Failure is part of life. Failure is part of any successful business. It’s just as simple as that! From Elon Musk to Jeff Bezos, ask any business guru today and they will tell you they have at one time or the other failed. Failure is like being in a boxing ring. When it comes knocking you down, you have to bounce back up and get ready for more. Hence, failure is inevitable and it shouldn’t be something that should deter you from pursuing your goals. “Successful people are not those who never tried at all because of the fear of failure but they are people who tried, failed, learn from their failures, and keep it moving.” Says Ervin Ahbabovic, a successful entrepreneur who provides hospitality and humanitarian services. “Whether you are running a million-dollar business, or yours is just a small store around the corner, be prepared to fail. But don’t dwell on it. Rather, learn from it and turn it to your advantage. Then, you will realize failure is not that bad after all” he adds. Here, Ervin Ahbabovic shed more light on vital lessons entrepreneurs can learn from failures.
Product quality is great, but sales are more important
What’s the point of having a top-notch product if you aren’t getting them to the right audience to make sales? While getting your products to be at their best, you need clever distribution/ sales strategies to get them at the forefront. Marketing determines your products/services’ success or failure. This means people need to be aware of your products. They need to know the features and disadvantages. They need to understand if it’s something that will meet their needs. Hence, if you are concentrating too much on the product quality at the expense of another, you need to re-strategize. One sure way to avoid business collapse.
Be more receptive to feedback, there are hidden gems in them
Let’s face it! Negative feedback can be disheartening. You have worked so hard on an idea, or product, only to be washed down by someone. And by this, I don’t mean the envy-driven ones but people who gave an honest view on your products or services work. However, how about taking a step back and having an honest review of what you want to offer? They can be right after all. Maybe just maybe, you need to work on some areas of your business.
It’s okay to trust your gut to make the right business decisions
Sometimes it’s okay to trust your intuition and follow through with decisions you think will benefit your business. In the face of uncertainty, risks, and information overload, sometimes you might be caught in a tight corner, finding it hard to know what to do next. Well, you don’t have to follow what everyone else is doing. Simply, look at the whole picture, consider the situation based on evidence, and do what you have to do.
Solutions are required for actual problems
As a social entrepreneur, Ervin Ahbabovic also believes that when providing a solution to the world around you and giving back to them, the world will surely reward you. This means you have to provide a solution that goes beyond personal gains. You look for areas where you can make a positive impact, problems that require solutions, and solutions that will bless people’s lives. When you do this, you will be surprised at how the public will become your number one cheerleader.
Value relationships. We need each other to grow
Success also depends on the people you are working together with to drive the business vehicle forward. As partners, ensure you are all on the same page. People might have different opinions, some might have different ideas from yours about where the business is going, not being in the same boat means you are creating a room for failure. That is why you need to have common goals and work towards achieving them. This way, you create a company culture that serves as a framework that everyone follows. It becomes the face of the organization that employees, suppliers, and clients, see, appreciate, believe in, and follow.
A failure is a tool, not the end
The journey to success is not always smooth and making it to the top is simply warfare that needs to be fought with fervency. That is why when you fail, you don’t stay there and brood over it. Therefore, begin to see failure as a pointer to what works and doesn’t work as you journey along. See it as a scary requirement to get the star. See it as a tool for success and learn to use it for your good. Learn to turn your setbacks to come back.
Bottom line
Yes, failure is hard and it’s truly a setback on your road to success. But it’s not the end of it all. It’s simply a way of bulking up and bouncing back, this time in full force armed with the lessons learned from your failures said Ervin Ahbabovic. Remember this next time an idea doesn’t go the way you envision it or a deal doesn’t work in your favor.
Tags: business decisionscheerleaderemployeesErvin AhbabovichospitalityNegative feedbackscary requirementsuccessful entrepreneur