5 things I wish I knew before I started a business

Before I founded The Influencers, I had the typical startup story. I joined a startup, raised money, and it went under.

Even though that startup failed, I have been involved in a number of successful ventures since then and published a successful book, “The 2 AM Principle: Discover the Science of Adventure.”

Looking back at my failed venture, there are several things that I wish I knew then that I know now.

1. The odds are against me anyway, so what skills am I developing along the way?

This may sound cynical, but most startups fail. You should do everything you can to put the odds in your favor (e.g. working at a stable company for as long as possible to make sure that you have a strong launch, choosing the right team members, iterating, etc.).

However, there is always a chance that your company will fail. Ask yourself what skill sets you are developing and how they will make you more valuable, regardless of whether or not the company succeeds. If you can learn to sell, code, or pitch, which will truly increase your value?

2. Optimize, automate and outsource every aspect of the business

Entrepreneurs often believe that they should do everything on their own. However, that mindset will cause you to waste a lot of time trying to do tedious tasks that someone else could do better and faster. I learned this from the team at Leverage.

Look for ways that you can automate tasks first, then outsource. For example, you can hire someone on Fiverr to design a logo or retouch promotional photos. You can use Guru, IFTTT, Zapier, and dozens of others to find freelancers and researchers.

3. You have to battle your bias

Because you have invested time into your company, you think that it is better than it is and care for it more than you should. This is called the IKEA effect, for our tendency to overvalue our IKEA furniture simply because we assembled it.

You need to accept feedback from others. When someone tells you that your baby isn’t pretty, you don’t always have to agree, but you need to take it seriously.

One of the best ways to test your idea and get objective feedback is to ask your friends. Tell them about the company you want to start as if someone else had started it. Ask them if you should accept a job offer there.

4. The most important thing is your team

According to researchers Nicholas Christakis and James Fowler, our social networks have a powerful impact on our behaviors and perspectives. One of the greatest influences on your success is the team around you.

When I started my first company, I worked with people that I liked, which was problematic for various reasons. Liking someone doesn’t make them qualified. We didn’t have enough experience, skills, or insight. A few lacked the work ethic needed to execute on the idea.

Running a successful business is hard even when you have years of experience and thousands of contacts. But if you don’t have the right team assembled, failure is practically a guarantee.

Author Jim Collins has a saying in his book “Good to Great.” Make sure you get the right people on the bus, the wrong people off, and the right people in the right seats. Just because you came up with the idea, it doesn’t mean you deserve to be CEO.

5. Be friends with the media

There are companies with great products that don’t go anywhere because they fail to spread the word and gain attention. Far before you build your startup, you should make friends with people at different media outlets. When you need to promote your product, you will already have connections who trust you and will be more willing to share your story.

If your first startup fails, don’t beat yourself up. Some of the most successful business leaders experience a lot of failure before their big break. But, they all learned from their mistakes. Learn from yours.

Find more insights and stories into living a fun, exciting, and remarkable life in my book, “The 2 AM Principle: Discover the Science of Adventure.”