- Report this article
Grant Schroll
Grant Schroll
Platform Manager | EdTech | Postsecondary + Workforce | Venture Capital
Published Jan 12, 2023
+ Follow
The other day, I was asked to prepare my best "advice for aspiring entrepreneurs."
Putting this list together made me realize how many mistakes I made in my early days, and how those mistakes were often the most valuable lessons.
Here's my best advice for anyone thinking about starting a business:
Practice self reflection
Starting a business is hard. It’s not for everyone. You can make a big impact and build a great career without starting your own business. Think hard about what you really want from your career, and define your own version of success. Practice self reflection and make a habit of checking in every few months to see if you’re on track.
Mission beats ego
Understand what motivates you to want to start a business. “Being my own boss” or “getting rich” are weak motivators when things get hard, and they’re selfish. A stronger motivator is a mission; a higher purpose that you believe in and want to contribute towards. Improving healthcare, addressing climate change, designing better experiences; these are all “missions” that someone might believe in. Mission driven entrepreneurs are better equipped to deal with adversity, because missions are strong motivators and others will gladly support you when you’re trying to make the world a better place.
Build a great team
Before you start building a business, invest a lot of time and energy building a team. Great teams build great businesses, not lone geniuses. Find one or two other people who believe in the same mission as you. Great founding teams have complimentary skill sets, equal levels of motivation, and tremendous mutual respect. Take time to build your relationships and become true friends, not just business partners.
Focus on problems, not solutions
Successful entrepreneurs are obsessed with understanding problems. The better you understand the problems someone is facing, the better you can design a great solution. Do your research, look at the data, and, most importantly, talk to potential customers. Be able to describe their problems better than they can. Don’t fall into the trap on insisting you have a great solution when you really don’t fully understand the problem.
Recommended by LinkedIn
Start with a niche market
It’s easier to design a great solution for a very specific problem. Targeting a niche market makes it easier to get to know your target customers, deeply understand their problems, and build a compelling solution. It also makes it much easier to market and sell your solution once it’s ready. Amazon started by only selling books online, and once they succeeded in that market, they expanded to others.
Explore many solutions
There are many ways to solve any given problem, and you won’t know which one is best until you try them. Once you’ve determined the specific problem you want to solve for a niche market, brainstorm several possible solutions. Build cheap prototypes that you can quickly test. Don’t settle for the first promising solution, keep testing others too. Always ask yourself “is there another way to solve this problem?” and even “is this the right problem to be solving for?” Be willing to pivot and adapt in light of new information.
Don’t fear failure
Not everything you try will work. Failure is a normal part of the process. So long as you learn something, you can move forward wiser and more resilient. Take calculated risks and try things that make you uncomfortable. Don’t be afraid to admit when you are wrong. When something you try fails, it doesn’t make you a failure as a person.
Study your customers
Ask for their feedback, collect data on what they do, and listen to what they say to others. The insights for a better solution and a more successful business lie somewhere in this information. Don’t lose touch with your customers, especially as your business grows.
Commit to constant improvement
Great businesses are made up of great people and great processes. Focus on improving both. Invest in your team so they can perform better every week. Make your processes more efficient each time you use them. Make your solution stronger each time you deliver it. Reflect on your experiences and learn from them so you don’t repeat mistakes. Get a little bit better every day.
What do you think? Anything to add? Cheers!
Like
Celebrate
Support
Love
Insightful
Funny
41
9 Comments
Nidal Khaznadar🎙
I help people with international experience in the U.S. get $100-$300k roles in TOP companies | Helped landing at Amazon, Google, Snapchat, Oracle, Deloitte, The Word Bank, Microsoft, EY, HP, IFC, and more | Career Coach
1y
- Report this comment
Very insightful, Grant! I need it exactly NOW :)
1Reaction
Harris Fanaroff
Founder @ Linked Revenue | Sharing insights to help Executives and Sales Professionals generate more revenue from LinkedIn
1y
- Report this comment
Definitely some great stuff in here!
1Reaction 2Reactions
Mike Malloy 😎
Giving overworked CEOs more time, money, & sales with fractional executives
1y
- Report this comment
Great advice. Especially to study your customers and fall in LOVE with solving their probelems, not selling your solutions. The more relentlessly curious you can be about your customer, the better. And having a growth mindset to learn from setbacks and constantly iterate and improve is vital.
1Reaction 2Reactions
Kathy Goller
Helping Others Develop their Gifts & Live their Purpose ★ Gallup-Certified Strengths Coach ★ Life & Leadership Coach ★ Innovative Leader ★ Engaging Presenter ★ Creative Facilitator
1y
- Report this comment
Love these! I'd add, "Don't go it alone." I realized today that I never could have moved into entrepreneurship without coaching. And without the help and support from community orgs that exist to help startups and small businesses. There are SO many agencies and organizations that offer free or low cost help, support and resources that it's really silly NOT to use them!
1Reaction 2Reactions
John Balkam
Founder of TWG & Director of Hoyas Rising
1y
- Report this comment
Here's one more for you Grant:Just start.If you really want to be an entrepreneur, there will never be a time like the present to begin your journey.
3Reactions 4Reactions
See more comments
To view or add a comment, sign in
More articles by this author
No more previous content
- Why it takes a village to raise a career Nov 28, 2017
No more next content
Sign in
Stay updated on your professional world
Sign in
By clicking Continue to join or sign in, you agree to LinkedIn’s User Agreement, Privacy Policy, and Cookie Policy.
New to LinkedIn? Join now
Insights from the community
- Business Reporting What do you do if your entrepreneurial journey is plagued by common mistakes?
- Business Administration Here's how you can overcome common challenges as an entrepreneur.
- Decision-Making Here's how you can avoid the potential consequences of poor decision-making as an entrepreneur.
- Entrepreneurship What are the most common challenges entrepreneurs face when dealing with market changes?
- Career Development Coaching What are the biggest challenges for entrepreneurs when planning their career paths?
- Journalism Here's how you can conquer the fear of failure when starting your own media business.
- Entrepreneurship Here's how you can overcome the most common challenges faced by entrepreneurs.
- Entrepreneurship You’re an entrepreneur. What common mistakes can you avoid to ensure success?
- Entrepreneurship What do you do if your entrepreneurial decisions are torn between logic and intuition?
- Decision-Making Here's how you can develop the key decision-making skills entrepreneurs need.
Others also viewed
- Taking AIM: Essential Strategies for Resource-Savvy Entrepreneurs John St.James 1mo
- Business , Entrepreneurship , Money , Management Lessons from WEB-SERIES “ The 1992 SCAM” - Harshad Mehta Story Aminul Islam 2y
- A Secret Technique that Entrepreneurs Can Use to Almost Guarantee Success! Raymond Merritt 2y
- 10 Basic Nuggets for Entrepreneurs and Budding Entrepreneurs. Ini Abimbola, FSPIN, M.CIoD 6y
- As an Entrepreneur, You Should Have These 10 Strong Qualities. Do You Have It? Rajalingam Rathinam 🇮🇳🇦🇺 Coffee With Raja 1y
- What Entrepreneurs Can Learn From The Law Of Attraction Kristopher Jones 3y
- 7 key characteristics of an entrepreneur Hamid Rab Nawaz 1y
- How Entrepreneurs Can Manage Their Time Hamid Rab Nawaz 2y
- Unlocking the Secrets to Success: The Top 10 Habits of Highly Effective Entrepreneurs! Rajalingam Rathinam 🇮🇳🇦🇺 Coffee With Raja 1y
Explore topics
- Sales
- Marketing
- IT Services
- Business Administration
- HR Management
- Engineering
- Soft Skills
- See All