Most Great Businesses Never Get Started

I’m convinced of that …

Here’s why I think most great business ideas never get launched:

Money – This is probably the most obvious. But I was fortunate enough to have startup financing and then used it frugally and wisely to grow my business, without getting over my head in debt. I’ve heard estimates about how you need two years of cashflow. Those are pretty accurate.

Energy, drive, motivation – You’ve got to have a ton of it. More than money, I think. The cheapest asset I had when I started my company was my own blood, sweat and tears. And I used lots of it. I woke up early, stayed up late, worked through weekends. Many nights I lost sleep thinking about our business. A lot of times I worried about things. But when I’m focused on something, I’m extremely driven … and I plowed through those times.

Knowledge – I’m not talking about specific technical skills, like in our case WordPress theme design. I’m talking about how to turn your idea into an official corporate entity, what kind of taxes you need to pay and when, how and when to hire people … basic business stuff that most of us startup rookies don’t have a clue about. Thankfully, I had a network of people and friends I could bounce questions off of and it typically cost me a lunch.

Support – Lack of support from family and friends is huge.