5 Fears About Launching A Startup & How To Fight Them

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Are you thinking about launching your startup? Chances are that you'll have some fears when it comes to starting your own venture. Here's how to deal with them:

Launching a startup is one of the riskiest things you could do with your life. You will have plenty of challenges from the moment you take the plunge and launch the company to the period when your company is experiencing growth and all the growing pains that come along with it. If you want to be successful as an entrepreneur, then you need to brace yourself for these challenges and fight the fears that come with them.

Jack Muller, who runs Essay Writing Land, a paper writing service, understands the process because he too went through it when he launched his business. We asked him to tell us about some of the fears one should expect to experience before launching the startup and how to deal with them.

#1 Going Broke

One of the biggest things every entrepreneur worries about is capital. They have every right to do so. You do need money to start a business, after all. Most of the time, this money will either come from the entrepreneur’s piggy bank or from external investors. If you don’t have a stable revenue stream by the time you run out of capital then your proverbial goose is cooked and the business, together with all the capital that was initially invested, is at a danger of being lost. Now, it’s one thing when that money isn’t yours and all you have to do is disappoint your investors and risk a bad reputation, but when it’s all come from your life savings, it could drive you crazy.

If the fear of losing your life savings is what is holding you back, then consider getting funding from external sources. You could collect small sums from a large number of people via crowdfunding or seek grants for business from the government. You also need to practice a little faith in your business concept and the model by which you intend to execute it. If you don’t have faith in your own ideas, then maybe business isn’t for you to begin with.

#2 Being Inadequate

It could be that you’re worried your product isn’t good enough to put up with the competition, or that you’re personally not a good enough entrepreneur. Whichever of the two you’re facing, this fear can hinder many entrepreneurs from unfurling their wings and taking off.

In this case, you need to remember the concept of the minimum viable product or the MVP. You don’t have to get everything just right when you’re launching. It doesn’t even have to outdo your competitors by very much. Instead, it just has to be functional enough to be acceptable by the consumer. You can then improve as you go along. No one ever starts out with a perfect product. In fact, some of the most successful businesses in the world started out with products of inferior quality and only later improved to the point they’re at today.

This logic applies to you as an entrepreneur as well, and not just your product. You’re also an MVP that will improve over time. You don’t have to be perfect and wise in all of your decision-making right now. You just have to not make too big a mess and instead take the time and experience that come your way to help you improve.

#3 The Fear Of Failing

This is a fear that gets even the best of us from time to time. There are little failures, like a failed marketing campaign, or some bug in your software that you notice right after you launch. There are also big failures, like your company going bankrupt and taking all your money and hard work along with it.

No matter how you look at it, failure will pull you back, either by a small amount or by a large amount. However, you shouldn’t let the fear of failure paralyze you and stop you from making important decisions. Failure is not final, and falling down doesn’t mean you can never get back up. You are in complete control of whether the failures you experience are final or not. At the very least, see failures as speed bumps on the road to success. At best, take every failure as a lesson from life to you. It is an opportunity to learn and get better. When you implement what you learn from the failure, you can only improve going forward.

#4 The Fear Of Biting More Than You Chew

No one decides to become an entrepreneur because it is the easy way out. A 9-5 is the easy way out; everyone knows that. The reason why most people decide to become entrepreneurs is that the rewards are worth the challenges you face along the way. So don’t get into the field because you see it as a get-rich-quick scheme. You’ll get overwhelmed sooner, rather than later.

A lot of us can get too caught up in how overwhelming it all gets after a while. However, it also helps to see the flip side of things, which is that entrepreneurship gives you full control over things. When you feel overwhelmed, or when the thought of getting overwhelmed overwhelms you, remember that you have all the power to change things. Are you getting overwhelmed by financial issues? Then why not get the help of an accountant or financial consultant? If you’re not happy with the work of any of your staff members, then consider replacing them with someone better.

Granted, you will work a lot longer and a lot harder every day as an entrepreneur, but you will also have a lot more freedom than the average person and that is always worth it.

#5 The Fear Of The Unknown

It’s impossible to describe the unknown and to prepare for it. You’ve got a business plan, some money, a business partner or a mentor, and just about everything else you need, but you’ll still have no idea how the first year of your new business is going to go. It can be thrilling if you see it from one perspective, but absolutely dreadful if you see it from another.

What you have to learn about entrepreneurship is that it isn’t a job or even a career. Entrepreneurship will penetrate every aspect of your life and become a lifestyle. You’re an entrepreneur because you’re a passionate and hard-working risk-taker. You also firmly believe in your idea. When you have a mindset like that, then you don’t have to know what’s coming in the next day, year, or decade, because you are fully equipped to deal with any challenge that comes your way, including the unknown. Believe in yourself and put that fear away.

 

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