As a business owner, I feel a lot of pressure to be successful. Sometimes this pressure is so crippling that it pushes me towards failure. I think people can benefit from working in organised systems before setting out but IMO, there’s nothing to prepare a person for the hassle.
There’s a lot of depression and other mental health issues among entrepreneurs. A lot of them are exacerbated by the fear of failure.
While it is good to want to succeed and to work towards it, I think entrepreneurs should be assured that it is ok to fail. Entrepreneurs need to also know and feel that they will always have access to support in times of lows and failure.
Startup hubs and entrepreneurship incubators should set up support groups for failing and failed entrepreneurs. May save lives. Within the startup ecosystem, I think unsuccessful entrepreneurs should be learned from like their successful counterparts.
“Australia is too expensive.” Well, why don’t you let us know your budget first?
Feedback is very important for a business. It is even more important for a small business. Customers who volunteer feedback are good people. Small businesses are usually cash strapped and cannot afford big marketing budgets. They depend a lot on referrals.
“How can we serve you better?” “Did you enjoy our service? How can we improve on it?” “Would you recommend us to your friends?”
You’re better off hearing harsh criticism from your customer than a potential customer hearing it from them.
Running a small business is tough but having direct access to your customers is a perk.