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You’re an entrepreneur. You’ve started a business, or you’re thinking about starting one. You want to make it work. But there’s a problem: you’re afraid to fail.
We get it. Failure is scary. It’s embarrassing, it’s frustrating, and it can be downright costly. But here’s the thing: the only way to avoid failure is not to try at all. And that’s a price you’re not willing to pay.
So what do you do? You take a chance. You put yourself out there. And you do everything you can to increase your chances of success. But you also accept the possibility of failure—because failure is a part of success.
Why you should fail as soon as possible? because it’s cheaper.
It’s cheaper to fail when you’re just starting out since you haven’t invested much money, resources, and the most important asset we have, TIME. You may get it “wrong” due to lack of experience, maybe you haven’t validated your business or product ideas, or you simply haven’t developed them just enough.
And that’s okay. It’s all part of the process. You’ll learn from your mistakes, and you’ll get better over time. But if you wait and/or hang on too long, you may not have the chance to recover. So it’s better to do it now, while you’re still in the early stages.
But what does it mean to fail cheap?
Well, doing so means as said before, that you haven’t invested too much into your venture yet. It also means it’s easier to pivot when you’re starting out than it is when your business is up and running. If your original idea isn’t panning out, you can try something else without too much hassle.
Lastly, it’s easier to get feedback when your business is still in the early stages. You can test out your ideas and get valuable insights from others before putting in all the hard work.
You might wonder when the best time to launch an undeveloped idea is. The answer: as soon as you can.
The sooner you put your idea out there, the sooner you can start getting feedback from potential customers. This is essential for getting your idea off the ground; it’s all too easy to get attached to an idea and refuse to let it go, even if it’s not feasible. But by failing early and failing cheap, you can save yourself a lot of time and money.
Of course, this isn’t to say that you should rush into launching your idea without doing any planning or research. You still need to take the time to develop a solid business plan and test your idea with potential customers. But if you’re not quite ready for prime time, don’t let that stop you from putting your idea out there.
It goes without saying that no one wants to fail, but it’s a necessary part of business, as well as knowing when to pivot or quit, if done early enough, you may be able to salvage some of your investment.
To figure out when to pivot or quit, it helps to do a cost-benefit analysis. Consider how much time and money you’ve invested in the project so far and whether it makes sense to keep going or switch directions. It’s also important to weigh the potential benefit vs. the cost of continuing.
It’s also important to consider what you are willing to invest in the current project vs. starting from scratch or pivoting in another direction. If you’ve invested several months into an idea that isn’t working out, it may make more sense (in terms of ROI) to move on than continue down the same path and potentially double your losses.
An idea gone wrong quickly enough has so many benefits that you should really give it a thought. For starters, you’ll have plenty of time (and money) to reassess your strategy and try out different ideas without having to start from scratch. That can save a lot of time and energy, which is always a plus.
You’ll be able to use the lessons from your failed endeavor to build something new and stronger in the future. That’s something you won’t get if you wait too long.
I know it may sound like nonsense, ludicrous, and even scary, but failure can be your ally in any entrepreneurial journey. That’s why it’s important to take the time to validate your business ideas and product ideas before you launch your business, so you can avoid costly failures down the road.
So, hope you fail fast and cheap!
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