In his book ‘Small is the new big’, Seth Godin writes, “As long as you work for someone, you have no job security. As long as your company is public, your future is in the hands of others—people who are likely not as smart as you are. And as long as you follow the instructions of others, you won’t be fulfilling your destiny of really and truly making a difference in the way people live and work.”
Lately I’ve come across quite a lot of people who have remarkable ideas for a new business that they’d like to start. I love hearing about these! Unfortunately, the talks usually end with a bunch of excuses why the business has to wait until you are “ready”. When are you ever going to be ready for the crazy ride that is running your own business? There’s never going to be a more perfect time than now.
One of the founders of Meebo gives this advice to aspiring startups, “At the exact moment you had your idea, ten other people had the exact same idea. There was just something in the environment that made it the right time for folks to think that one up. The race has already begun! Who’s going to execute first? Who’s going to execute best? If you want to waste nine months trying to raise VC money for that idea, great. But six months in, you’re gonna cry when you see someone else put out that same product you’re pitching me right now. Like I said, forget everything else and just get your product out the door. Now.”
Don’t wait for anything, start now. Hurry!
I’ll let you in on a little secret, if you cannot do absolutely anything for your new business without getting funding or another form of support, you better quit now because you will not go very far. You need that initiative and fire to at least do something before you get support. Think about all the great businesses and companies of our time – a lot of them started in garages, parking lots and dorm rooms.
I love Seth Godin!