From the course: Entrepreneurship Foundations

Startup challenges

From the course: Entrepreneurship Foundations

Startup challenges

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- You know that person on their laptop in the coffee shop who's supposed to be working, but instead is talking to everyone around them? Ding ding ding, that's me. I am a sucker for distraction. And I love chatting with neighbors, scrolling through my Instagram or my LinkedIn instead of putting my nose to the grindstone and actually working. This is one of many weakness I've learned to identify in myself during years of entrepreneurship. Identifying pitfalls within yourself and in your business is critical on your road to success. Here I'm going to outline two ways to recognize these internal and external roadblocks. The first is the one folks hate the most because it means admitting we are not superheroes. Ask yourself, what are my weaknesses? For me, my gift of gab is killer at meetings, but disastrous when trying to work in a coffee shop. I've learned to put on my headphones and tell others to ignore me if I try to talk to them. I know it sounds extreme, but it works. Once I knew what my weaknesses were, it was much easier to set myself up for success. Case in point, you will not be seeing this girl in a coffee shop working anytime soon. A great way to tell your weaknesses is through an assessment. I love Myers-Briggs, which I'm including in the Exercise Files here. Now, for external challenges, it's best to always ask yourself, what could go wrong? No plan is flawless, so whether you're launching your website, hiring your first employee, or choosing a co-founder, ask yourself, what could go wrong? Play this out in your mind, including all the twists and turns that could happen and, most importantly, how you would solve for them. Having a plan B, C, and even D will make you feel better about moving forward so you're ready if and when things go south. For example, I had an important meeting a few weeks ago. And knowing I wanted it to go well, I planned for every worst case scenario I could think of, from how I was getting to the meeting, what if the subways were running late, to failed technology, I need to have printouts in case the projector isn't working, to the presentation content, if I see them getting into one idea over the next, I'll have two examples jotted down for me to speak about that aren't in the proposal. I've realized that being prepared brings peace of mind, which is something every entrepreneur needs. While challenges are inevitable as you start your company, it's how we face them that defines who we are as a leader and a founder. No one wants to focus on what could go wrong. Let's be honest, it's not very fun. But I promise, planning for life's potholes will pay off for you in the long run.

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