the founders do not invest enough in researching and analysing the market — this prevents them from predicting trends and riding these to success.
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2. Lack of passion can kill your startup
Lack of motivation and a deficiency of passion can be a spoilsport. Startups usually begin with great zeal fuelled with great drive. However, founders eventually turn lukewarm, which can result in a lack of dedication.
Build a team that shares and matches your level of passion, because at the end of the day, the people working at the grassroots should be as abundant in terms of dedication as everyone.
3. Adaptability is key
Perhaps you have a brilliant idea that can give you an upper hand over your competition. However, no level of passion shall come to the rescue if you at all fail to adapt. What happened to Nokia, for instance, was unfortunate, but it gave us a major lesson to ponder upon — that was never feel secure enough that you fail to adapt, even when the market demands you to be adaptable.
4. Don’t lose focus
When you are working on your startup, you are ought to work 24×7 — there is no looking back. Usually, a loss of focus can be incurred due to a number of influential factors, ranging from personal issues to professional commitments. Loss of focus can set your startup back; hence, make sure that you remain focused throughout.
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5. Deal with disharmony
In order to watch your business flourish and function smoothly, you need to maintain peace and harmony with yourself and rest of the team members. Yes, in order to improve, you need to consider different perspectives and opinions. However, all disagreements have to remain healthy. Disharmony among team members can cause problematic conditions for the entire organisation.
6. Find the right level of risk
Risking a bit is as important, especially if these are calculated risks. The sheer balance between calculation and risk is important. Startups that play it too safe often close their gates to growth, but at the same time, start-ups that do not dial back on risk-taking tend to fall flat as well. You need to find the sweet spot in between.
7. Find the right timing
Sometimes, it’s all about timing. Launching your product, expanding to overseas markets, and other major decisions will need to be considered along with the right environment. Always ask yourself: Is it the right time to do this? Look into data and trends — being first is not always important. Rather, figure out the right timing so that you can get the maximum return on investment.
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8. Listen to feedback
A lot of companies focus on after sales service and rely heavily on customer feedback, because that is a good source of authentic information. Unfortunately, many startups overlook this vital practice, which further ends up hampering their own success.
9. Don’t overlook social channels
Social media has managed to eradicate geographical differences, and has bridged cultural divides. Hence, your marketing team should not overlook the power of social media in engaging potential customers beyond your usual reach. This requires integrating various content marketing techniques and tools that can help you target a diverse audience better.
10. Choose your team well
Be choosy when working with people Startup culture requires people to work on more than one role — people wear many hats at one time. A team that does not work together well will cause problematic conditions in later stages.
Startup culture is not all about fun and games. Entrepreneurship is surely a good way to go beyond the trappings of a 9-to-5 cubicle-bound job. However, the road to entrepreneurship is paved with obstacles and failures. Instead of falling down, learn from these.
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Bhavik Sarkhedi is the Founder of Write Right. A version of this article was originally published on Entrepreneur.
The views expressed here are of the author’s, and e27 may not necessarily subscribe to them. e27 invites members from Asia’s tech industry and startup community to share their honest opinions and expert knowledge with our readers. If you are interested in sharing your point of view, submit your post here.
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