The ‘fearless entrepreneur’ is a myth

Many people believe that successful entrepreneurs are born to take risks. Victor Kiam,  the former president of Remington and owner of the New England Patriots , once said “Entrepreneurs are risk-takers, willing to roll the dice with their money or reputation on the line in support of an idea or enterprise.”

I disagree. I’m an entrepreneur, but I’m not fearless and I don’t take risks. To understand what I mean, let me share my story and what you can learn from it.

1. Learn on someone else’s dime and time

In college, I built a membership tool for our student organization. Eventually, people started paying me for customizations, and I was hooked. But before starting the business and taking any risk, I wanted to find a full-time job and learn on someone else’s dime and time.

So, I spent five years writing code for a New York media company. The experience taught me so many things that still help me today, and I gained this knowledge risk-free.

With a steady salary, I could also keep building my product in the off hours. Doing this can relieve real financial pressure. And, if you work full- or part-time, you can apply what you learn to your business.

2. Use what you have

The startup world gets so buzzy about VC money that it’s easy to forget about bootstrapping. It’s not always possible, but for many people, it’s a great option. When you bootstrap your idea, you can take your time and stay in the driver’s seat without any pressure from investors.

Take my experience as an example. When I was working in New York, I realized there was a need for online web forms. But I didn’t leave my job until my side product (the membership tool I talked about previously) was earning more money than my paycheck.

After I quit in 2006, I spent six months building an MVP for JotForm. If it failed, I would have only invested six months of my time and energy, and I still had the side product income to keep me afloat. I leveraged what I had.

Once I hired our first employee, we spent another year building the premium version. By the end of 2007, we had 500 paying customers. We’ve continued to grow from this foundation, and we have no debt and have never taken a penny in outside investment.

Use the resources you have, no matter how modest they are. Take your time and don’t worry about hockey-stick growth charts or press coverage. Keep working, keep learning, and be patient.

3. Concentrate on one thing at a time

Focus is a magical word. It’s also the secret to sustainable growth.

As author and consultant Chris Zook explains:

“At first blush, narrowing the focus to grow sounds almost counterintuitive. But just as plants often must be cut back to concentrate their energy on fewer, stronger branches, so too, businesses must be pruned to counter their tendency to branch out more than they should.”

4. Remember that cash flow is queen

5. Remember your roots

6. Always share your work

7. Follow your bliss