First they ignore you. Then they ridicule you. And then they attack you and want to burn you. And then they build monuments to you.
Nicholas Klein, Trade Unionist
What do you think? Seems right on doesn’t it? Apply it to your own entrepreneurial innovations. Is your experience similar? But who is the “they”? Most often it is just you mocking yourself.
And what is your monument? Profit probably—not a concrete monolith in some park.
What does it take to go from a dream to reality? Who do you have to be in order to persevere and go through the stages necessary to achieve your monumental profit?
There are several stages—the first is formulation, putting together the idea. This is the most fun stage, creating something new where anything goes. There are entrepreneurs who get stuck in this stage. It can become an endless cycle of getting ready to get ready. This is the pitfall of this stage.
The next stage is concentration—taking the idea and putting in the hard work needed to make it a reality. Concentration meaning putting all of your attention on implementing your idea. Concentration is hard work. Usually, this stage is when entrepreneurs give up. You have your doubts and sometimes you believe your doubts. Here’s a tip: if you know it’s hard and you are concentrating on making something happen, then you can go forward. We usually think its “weak” to say something is hard. It’s NOT weak. If you see it’s hard as an observation not a sentence to fail, you will be able stay with the process.
Following concentration is momentum. In momentum, people start thinking your idea as valid and they want to work with you. This is the time when you are building at a rapid pace and are beginning to see the finish line. You will still refine your idea and enhance it. However, the slog slowly becomes a jog, then a race to the finish.
In the final stage you reach stability. You have successfully launched your product. You are making a profit. Your monument has been built. Congratulations.
Of course, you are not finished, after all, you are an entrepreneur and have another idea. This one is better than the last. You go back to concentration.
In the spaces below, please comment about your experience in going through these stages. Do you have more stages to add to the conversation? I look forward to hearing from you!