It was the American actor Milton Berle that once said: “If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.” From the founder of IKEA to the founder of Apple, the entrepreneurs mentioned here have definitely built thousands of doors, all open to fresh and exciting places. Here are some top tips for budding entrepreneurs, from the people who have trod the hard road and come out of the other side.
Have Small Teams, For Big Results
Steve Jobs was a firm advocate of the mantra: “Every time the body count goes higher, you’re simply inviting complexity to take a seat at the table”. In adherence to it, he once infamously asked an Apple employee to leave a meeting, purely because she wasn’t a fundamental part of the project. Ultimately, it is important to foster simplicity in all business dealings, as it promotes quality thinking. Jeff Bezos, Amazon’s founder and CEO, agrees: “If you can’t feed a team with two pizzas, it’s too large”.
Chase the dream, not the money
Tony Hsieh, CEO of online shoe and clothing shop Zappos, once said: “Chase the vision, not the money, because the money will end up following you”. If you’re a budding entrepreneur, focusing on monetary gain will only limit you to safe and conventional ideas; chasing the vision will allow you to think outside the box and be innovative, opening up opportunities to increase your profit tenfold in the long term. If you’re passionate enough about an idea to transform it into a living, breathing business, don’t undermine your dream by making it solely about money – make it about creating something to be proud of.
Develop, innovate and evolve
Ingvar Kamprad, founder of IKEA, once said: “The most dangerous poison is the feeling of achievement. The antidote is to every evening think what can be done better tomorrow”. This quote epitomises exactly why Kamprad and his like are so successful: because they do not rest of their laurels once they’ve gained success, but are constantly evolving, developing and innovating to continue and ensure that success. An example of this being put into practise is the online contact lens retailer Lenstore, which was founded in 2008. Although they achieved great success, they are still evolving, and trying out new services and ideas, like their auto-reorder option or NextDayLenses.
Don’t romanticize, realise
Although entrepreneurs seem like they have the world at their feet, the road they tread is made of pressure and it is a hard slog. When starting up a new business, you are building the foundation that will support a heavy foundation; this typically means working obscene hours of the day, forfeiting weekends, and sadly, spending little time with your loved ones. Spencer Fry, co-founder of CarbonMade, describes the life of a businessperson very well: “No more romanticising about how cool it is to be an entrepreneur. It’s a struggle to save your company’s life – and your own skin – every day of the week.
An entrepreneur is a person who sees an opportunity that others don’t recognise, and takes the risk to develop it, knowing full well that it might not pay off. It is this risk and unquenchable self-belief that transforms a blueprint into a concrete project. Take inspiration from the successful men above, and always remember: short term hard work always pays off in the long run.
By Sarah Hoot, beauty blogger and lover of all things optical and technical.
Marty Huggins
