5 mistakes new founders make

Starting a business can be overwhelming. With so much at stake, it can be hard to know which decisions are the right ones to make. For first-time founders, the stakes are even higher as they don’t have any prior experience to fall back on when making critical decisions. While every founder faces their own set of unique challenges, there are some common mistakes that can easily be avoided with just a little bit of preparation and knowledge. In this blog post, we’ll explore five of the most common mistakes made by first-time founders and how you can avoid them.

Product-market fit

The first and most important step for any startup is to find a product-market fit. This means creating a product that people actually want or need and then finding a market for it. This can be difficult to do, especially for first-time founders who are new to the startup world. There are a few key things to keep in mind when trying to achieve product-market fit:

1. Make sure you have a unique selling proposition. What makes your product different from all the other products out there?

2. Do your research. Know who your target market is and what they want or need.

3. Don’t be afraid to pivot. If something isn’t working, don’t be afraid to change it.

4. Be patient. It can take time to find the right product-market fit. Don’t give up too soon! It took me over a year of trial and error to do that with my business.

Doing too much

If you’re a first-time founder, it’s easy to fall into the trap of doing too much. You want to prove yourself and show that you’re capable of building a successful company, so you take on everything yourself. But this is a recipe for burnout.

In fact, I’ve talked to a number of founders who candidly shared with me, that they have this problem with delegating and trusting others.

And it so happens that this fear of letting the reigns go is one of the habits on my energy questionnaire. Why? Because it’s one of the habits that inevitably leads to fatigue, overwhelm, and burnout. 

Instead of trying to do everything, focus on the most important things that will move your business forward. Sure, making an awesome website is fun for you to play with but is it a priority? Delegate or outsource. This will help you stay sane and focused on what’s truly important.

Backup plan

As a founder, it’s easy to get caught up in the excitement of building your startup and forget to plan for the worst-case scenario. Yuck! I know it’s not something we wanna think about. In fact, I still don’t have life insurance even though I probably should, so I’m hardly following my own advice here. This is a huge mistake. You need an insurance policy for your venture. A good backup plan will help you keep your business afloat if things go wrong.

There are a few things you should consider when creating your backup plan:

-What are your revenue streams? If one of them dries up, can you still make money?
-How much cash do you have on hand? This will help you weather any short-term problems.
-Do you have insurance? This can protect you from lawsuits or other financial problems down the road.
-Who are your investors? They may be able to give you additional funding if needed.

All of this matters especially if you’re bootstrapping since you’re taking on all the risk here! 

Creating a well-thought-out backup plan will give you peace of mind as you build your business. It’s better to be safe than sorry, and when you do it you will feel safer and more confident to focus on building!