Starting a new business can be one of the most exciting times in the life of an entrepreneur. However, there are challenges which must be met and the success or failure of any startup will be contingent on how those challenges are dealt with. Perhaps the best answer would be in the words of Angela Duckworth, as reported on examinedexistence.com: “the best predictor of success [is] grit.”
What Is Grit?
If you are reading this in the Deep South, you should know right from the start that grit isn’t a cornmeal side dish typically served at breakfast. Grit also isn’t grime and dust particles that cloud your judgment! Grit is, to put it concisely, sheer determination and stamina. What does it take to launch a successful startup? Beyond a great idea and awesome marketing strategy, it takes determination to succeed and the stamina to see you through all those challenges you will be asked to meet head-on.
Where Will Your Strength Come From?
Here is the $64,000 question. With everything you are being asked to do when starting a business, where can you possibly find the strength to keep meeting challenge after challenge? How can you possibly survive long hours, financial backers pulling out at the last minute and suppliers who aren’t meeting deadlines in shipping? Where can you find the right team because you can’t make it alone and where will you find those extra hours in the day to begin working on a launch date? Here again, the answer is grit, but how do you get that stamina and determination?
Grit Only Comes About Through Passion
Some entrepreneurs start new ventures based on the old rule of supply and demand. They see a need in a market and vow to make a killing by filling that void. They don’t know the first thing about the product or services they intend to sell; they simply see that the supply is in short demand. These companies might do well initially, but will they survive? Is that really what defines a successful startup?
Consider a racehorse leaving the gate and running the first lap well ahead of the other horses. However, somewhere on the next and final lap, the horse and jockey lose interest and that’s when the horses and jockeys with true grit leave the frontrunner behind. The jockey in last place rises to the challenge with a passionate desire to win and, against all odds, bypasses the front-runners to win the race. That’s where grit comes from – passion!
Passion Is the Cornerstone of All Successful Startups
Think of your startup as a building about to be constructed. Passion is going to be your cornerstone, the foundation upon which the structure is built. You don’t necessarily need to be passionate about your product, although that helps, you need to have a passionate desire to succeed. If asked what it takes to launch a successful startup, the answer would be clear. It takes a passionate desire to succeed. Without passion, there is no success.
