The 12 Days of Start-Up: An Entrepreneur Holiday Carol If you're a bah-humbug type you may not find this amusing. But if you can pull yourself out of your Scroogeness, you may just find yourself singing along.

By Jill Schiefelbein

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

Warning: Holiday cheer ahead.

If you're a bah-humbug type you may not find this amusing. But if you can pull yourself out of your Scroogeness, you may just find yourself singing along.

It's the most wonderful time of the year. Get ready to jingle all the way. May your days be merry and bright. And may columnists overuse holiday clichés to bring you new renditions of classic holiday songs.

I give you my version of the 12 Days of Christmas for a Startup.

On the first day of start-up my business yielded me:

The first round of seed funding.

On the second day of start-up my business yielded me:

Two employees

And the first round of seed funding.

On the third day of start-up my business yielded me:

Three iterations

Two employees

And the first round of seed funding.

On the fourth day of start-up my business yielded me:

Four A/B tests

Three iterations

Two employees

And the first round of seed funding.

On the fifth day of start-up my business yielded me:

Free pub-lic-i-ty!

Four A/B tests

Three iterations

Two employees

And the first round of seed funding.

On the sixth day of start-up my business yielded me:

Six investors calling

Free pub-lic-i-ty!

Four A/B tests

Three iterations

Two employees

And the first round of seed funding.

On the seventh day of start-up my business yielded me:

Seven more employees

Six investors calling

Free pub-lic-i-ty!

Four A/B tests

Three iterations

Two employees

And the first round of seed funding.

On the eighth day of start-up my business yielded me:

Eight thousand users

Seven more employees

Six investors calling

Free pub-lic-i-ty!

Four A/B tests

Three iterations

Two employees

And the first round of seed funding.

On the ninth day of start-up my business yielded me:

Nine consultants knocking

Eight thousand using

Seven people selling

Six investors calling

Free pub-lic-i-ty!

Four A/B tests

Three iterations

Two employees

And the first round of seed funding.

On the tenth day of start-up my business yielded me:

Ten slides for pitching

Nine consultants knocking

Eight thousand using

Seven people selling

Six investors calling

Free pub-lic-i-ty!

Four A/B tests

Three iterations

Two employees

And the first round of seed funding.

On the eleventh day of start-up my business yielded me:

Eleven months of doubting

Ten slides for pitching

Nine consultants knocking

Eight thousand using

Seven people selling

Six investors calling

Free pub-lic-i-ty!

Four A/B tests

Three iterations

Two employees

And the first round of seed funding.

On the twelfth day of start-up my business yielded me:

Twelve months of profit

Eleven months of doubting

Ten slides for pitching

Nine consultants knocking

Eight thousand using

Seven people selling

Six investors calling

Free pub-lic-i-ty!

Four A/B tests

Three iterations

Two employees

And the first round of seed funding.

Here's to a productive and profitable 2016! Thanks for your readership. I look forward to bringing you more content in the new year.

Related: Bringing an On-Demand Mentality to Employee Development

Jill Schiefelbein

Entrepreneur Leadership Network® VIP

Professional Speaker and Business Communication Expert

Jill Schiefelbein is a former professor, professional speaker, and business communication expert. From analyzing documents obtained from military raids of terrorist camps to dissect jihadi communication strategies, building an online education office serving more than 60,000 students, to her own award-winning entrepreneurial ventures, Schiefelbein loves a strategic challenge. Her business, The Dynamic Communicator, creates and executes communication strategies that help companies solve problems, retain talent and produce revenue. Pre-order her new book Dynamic Communication (Entrepreneur Press, March 2017) today.

Want to be an Entrepreneur Leadership Network contributor? Apply now to join.

Business News

AI Could Cause 99% of All Workers to Be Unemployed in the Next Five Years, Says Computer Science Professor

Professor Roman Yampolskiy predicted that artificial general intelligence would be developed and used by 2030, leading to mass automation.

Business Ideas

70 Small Business Ideas to Start in 2025

We put together a list of the best, most profitable small business ideas for entrepreneurs to pursue in 2025.

Buying / Investing in Business

From a $120M Acquisition to a $1.3T Market

Co-ownership is creating big opportunities for entrepreneurs.

Buying / Investing in Business

Big Investors Are Betting on This 'Unlisted' Stock

You can join them as an early-stage investor as this company disrupts a $1.3T market.

Business News

Mark Zuckerberg 'Insisted' Executives Join Him For a MMA Training Session, According to Meta's Ex-President of Global Affairs

Nick Clegg, Meta's former president of global affairs, says in a new book that he once had to get on the mat with a coworker.