Picture this, you’ve been working on this since the moment you came up with the idea. And when not literally, it’s definitely on in your head. Adding block-by-block to make your idea perfect. It’s now time to press the final button to get started. The feeling between you raising your finger and pressing that button…

Let’s talk about that moment for a moment.

Now, of course there’s not a literal button to get started on your big idea. Maybe in the years to come some form of AI will make that happen too. Until then, it takes a combination of effort, time, skill and resources to get something going.

An idea is like a seed, it takes roots and starts branching out, slowly. It’s feeding on your enthusiasm, it’s being powered by your passion. You’re the sun that’s helping it photosynthesize. You feel it in your body that you’re on to something. Every thing you consume leads you back to that idea. Ergo, it’s a vision of creating something bigger than yourself. It’s a vision to make a real difference in that world.

This blog is three years in the making. It took countless automated digital experiments, understanding the needs of entrepreneurs, some side-quests, and a shitload of procrastination for me to start writing here. The aim of this blog is to motivate people to follow their dreams, but I was not able to motivate myself enough to get started, until now. So, I broke down what made me hesitant, and in the process I decided to get started. Here’s hoping it will help you too.

Rising above failure:

The fear of failure is real, buddy. In fact, it is a global statistical phenomenon. According to a study by Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, 40% of Indians with entrepreneurial dreams are held back by the fear of failure, to the extent where only 9% out of that number actually land up starting their own venture.

Graphic sourced from: Graphic Springs
Based on the study by Global Entrepreneurship Monitor

If you think India has been caught up by the startup bubble now, imagine how the market will look like with 31% of the fearful ones getting into the game.

Curbing your inner nihilist:

I myself am guilty of this one. I’m a writer and going by the stereotype, I keep telling myself that no one will read my content. No one will visit my blog, and this whole exercise is a complete waste of time. And I’m probably right too. But you know what, I make sure that every piece I write is one of the best quality pieces you can find on the internet. So whoever lands up on this blog, they won’t be disappointed. I motivate myself with the chance of making a difference to one person in need.

Do not be your own biggest detractor. If you don’t have any faith in yourself, convincing others to believe in you is going to be an uphill task. One that you dug yourself into. So do yourself a favour, kick your inner nihilist to the curb, and bring out your inner Tony Robbins.

Fight the resistance:

Anybody who’s created anything needs to read Steven Pressfield’s book ‘The war of art’. The number one enemy of productivity is resistance. He explains “resistance” to be an entity at par with gravity. It’s a force of nature that stops us from getting things done. It masks itself in self-loathing and starts getting personal with you, making you question your very existence.

The trick is to uncover it, ignore it and get your ass down on your seat and get working. You know what’s resistance‘s kryptonite? It’s productivity.

Aim for the minimum (viable product that is):

Now, I understand this piece of advice is probably the opposite of what we are taught in life. Doing things right is one thing, but we often spiral it out of control and turn it into the quest for perfection. Perfection is a strange beast. The quest for it slows you down, buddy. Not only that, but it frustrates you as well.

Imagine falling out of love of your own creation in the process of creating it. That’s devastating for young entrepreneurs. You’re creating something that doesn’t exist, there is no income flowing, in fact the money’s likely going out. The last thing you want is to lose the love for it, because frankly that’s all you have when you start off. Striving for perfection increases your failure rate drastically. I don’t have a cool statistic for that, though I have seven years of high-pressure work experience to attribute that.

Remember…

There’s a good likelihood that you don’t possess skills or resources to make your project perfect. If that’s the case, do you really want to lower your morale? And remember, it’s only you has the vision of the perfect outcome. Your audience doesn’t know that, they’ll be equally excited if you give them a minimal viable product if it does the job for them.

The time you save in reiterating on the drawing board and not put your project out there, you’re giving an opportunity to someone else to succeed at what you’re trying to achieve. You are also likely missing out on crucial feedback that can give you an idea on what to put effort in fixing/improving. Less often leads to more.

Excuses:

Or as I personally call it, “Creating unnecessary hurdles in the form of ancillary tasks just to avoid pressing the go live button.”

Today, I spent 5 hours figuring out my blog’s logo. I was facing some alignment issues (between the logo and the menu items at a certain resolution) while I was setting up the theme. That made me want to change the logo. After multiple iterations and one distress phone call, I took my girlfriend’s advice and put a box around it. Then I changed it entirely.

What you see as a problem in your product might not be a problem to your user at all. So what if the alignment is a bit off? That’s not what people are going to be here for. They’re going to be here to find out if they are ready to start their dream venture. To discover stories of like minded entrepreneurs / solopreneurs who are doing the same thing. If that’s my object, who gives a fuck about my logo?

The fear of investment:

For some it can be their life savings, for some it can be a loan they can’t afford to pay back if their idea doesn’t kick off. For others it can be the time and skill they put in for little or no immediate return. How do you know if it’s worth it?

During a round table discussion at Dysco’s networking event, a lady asked a question on “How do you know that your idea is worth the effort you’re putting in?”
I raised my hand and responded with this analogy: Most great ideas stem out of the challenges we face in our lives, I started writing in my free time because I didn’t enjoy the reading material I came across, now it’s what I do full-time for an earning.

When facing a tedious task, we always tend to think, what if there was an easier way to deal with this? And when you do come up with a way that no one else is offering, you have the idea of your business. So when in doubt about your idea and its worth, just ask yourself this: “Is this idea an easier, more effective solution to X challenge? Would I myself make use of this service has it already existed?” The answer should give you some context. Beyond that, it’s usually a “putting your money where your mouth is” scenario to approach entrepreneurship.

To sum up:

An advice would be to start small, keep the budget as low as possible, spend on what’s crucial for your product. Some product’s need explosive marketing to get started, some just need a handful of paying customers. Understand your needs, make use of the internet, use free tools wherever available (almost every thing is if you look hard enough on the internet). I’ll be maintaining a list of free tools from the web and updating this space, you can drop by any time to check it out or subscribe to email updates for when new ones are up.

Most importantly, believe in yourself. Talk to the people who bring out the best in you. Find your niche and nail it. I know you can. All the best and cheers!

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