That took one sentence not a whole article.

My experience with startups and what I have read is that most startups are running blind with a bit of this and a bit of that. This is made even harder or should I say worse when you are actually trying to meet the daily demands of a job you are doing whilst working on your grand idea, not to mention family!!

In Stephen’s article above, I think points 1, 2 and 3 are clear for most or can be defined with research and some work behind it, but it’s point 4, “Actually Doing it Right Now” is what gets most people. There is a huge gap between point 3 and point 4. Closing this gap is probably the hardest part. It requires more focus than any of the three points put together.

With my startup of clothingrush.com.au, I am somewhere between point 3 and 4 (closer to 4) and I feel that marketing my site is proving to be a challenge while I am also doing another job. But like all other entrepreneurs, I am driven by my passion to make this a success which is probably the difference in the end between point 3 and getting to point 4 – where you are actually doing it.

By the way I enjoy reading Stephen Sammartino’s column, they are very down to earth and realistic.

After being inundated with a huge workload, charging prices way too low and an employee quitting, it all went pear-shaped and I ended up very stressed and at worlds end.

At the time it seemed practically impossible to change my strategic direction. The original plan upon startup was to charge lower prices and attract any customers I could just to get the ball rolling, then once I had been set up like that for a while, up the pricing and start looking for more valuable customers.

It was that change that really didn’t happen because of being stuck with too much work and not enough financial reward. The business was eventually shut down.

But not to worry, as an entrepreneur I saw the whole experience as a learning curve on my road to riches. I’ve learned that you should never try to attract ANY customers, you should have your target market and charge what you need to charge, not a discounted rate and don’t be sucked in to giving out discounts. You don’t want your start-up to end-up as a job from hell so make sure you’re making a decent profit after all of your expenses.

I’ve had quite a few learning curves like this but due to my burning desire to be a successful entrepreneur I’ve attracted success, and I’m not stopping at that, I want bigger and better and I’ll do whatever I have to (legally and ethically) to attract it.

One of the biggest things you can do to change your ways in any situation like this is to learn more, knowledge is power, SUCK UP THE KNOWLEDGE, never stop learning.