oming in and out of the business all the time. Again, being open to learning is a key element. Many businesses fail because those driving the business are so caught up working ‘in’ the business, instead of ‘on’ the business, that they can’t implement changes, find time to learn or stay creative or on the ball. That’s why planning and hiring the right people with complementary skills who you can delegate to are essential success factors.

These are just some of the elements included in my Start-Up Checklist which appears in the book after the chapter called: LESSONS FROM LEADERS IN BUSINESS: Success Stories, Mistakes and Top Tips

DS: How essential do you see a University education in achieving success as an entrepreneur?

CR: Not essential. I went to University to a) make my parents proud b) delay the prospect of working for a few more years and c) because with A-Levels reading the Media Guardian I realized all the jobs I wanted to be able to do were only open to graduates. For me, although I ended up on lower or similar income to many of my peers, I needed to be a graduate to get my editorial and writing positions. However, I’d have learned a great deal more if I’d gone into a publishers and worked my way up. I believe work experience counts for a lot more (just as some people I sent my CV to as a graduate believed). What’s more, my partner James is more entrepreneurial than me (and he has the gift of the gab, is more confident, etc). He didn’t go to university, so that proves my point that university education is definitely not essential in achieving business success. Indeed, my BA (Hons) Degree in Media with Cultural Studies may well have hindered me in some ways. I could have been working all that time and saving up to fund my own business. And, if you look at the most successful people in UK business, the majority of them didn’t go to college let alone university. Richard Branson, Simon Woodroffe…

DS: What are the three most important lessons you have learned about business and entrepreneurship?

CR: 1. Everything always takes longer and costs more than you think it will (even when you are fairly stringent with your planning).

2. Go with your gut feeling. Learn how to feel what that is and go with it. The buck stops with you, so you need to get as many decisions right as you can. Some of these decisions will involve others trying to sell you something: support or a service or a partnership. There is a time for diplomacy and sometimes you will need to listen to your instincts and opt not to go ahead with a certain partnership or project.

3. Listen and learn constantly. You must never think you know it all as nobody does. People like to give advice and tell you what they know about things, so you can be constantly learning. You also need to delegate, and appreciate that there are people out there who can compliment your talents. Remember, it’s all about people.

DS: What advice would you give to an aspiring entrepreneur?

CR: Do your research, find out what your potential customer needs are and test the market where possible. Surround yourself with a good support network and work out your break-even point before you take the plunge. Buy or create a checklist that you can go through before you set up, making sure you’ve considered everything from your company name and marketing to your website, staff and expenditure needs.

DS: What's the number one book you would recommend to aspiring entrepreneurs?

CR: Of course my own book – The Small Business Start-Up Workbook. However, another book I would heartily recommend is Anyone Can Do It by Sahar and Bobby Hashemi of Coffee Republic, and also Anita Roddick’s Business As Unusual – both are inspirational and help you get things into perspective. Both are available from Amazon.co.uk, or you can order Anita’s books via her own site at www.anitaroddick.com

DS: What memorable mistakes, if any, have you made in business? What did you learn from them and how can they be avoided?

CR: Earlier I mentioned the importance of going with your gut feeling. Well, if I’d done that on at least two occasions, I could have saved a lot of time, credibility and money. We chose a web development team based on referral who ended up being appalling. They made very technical looking sites which had a reduced Google ranking, terrible indexability and were poorly designed and coded. Effectively they talked the talk but didn’t walk the walk. If I’d followed my gut instinct earlier on when the partnership was being discussed, I’d have walked alright… away from them. The partnership cost us credibility, lost Google ranking, plus a whole year of our time. Fortunately, we found a new developer who has made our sites the best they have ever been. But that’s just part of the roller-coaster ride of running your own business.

DS: What are the best and worst things about being an entrepreneur?

CR: Best things are the freedom and flexibility it gives you in terms of trying to reach your goals and in being your own boss. Plus, it’s nice to feel in control of your destiny. The worst things are that nobody can understand what it’s like to run their own business until they do it themselves and the fact that you lose a lot of ‘me’ time and social life when you work long hours on your business. Not getting paid holiday is another negative and personally it’s my occasional inability to switch off from business mode.

DS: Are there any other thoughts, insights, or advice for aspiring entrepreneurs that you'd like to add?

CR: If you believe in your idea, have some proof to back it up and have the energy to be your own boss, go for it. Remember, it’s better to try and fail than to not even bother to try then get to the end of your life wondering, ‘what if’ and ‘if only I’d done that.’

About the author:
Damien Senn helps entrepreneurs create compelling businesses. He is one of the UK's top Business Coaches as well as a fully qualified Chartered Accountant.

Damien is the author of the 'Senn-Sational Success Journal' and has developed his own coaching model called the 'Senn-Sational Success System'.

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