9 Excuses That Keep Struggling Entrepreneurs From Reaching Their Potential
Entrepreneurship can be synonymous with a lot of things: success, climbing, excitement, creativity, and yes, even struggling. In fact, most entrepreneurs know that this territory can come with a lot of struggling, because this is not a path that is handed to anybody.
In order to successfully get your ideas off the ground, you have to fight for them, tooth and nail, and believe in them like no one else will. So if you’re a struggling entrepreneur, we get it, we’ve been there too, and we’ll probably be there again.
But we’re here to tell you that you can’t let excuses get in the way of you reaching your potential during times of struggle. Here are 9 common excuses that keep struggling entrepreneurs from reaching their potential.
1. I’m not a crowdfunder
Many people think that they need to “stay in their lane” when it comes to entrepreneurship. They have an idea, but they don’t consider themselves well-versed in crowdfunding, so they’re afraid to try to fund their project.
That’s why partnering with our team at Ideazon can be a huge advantage for entrepreneurs. Our team of crowdfunding experts know exactly how to create and run your crowdfunding campaign, to help ensure your project gets maximum funding.
2. I don’t have enough money to invest
This is a huge and common excuse from entrepreneurs, or would-be entrepreneurs. While it may be true nearly all of the time, there is a difference between entrepreneurs who let this stop them, and entrepreneurs who find a way to fix the problem.
The fact of the matter is that you’re probably never going to have exactly how much money you think you need. Being an entrepreneur means you need to think outside the box to make your idea happen anyway.
That’s why crowdfunding is such a successful avenue for entrepreneurs. Crowdfunding gives you access to nearly unlimited capital, to make your idea a reality.
3. My network isn’t big enough
Knowing big-shot names and who’s-who can be a big help in the world of entrepreneurship, but even if you don’t know another soul, you can still make your ideas happen. When Amazon was founded in a garage, Jeff Bezos likely also didn’t have much of a network to rely on to bring his project to fruition.
When the original Nike shoe was created by a tinkering inventor with a waffle iron, the idea didn’t take off because they lack social media following. If you need connections to spread your idea, then as an entrepreneur, you need to find a way to make them.
Crowdfunding can help you expand your network, and find not only backers, but other entrepreneurs and leaders in your field who believe in your idea.
4. There’s not enough hours in the day
Very few people are full-time entrepreneurs, especially in the beginning. Most entrepreneurs need to work a full-time job, or even more than one job, to fund their projects and still live their day-to-day lives.
Everyone has the same 24-hours in a day. The difference is what you do with those 24 hours.
5. I’m worried about failure
Despite what it may seem, very few things in life are guaranteed (the terms death and taxes come to mind). Generally, even those most secure things have the potential of failure, even if it may not seem that way on the surface.
While entrepreneurship comes with what may be an increased risk of failure, there are steps you can take to reduce those risks, and any failure can be reinterpreted as a learning experience, which is a part of your success trajectory.
6. This will only work for projects/ideas which have a mobile app
It may seem like in the digital age, everything needs to be mobile-oriented, but this simply isn’t true. If you’ve come up with an idea that solves a problem, people will pay for it, plain and simple.
7. I don’t know enough about business/the market
It’s important to do your research with anything, before you jump in with both feet. But at the same time, you’re also going to learn a lot on the fly, when you’re entrenched in a situation, and gaining real world experience.
So take the time to do your research, but know that you’ll never be an expert in a topic (such as entrepreneurship) until you actually start practicing it.
8. I don’t know how to market my project, or don’t want to pay for it
Marketing is a huge step when it comes to entrepreneurship, and it’s really a beast of its own. It’s not enough to just have an excellent idea, design it, source it, and be ready to sell it.
You need to know how to market it and reach an audience who will actually want to pay for it. That’s why we prioritize marketing with our entrepreneurs.
And while it may be difficult for you to feel like you should be paying to market your product, if you don’t pay to market it, no one will. The reality of entrepreneurship is that it’s an investment, and you need to invest in marketing if you want your project to succeed.
9. I’m waiting for an angel investor or for a dream deal
Waiting for an angel investor to come in and give you a huge sum of money may seem like the best-case scenario, but in fact, it might not be ideal. Most angel investors are accredited investors and are very savvy, so unless you can provide them with a huge return, they’ll probably have little interest in your project.
And if you’re waiting for a dream deal to come through, such as a big box store to stock your product, you’re waiting on a pipe-dream. Of course, that can happen at some point, but if you sit idly until it does, you’ll never get your idea off the ground.
