Do you have what it takes to be a startup entrepreneur? Did you know that 75% of startups fail?
It’s rarely easy to build a company from the ground up, but it can be done. A new infographic from Top Management Degrees (shown below) sheds some light on the startup entrepreneur mindset and offers tips and warnings for anyone traveling the startup entrepreneur path.
For example, you’ll find the following list of common and disastrous pitfalls for startup entrepreneurs in the infographic:
- Not knowing the product/market fit.
- Lack of consumer interest (the reason most startups fail).
- Wasting money on premature scaling.
- Renegotiating share of business.
- No exit plan.
Successful startup entrepreneurs wear many hats, and they’re willing to work very long hours for the hope of future payoff. They’re the marketer, publicist, accountant, analyst, researcher, recruiter, trainer, sales person, writer, developer, and more. They also share something in common. They don’t give up.
In the words of Steve Jobs, “About half of what separates successful entrepreneurs from the unsuccessful ones is pure perseverance.”
What do you think it takes to be a successful startup entrepreneur? Leave your thoughts in the comments below. I’ll start by saying successful startup entrepreneurs are laser-focused and have a long-term strategy with specific goals. They don’t let themselves veer off track unless there is an extremely compelling reason to do so. I always tell my clients that a focused brand is a strong brand, and that statement is true for entrepreneurs, too. A focused startup entrepreneur is a strong startup entrepreneur.
You can see the full infographic below.
Source: TopManagementDegrees.com
Susan Gunelius
Susan Gunelius is the Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Women on Business. She is a 30-year veteran of the marketing field and has authored a dozen books about marketing, branding, and social media, including the highly popular Ultimate Guide to Email Marketing, 30-Minute Social Media Marketing, Content Marketing for Dummies, Blogging All-in-One for Dummies and Kick-ass Copywriting in 10 Easy Steps. Susan’s marketing-related content can be found on Entrepreneur.com, Forbes.com, MSNBC.com, BusinessWeek.com, and more. Susan is President & CEO of KeySplash Creative, Inc., a marketing communications company. She has worked in corporate marketing roles and through client relationships with AT&T, HSBC, Citibank, Intuit, The New York Times, Cox Communications, and many more large and small companies around the world. Susan also speaks about marketing, branding and social media at events around the world and is frequently interviewed by television, online, radio, and print media organizations about these topics. She holds an MBA in Management and Strategy and a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing and is a Certified Professional Career Coach (CPCC).
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Great graphic! I’m linking to it on Leadership Seed.
Todd
A successful start up entrepreneur is a climber of mountains. There are paths to the top–but the fastest, surest, and safest path is:
Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it—-Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it.
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
I also want to recommend, to every entrepreneur, the books written by Susan Gunelius as they help immensely!