JOURNAL
ENTRY: How to Be Successful
“How Entrepreneurs Craft Strategies
That Work” by Amar Bhide
I have an
entrepreneur’s spirit with the courage of a rabbit. I have tons of business
ideas pop into my head all the time and it’s hard to focus on any one of them
for long. And the more time I spend thinking about them, the more they grow out
of all proportion and seem impossible to manage. Sometimes I wish I could just
strike while the iron’s hot, forget all the preliminary planning, and just take
a leap of faith. I often wonder how entrepreneurs find that one business that
will work for them, and how they land in the right place, at the right time,
with the right amount of money.
I really
appreciated this article by Amar Bhide for Harvard Business School. In it, he
said, “…all ventures merit some analysis and planning. Appearances to the
contrary, successful entrepreneurs don’t take risks blindly. Rather, they use a
quick, cheap approach that represents a middle ground between planning
paralysis and no planning at all. They don’t expect perfection – even the most
astute entrepreneurs have their share of false starts…”
First, I
take from this that entrepreneurs do plan and prepare. The opportunity may not
be in view yet, but they are ready to pounce on it when it comes along because
they have been preparing. Second, they don’t expect perfection. This was big
for me because I tend to over-analyze and dream so big that I worry the
business would fail unless I can make all my visions a reality. Knowing that it
doesn’t have to be perfect at start-up gives me hope of someday being able to open
a business and build it as I go along. If I have a plan, I can make that growth
a part of it, prioritizing what to open with and what will come later, and
when.
Many of my
ideas would be easy to duplicate. In this same article by Bhide he says, “…if
an innovation cannot be patented or kept secret… Superior execution can also compensate
for a me-too concept in emerging or rapidly growing industries where doing it
quickly and doing it right are more important than brilliant strategy.”
One
of the reasons I love that is because I would like to open a bakery, and those
are a dime a dozen. They open and close down in my area within a year. So, I
can I be different and make a lasting impression on my community, staying in
business where others fail all the time? First, I have been baking for twenty
plus years. I have been practicing and perfecting my skills. I have a large
following already who come to me for their wedding cakes, baby shower cakes, and
other baked goods over my competition. Second, I have novel ideas about how the
store would run and ways to implement other strategies into the business to
inspire customers to shop with me and for expansion.
Bhide suggests superior execution is one way to stay in
business when others copy your idea. Besides superior execution of the baked
goods I make, I feel that I can also provide superior service. Having been
brought up by a store owner and having spent much of my working career in retail
and retail management, I am confident in my ability to connect with customers.
The part that I am most concerned with now is the actual business end of
opening a store. That is why this course has been so helpful so far. I already
am feeling more confident in my ability to succeed.
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