Having £10,000 in the bank was once my definition of success. Last year, my 500-employee business crossed $500 million in annual sales.
Here are 3 harsh truths that being an entrepreneur has taught me. 👇
1/ Exceptional businesses are the result of exceptional teams.
Our world is dominated by people who think fast, fail fast, and learn fast.
This is because the billions don’t lie in the ideas - they lie in the execution.
Ideas are only worth something when you take action on them. Most people are scared that their ideas aren’t ‘good enough,’ when they should instead be scared that they aren’t taking action.
The people in your business will make it or break it, so make sure you have a star-studded line up that can do hard things, even if it hurts your wallet a little. Trust me, human capital is something you should NEVER cheap out on.
Build a great team with strong values and world-shattering execution skills - then get out of their way. The magic will happen soon enough.
2/ The buck ALWAYS stops with you.
Every victory is yours, but so is every mistake, every slipup, and every loss.
Especially when you’ve just started out - each decision comes down to you, whether it be investing in a new project, picking the right marketing strategy, or shifting direction in times of crisis.
There is no one to keep you accountable but yourself. All you can do is put in more sweat, more blood, more tears, and keep running.
If you get it wrong, there's no one to blame. If someone else gets it wrong, you have to take it on the chin.
Every great entrepreneur I know has this uncanny sense of 'relentless responsibility,’ and it helps keep them going.
3/ Bad culture means bad business.
This is the most overlooked yet most important secret to building a company.
Great businesses are great mainly because they recognize the true value of humility and hard work.
Your business’s trajectory changes when working with people who share the same values as you - because you can teach hard skills, but you can’t teach discipline, motivation, and consistency.
Customers can always sense the culture of a company, and it heavily influences their decisions to engage with your brand. Toxic behaviors and attitudes piss off the people around you, and send your clients running for the hills.
Flowers never bloom in poisoned soil.