7 Non-Negotiable Rules for Launching a Successful Startup

The startup economy never sleeps: from incubators to accelerators to eager investors to a generation with a pioneering spirit that craves to be its own boss. However, despite lofty aspirations and untold resources, thousands of businesses never get off the ground for every startup that hits the billion-dollar mark. 

What’s the difference between success and failure? Successful businesses have little or nothing to do with chance or good fortune. If you want to build a company that lasts, you’ve got to have discipline, and there are proven rules, principles, and standards that are not open for negotiation. The following are seven “commandments” of entrepreneurship to guide you along the path of building a durable, successful venture. 

1. Lock down your “why.” 

Can every employee in your organization explain your core value proposition in a clear, concise, and compelling way? The specific problem you solve matters a lot. However, so does why you’re better positioned than any competitor to provide the best solution. If your team can’t instantly and persuasively communicate your value proposition, you’re not ready to sell a single product. 

2. Place your bets on the jockeys. 

“Investors always bet on the jockeys, not the horses they ride.” It’s a simple but profound truth: your business’ technology, product, platform, solution, whatever it is—those are all important, but they’re not as important as your executive team. Attract the best, brightest, and strongest talent you can. Bring in an executive team that is sufficiently equipped, skilled, and psychologically tough enough to manage the risk and effectively handle a crisis when it occurs. 

3. Fail forward, but never twice. 

Failure is not a dirty word. As a matter of fact, if you want to grow, then you’ve got to fail forward. You can’t be so risk averse or afraid to pivot and iterate that you don’t take the necessary chances to improve your business. On the other hand, there are some decisions and mistakes you should never make twice. If there’s one surefire way to fail, it’s to do the same wrong thing over again. 

4. The stakeholder is your North Star. 

Your company isn’t an island unto itself, and it doesn’t exist for its own sake. The stakeholders, who are any people that have an investment or interest in your business, are your true north. From customers, employees, investors and partners to the community you’re serving, and the regulators who preside over your industry, meeting their needs is your number one priority and is always the right answer. 

5. Don’t be the first one in. 

“First-mover advantage” is frequently a myth. A lot of the early exploratory work is just that, uncharted. Your early venture capital or seed money should never be wasted on pioneering when you can follow in someone else’s footsteps. Learn from those who pave the way and then execute far more strategically and efficiently than your early competition. 

6. Guard your crown jewels. 

Your intellectual property (IP) is not expendable, and it’s often the key differentiator in your future valuation and ability to compete in your marketplace. Code, processes, key trademarks, and any unique solution you have on hand—those are the things that must be jealously guarded from even the possibility of disclosure. Put the legal agreements in place today. 

7. The biggest hurdle is often mindset. 

This is an easy one to read, but among the most brutal axioms of business to accept. It’s a simple observation: If you believe it can’t be done, you’re absolutely right. The startup world is filled with challenges that seem insurmountable at the time. If you don’t have the absolute unshakable confidence you can make it happen, you won’t ever improve your odds of success.