
I’m not a person who gets discouraged easily, so I embrace the “learning by doing” strategy when it comes to business. But if you’re not a fan of unpleasant surprises, you may learn something from my experiences and mistakes.
Twelve years ago, a group of friends and I decided to create a magazine called Trend. We wrote mostly about financial markets and investing, and our articles seemed very appealing to students and, in general, to young people in Poland. Our small team decided to make the most of this, so we established a publishing house. It was my first company.
Shortly thereafter, the struggles of an entrepreneurial life reduced the team of stakeholders to a modest group of three people. Entrepreneurship is not for everyone, but our trio had what was needed: We were passionate idealists, we had a strict division of work in the company, and we were on a mission to financially educate young people.
The one thing we didn’t have was the entrepreneurial background. This is why having my own magazine became a valuable learning experience. After I became Trend‘s editor-in-chief, I started to master the intricacies of the publishing business.
So, what did I actually learn?
Lesson 1: You will never be ready enough to start your own business.
Trend magazine was established when I was 20, and at the time, I knew absolutely nothing about either publishing or about running a company in general. Sure, I knew how to write good articles, but that was it. Nevertheless, I was very enthusiastic about starting something that I would own and be responsible for—it just seemed like a good idea at the time, as our purely amateur magazine had started to draw a lot of attention.
Looking back, I realize that establishing a publishing firm was one of my best career decisions. The whole process of starting and running a company, solving problems and even dealing with paperwork taught me a lot about business and people. And I learned all of this along the way.
When the company was created, I hadn’t yet realized just how much I didn’t know; I was ignorant about many aspects of business. But how else could I possibly gain experience in running a company if I wasn’t actually doing it? Every mistake was a valuable lesson. Even if I was ready for some setbacks, I couldn’t anticipate all of them. Now, after 10+ years of experience in running different businesses, I’ve come to understand that you can never be fully prepared for the challenges that lie ahead.
Helpful advice: Educate yourself and prepare for difficulties, but at some point, stop planning and start your business. People tend to overthink many aspects of their projects even though it’s action that’s far more important. At the end of the day, action and persistence are what give you an advantage over the rest.
Lesson 2: A reliable business partner is highly valuable.
When you establish a company with someone, you create a legal bond with them. You become connected for better or for worse. Often, you start to spend more time with your business partner than with your family. That’s why a good business partner is a real treasure. By “good,” I mean these four things:
Ambitious. You want a partner with ideas and work ethic, not a child who cannot take care of themselves. You want to join forces with a person who has big dreams, ambitious goals and intrinsic motivation.
Persistent. There will be times when you’re tired and overworked, when your pessimism takes over and when you think that you’ve had enough. When you go through such a rough patch, your partner should be able to keep your spirits up, tell you that it’s okay to have doubts sometimes, and promise to take care of some issues for you—knowing that someday, you’ll do the same for them when they need it.
Willing to compromise. Arguments happen, and sometimes they are pretty serious. But even among difficult and intense emotions, all partners in the company need to remember that they’re opposing the problem, and not opposing each other.
Most of all: honest. When you start a business with someone, your money and public image begin to depend on not only you but also on your business partners. You’ll want to be in business with someone who ensures that your name doesn’t come up in media coverage related to the next big financial scam.
Partners who have all the above-mentioned traits are scarce. Moreover, it’s hard to test those traits until you and your partner(s) actually collaborate and face your first problems.
Helpful advice: Get to know your potential partner(s) before you get involved in a mutual business. Learn about their past and about their fundamental values. Go on a trip together and/or do a small “test” project together. That way, if you establish a company together and it still doesn’t work out, at least you’ll know that you did as much research as you could, and that you might have just been unlucky.
Lesson 3: It’s worth acknowledging the critics.
While running your business, you’ll encounter lots of people who know better. You should listen to them because sometimes they’re criticizing you for the right reasons—sometimes they see issues that you’ve failed to notice. However, don’t feel obligated to follow their advice; in the end, it’s your business.
When I was running Trend, I received many compliments about the well-written articles and relevant and interesting topics. Especially during its first three years, Trend filled the gap between accessible fundamental economic knowledge and university texts with their unwelcoming scientific language. We were doing something that was needed.
But not all reviews were positive. Some people suggested that the magazine cover should be stronger, the format should be a bit smaller, our web page should be more modern, etc. What those people didn’t know, though, was that all those changes would generate expenses that could make the magazine unprofitable. Of course, I was aware of our shortcomings, but I considered them trivial—to me, the quality of the articles was far more important. Since my own money was at stake, I had to learn how to compromise between quality content, design and cost optimization.
Helpful advice: Remember that if you do something meaningful, you’ll have both fans and haters. Doing something in the public eye means setting yourself up for judgment. And all those critics can eventually be helpful for the business.
Lesson 4: Being in the spotlight is short-lived, and parties are overrated.
In the world of media, there’s this one rule: One day you’re in, and the next day you’re out. I was surprised to see that this rule applies not only to trashy gossip magazines but also to the financial world. And I was surprised to see how often the worlds of finance and culture (high or low) intersect.
First, I learned that being in the spotlight usually doesn’t last. If you’re good at whatever business you’re doing, you’ll probably be at the center of media interest regularly. But, don’t get used to it. Interesting stories come and go in the media world, and this is quite normal. Whether you do something really good or terrible, don’t feel overwhelmed by it, as people will forget about it sooner than you think.
The second thing I learned is that being at the center of media attention is nowhere near as glamorous as it may seem from the outside. A party packed with celebrities is still just another party, but with more expensive clothes and less authentic smiles. Those people fight for media attention to please their sponsors and managers (because, after all, publicity is what drives their careers). And even though most celebrities don’t have anything interesting to say, journalists will still interview them because they need the content. It’s not a hard-and-fast rule, but if you’re looking for genuine, quality conversations, look outside parties.
Helpful advice: Remember that the media can both lift you up and drag you down. PR is an art, and mastering it can give you a huge advantage. Nevertheless, you don’t need to attend every fancy party, as most of them are overrated. What’s more, being in the spotlight is short-lived if there isn’t actual work and an engaging story behind it.
Lesson 5: Goodbyes aren’t easy, but sometimes they’re necessary.
Having a business is not only about what you do, but also about what you don’t do. It’s not just about the people you meet or work with, but also about the people for whom you don’t have time.
In the entrepreneurial world, you often need to say goodbye to an unsuccessful project or to people (sometimes partners) who let you down. And usually, it’s hard because of your prior commitments to them. But at the end of the day, saying goodbye is a good thing, because in business, that teaches you how to prioritize, and how to value your time and money.
Helpful advice: Every end marks a new beginning. If you lose something, you’ll gain the time and strength needed to do something else. Dealing with loss is emotional, but you’ll handle it.
Summing up …
To many people (myself included), establishing their first business is an emotional rollercoaster. It’s common to go back and forth between being miserable and feeling like “the king of the world”—within a matter of hours.
Running your company is a mix of spontaneity and planning, passion and hysteria, excitement and discouragement. And, of course, great lessons that will stay with you for life.
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