Try Again Business fell flat? No use whining about it. Here's how you can bounce back.
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Some of the most successful businesses in the world only came tobe after a few serious failures. From prototypes that don'twork to a service that doesn't sell in your local area, a firstbusiness can quickly turn into a first failure. But can you as anentrepreneur come back into the fray and startagain-successfully?
Absolutely, says Raymond T. Yeh, co-author with Stephanie H. Yehof The Art of Business: In the Footsteps ofGiants. In the book, the authors cite the histories of suchcompanies as AOL and Intel, noting how many times failure enteredthe picture and how the entrepreneurs battled back. "Businessfailure is part of the process," says Raymond. The brightestminds allow themselves to make mistakes, learn from them, dustthemselves off, and start again.
After surviving a business failure, the first thing to do isstep back and take stock. "Make a list of what you did rightand what you did wrong," says Raymond. "If you see thewhole picture, and you're small in it, that gives you a goodperspective." No matter how busy you may be, definitely setaside some time for reflection. Ask yourself objective questions,and be honest with your answers.
Reflection helped Lunden De'Leon regroup after her PRbusiness failed in November 1999. She'd started in January ofthat year, signing a few entertainment-industry clients. But whenher actor clients started to make it big, they signed with biggerPR firms, and De'Leon was forced to close her doors after themass exodus. "I felt like a complete failure," saysDe'Leon, 30.
She took time to go back to school and became interested in themusic business. "I thought about starting my own record label,and then fear kicked in," recalls De'Leon. "Ithought, 'There's no way I can go through the pain andembarrassment again if this company fails.' I struggled withthe idea, but with my family's encouragement, I decided to giveit a try." Learning from her first venture, De'Leon'snew strategy for Dirrty Records is to sign exclusive contracts with herclients and to elicit the help of her family in making importantdecisions for her Beverly Hills, California, business. Thisstrategy has helped her grow her 2002 startup to $3.5 million inannual sales today.
Getting past that "once bitten, twice shy" mentalityis a big challenge for second-time entrepreneurs. Mark C. Judd, 41,founder of BIDCO Marine Group, an underwater construction,maintenance and inspection service in Buffalo, New York, certainlyhad to overcome his earlier negative business experiences.
During the startup of his two previous diving companies, Juddencountered problems with his partners, which led to his departurefrom both companies. After those ventures failed, in 1991 and 1992,respectively, he started again in 1993-this time with a sense ofcaution regarding business relationships. Now, Judd has built hisbusiness to about $15.6 million in 2003 sales.
Success after business failure proves that entrepreneurs aremore than just resourceful-they're made of some hardystock.
Look Inside
If your business has failed and you want to start anew,Stephanie H. Yeh, co-author with Raymond T. Yeh of The Art ofBusiness: In the Footsteps of Giants, suggests asking thesequestions about your first business venture:
- Did I put the customer at the center of my universe? Says Yeh,"Entrepreneurs can get fascinated with whatever hot idea [theyhave], and they don't see the customer."
- Was I passionate about this business? Why did I want to dothis? Was it just for money?
- Did I target a niche? In a competitive space, did I make mycompany offering different? Was I better, cheaper, faster than thecompetition?
Honestly examining these issues can help you prepare for a newbusiness.
