#Ali Sheikhani Group

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5 Startup Mistakes Every Entrepreneur Should Avoid to Stay Ahead of the Curve, by Ali Sheikhani

Every new entrepreneur or one who has been in the business for quite some time has apprehensions and strongly feels how challenging running a business and a team can be. They fret a bit too much about how to start their business and move ahead. Running a business smoothly is not a cakewalk.

Their lack of expertise and inexperience in managing a full-fledged business can be extremely challenging for starters. Entrepreneurs have several doubts about whether they have invested enough financially in the respective project or if they have aced the marketing tactics– a list of never-ending apprehensions and problems. It's worth knowing that no business kickstarts perfectly on its own.

In order to manage a proper system, you're likely to make several blunders, or as some may call it, utterly silly mistakes on the way. The extent of mistakes an entrepreneur might make differs according to the kind of startup he or she is involved in, yet, there are a few basic and not-so-major mistakes that entrepreneurs normally make. These kinds of mistakes usually stay the same irrespective of the nature of the business you are in.

To keep this article relevant, we'll share the case of Vape City. The venture started with just one outlet and outgrew its rivals, crossing 100 stores across the US.

As we define the common mistakes, we'll also look at how Vape City CEO Ali Sheikhani evaded making mistakes and embarked on a remarkable journey of creating a mega venture across the US.

No Access to Emergency Funds

Most entrepreneurs don't think about backup plans as such, and so they don't keep funds for any unforeseen events or emergencies that can hit them hard in the future.

In order to set up a backup plan for the company, it is important to keep enough emergency funds to roll out more capital for any unexpected situation.

Ali Sheikhani, the CEO of Vape City, suggests that emergency capital can mean success or closure of your business. "We had to pump money into the business for another year only to see ourselves reach breakeven when closing the year. You just can't underestimate the need for capital to keep you going."

New and old businesses, big or small, usually involve huge sums of money. You may not have to put your own money into the task, or you may have gotten funding from other banks or different financial institutions.

So, in such instances, handling your financial affairs unprofessionally may lead to incurred losses, which may prevent you from getting monetary help in the future from these financial institutions in return.

It can also facilitate putting off foreclosure from the clients who reneged on their payments or any losses that occurred from missing or damaged stock until a proper flow of income steadies out to give potential stability to the business.

2. Devoid of Any Backup Plans

A typical business entrepreneur works out the entire process properly on paper and thinks it is a foolproof plan. But blunders happen, and at times they become victims of circumstances or because they were too optimistic about expectations that had been kept.

Remarkably, there are several entrepreneurs who step into their offices without ever thinking of having any backup plan in place. They put most of their focus on their business, and some even have complete faith that their venture will eventually succeed without facing any hurdles. For example, what would the outcome be if your marketing department fails to market your manufactured product or service? Will you shut down your operations and risk losing millions of dollars, or instead think of another plan?

Ali Sheikhani, a marketing expert and the CEO of VapeCity, shared his insights saying, "You might have to outsource your marketing operations or start a manufacturing and a more acceptable product for the market. You just can't emphasize more on the need for contingent planning."

There must be enough logistics arrangements to really make your backup plan easier to execute. And that can only happen if the backup plans are given due significance and planned accordingly, like a rescue operation, anytime something goes wrong.

3. Focusing on The Outcome

Entrepreneurship is all about designing, marketing, and maintaining the flow of business in a specific manner, following a proper strategy. It also includes facilitating the firm in a way that becomes more of a result-oriented mode.

If an entrepreneur does the same without exclusions, the firm's performance will improve, eventually leading to substantial monetary gains. Hence, instead of thinking about the outcome, an entrepreneur should focus on working for the results.

Usually, entrepreneurs are too concerned with getting quick outcomes rather than setting the basics of their business right. Mr. Sheikhani added in his conference for young entrepreneurs, "For any business, the owner needs a stable foundation that comprises infrastructure and the ability to implement strategies that were made before the start of a business. Putting too much focus on profit-driven outcomes will hamper the growth of businesses even before the rocket takes off."

Vape City's success story is decoded in his words. "We knew what we were doing and were going relentlessly about it. We were able to boost our sales gradually. Though when we were making progress, we knew we were close to the outcome we had wanted."

4. Instability to Pursue Strategy

The best thing about entrepreneurs is the willingness they possess in pursuing plans. They put in their all for the project to work in the best possible way but as soon as they face the slightest glitch, some will waver and start approaching the process in a different way.

Every business or startup works around a proper strategy. The approach of entrepreneurs may differ, but it is important for them to stick to the method they have chosen. Changing your system a couple of times may lead to problems and confusion. Rather than solving a problem, it may leave you hanging in between two potential paths of a solution with no outcome in sight.

Ali Sheikhani says, "Changing methods quicker will hamper the growth process, as you will have to start learning about the newer methods and approaches before applying them to the business. Give your methods time, or put in the major effort, and you might get the desired outcomes you want."

5. Cluster of Opinions

If you own a business or even a startup, whether you are given unnecessary and unwanted advice by your well-wishers or if you proactively look for answers you need on your own, be aware of being overwhelmed with too many colliding answers and opinions.

CEO of Vape City, Ali Sheikhani, advises, "It is best if business decisions are made partially by knowledge and instinct, but knowledge cannot be obtained just by listening to what everyone has to say or suggest. Sometimes it is better to learn from experiencing it firsthand yourself."

It might be a great idea to have a team of experienced individuals whom you can blindly trust. Their expertise might help in avoiding basic mistakes in your everyday business dealings.