If you think that all entrepreneurs are born with the talent to do a perfect business, then you are wrong. Before succeeding, many businessmen go through a series of failed attempts, deceptions and a naive outlook on life. But it is these lessons that enable them to achieve their goal.

Here are some tips for newbies from those who have already run into their own mistakes.

Photo by Christopher Sardegna on Unsplash

You will never be ready for business

It is unlikely that there will come a moment in your life when you realize that you need to start your own business. And yes, the first day of doing business will be terribly scary: everything will be new and incomprehensible, and instead of questions about clients, the thought will flicker in my head about what to pay for office rent. Just accept it and take action.

Also, remember that the original business idea usually transforms a lot in the process, so don’t be afraid to make a mistake.

Choose your business partner carefully

Choose business partners and shareholders you can trust. It’s easy to work with everyone in the beginning, but as the business grows, people change and the tension builds. Select people based on shared values, attitudes, and character.

Content should be at the center of your business

Content is a way to show the client what you can teach them. Do it with photos, videos, texts and audio.

Fashion brands help people dress beautifully, bakeries show you how to eat fast and tasty breakfast, car companies can talk about safe driving, and hotels teach you how to relax. Think about what you can teach your audience and start talking about it.

If you simply sell a product without affecting customer value, you will have to lower its price.

Buy practical skills, not education

In business, it is not your MBA degree that matters, but your experience and skills. Cold calling experience, understanding the basics of marketing and web design will help you get started more than theoretical foundations.

Focus on the practice required to make money. Everything else is trivial and useless strategies.

Expect chaos

New business is always chaos with no system or structure. If you hate clutter, you might want to reconsider your decision to start a business. Chaos is not for everyone, which is why there are traditional jobs.

Watch your ego

An uncontrollable ego can kill a big deal and ruin your business.

Even if you have a business, you are no better than other people and you do not deserve a gold medal. Nobody wants to deal with narcissistic and arrogant people.

Reduce your ego and you will remove the barrier to good business relationships and profitable business.

Hire people smarter than you

A business owner doesn’t have to be the smartest person in the company.

Find professionals who are skilled in a specific area and use their knowledge instead of trying to be a jack of all trades.

Create your own mailing list

Social media and other platforms where you talk about your business are not yours. You can be removed or the ranking method changed at any time. So you can lose customers at any time if you do not own their contact information. Collect the phone numbers and emails of your audience in a database – using mailings you can turn them into leads.

Collaborate with like-minded people

You can merge your mailing list with other business owners instead of building sales bases for years.

The worst thing you can do is not cooperate. Without partnerships, your business will grow very slowly. Plus, it’s a great way to meet interesting people and even lifelong friends.

Learn How to Lead People

People are at the heart of any business. Even if you currently employ one person, this may change in the future. Learn to interact with different people, and study what motivates them to achieve results.

Dealing with people is one of the hardest things in business. Everyone has biases, problems, and ways of thinking that prevent them from being effective. A simple business task is easy to accomplish, but once you get people to do it, it gets harder. People make decisions not based on logic, but on emotion. This is why it is important to understand people in order to lead them.

Realistically value your business

Sometimes the desire for big business is overestimated. The larger your business, the more stress you get. If you are making enough money to cover all of your needs, consider if you need more.

Some people like to be able to relax and be unknown, calmly going about their business.

We are all afraid of mistakes, but only through bitter experience do we learn something new and find the right path. You must first learn what not to do in order to start doing something worthwhile.