The physical and emotional energy it takes to start a business from just an idea to full-blown cash flowing business is massive.
That excitement is such an incredible rush when you land on the business idea. You can't think about anything but that business every moment of the day. What your logo will look like, the branding, website, etc.
You have notes everywhere. You imagine yourself at your desk or on the plane (Private of course) doing huge deals and looking at your bank account grow so you can now have all the things you ever wanted.
You can see and feel the business come to life and it becomes as clear as day. It makes so much sense to you, why wouldn't anyone want to be a customer? The solution you are solving, the customers lining up to buy your product or service. Life will be great!
The reality most of us who have founded startups was likely a bit different.
Most likely you were underfunded and will become maxed out on all your credit cards, 401K, savings, etc.
Things happen. For example clients will be slow to sign contracts, a competitor might come in at the same time offering a better and cheaper solution and voila - you start to panic.
You may have not structured yourself correctly. For example: You didn't put together an advisory board, mentors or an investor to turn to for advice, capital or help. Your friend, whom you hired who was so supportive and positive at the beginning, decided to leave because you stopped taking a paycheck.
That image of sitting at your desk or private plane has vanished and the only thing left is, "How do I save this business and where did everyone go?"
Time to start over, digging deep inside of you remember why you started this journey. You promised yourself you wouldn't be part of the 80% that don't make it past 5 years in business. Now you need the same amount of energy and passion to pivot and start over.
Businesses often fail for two main reasons:
1) Cash Flow - You're not producing enough monthly cash flow
2) Visibility - Not enough customers know about your business. You have to spend equal amount of time figuring out both priorities even before you start.
Ask yourself:
How do we generate cash each day, week and month?
How can we create a process to make sure these priorities happen and what is the user experience like while doing so?
How do we make sure we have a marketing strategy that can scale as quick or quicker than our cash flow?
Whom can we collaborate with that we bring as much or greater value to as the value they bring to our business?
Who is ultimately responsible to make this happen? You!
This is only the tip of the iceberg, but so important to know going into the startup world bottling up that excitement, passion, and vision into a funnel that pushes past the difficult moments when you feel like quitting, but must remind yourself why you started in the first place.
If this story resonates with you in ways like you've been down this road; you've been dreaming of starting a business or in the middle of the storm and looking for others who can support, mentor and possibly invest in your dream, then you've taken a great first step in reading this and I'm here to help you.
Please learn more about being connected to our group of entrepreneurs, collaborators, mentors, and investors by attending Founders Executive Club Retreat, Jan 23-25, 2020 Orlando, Florida.
Click button below for more information.
Remember: Don't just quit. Get inspired to startup or start over!
www.RobThompsonLive.com
About Rob Thompson:
Rob Thompson has spent 27+ years in sports marketing and media as an executive and founder in start ups, start overs and top global brands The NFL and The Walt Disney Company.
Rob is the host of the Sports Biz Podcast and an Amazon #1 New Book Release author of “How To Land A Dream Job If Your Dad Doesn’t Own The Team”.
Rob is also the co-host of That's Life Podcast with Rob and Coach Celano.
Visit: Rob Thompson Live at http://www.robthompsonlive.com/
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