"Dear entrepreneurs, Here are all my mistakes, don't repeat them"
Gift Lubele
Who is Gift Lubele?
- 2020 BRICS Young Innovator Winner
- Top 20 under 30 Entrepreneurs
- Former Research Engineer
- 100 Most Influential Young South Africans
- Contributing Author
- Advisory Board Member
- Professional Speaker
- BBA Student
My Mistakes
Below are the 7 Stages of a Startup and What You Should Be Doing at Each stage. In each stage, I will be sharing with you the mistakes I have made based on the many ideas and start-ups that have failed.
Please note that this does not guarantee success but it is a very reliable framework that has been used by many successful startups.
Formation Stage
1. Ideation 💡
The first time I had a "great" idea I said, "This is a multi-million dollar idea, I should not share it with anyone because they might steal it".
Later I learned that almost every single idea you can think of exist already somewhere in the world, if you don't believe me, think of the most unique idea and google it.
2. Research 👨🏽💻 👩🏼💻
As an entrepreneur, we are always so tempted to rush into solution mode, we automatically think of how to create the solution, what it will do and how big it will be but this was one of my mistakes.
I have learned that the best way to come up with an innovation is to fall in love with the problem, invest time to understand it in-depth, and never assume, always ask.
Validation Stage
3. Commitment 🤝 🤞🏽
Smile if you once heard this "I am starting my business to be my own boss", so many entrepreneurs start their business due to this reason, and although there might be some truth to this, a significant amount of entrepreneurs interpret this wrong and show very little commitment to their daily duties.
This was one of my mistakes, I was not committed to my business.
4. Traction ⚖️ 🚧
I have to be honest, this has been one of the most difficult stages of my entrepreneurial journey.
Whether we are meeting investors, potential partners or even late adapters, we are always asked, how much traction have you got?
Growth Stage
5. Refinement 🔧 ⚙️ 🔩
Okay, so now you have a business that is gaining some traction, how do you keep on keeping on?
This stage is the first step in growing a business, where bad processes are refined and good ones are optimized.
6. Scaling 🤾🏽♂️ 🚀
You are now receiving great feedback from clients, you are growing and exploring national and international expansion.
What mistakes should you avoid?
7. Becoming Established 💵 🏌🏽💰🏌🏿♀️
Being a Unicorn
The dos and don'ts. This section will be delivered by an established entrepreneur who has an established business.
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