My most unproductive year was 2012. That year, I simply did not get anything done or ship anything at all, when I look back and reflect on that time period, I am thankful for how far I have come.
2012 was unproductive because that was the year I went out in full force, trying to land an investor for my company. I really needed an injection of some serious cash into my business so that the picture I had for my business in my mind could finally start matching the reality outside.
What I got instead was an interesting and emotional cycle of raised hopes, empty promises and hopes getting dashed, over and over again.
I am grateful I learnt my lessons early and moved on. I adopted a new mantra: work hard on the business until it becomes big enough that investors would seek me out. I want to work and build my business up to the point that if you asking for a business plan and profile, it is for formality and not because you really need to study it and make a decision.
These days, people spend more time chasing after investors than paying customers, they invest so much energy into writing business plans and honing their elevator pitch and they invest no energy into actually growing the business through the good old way of acquiring customers and retaining as many as you can.
The most important thing for the first time Entrepreneur is not investment, it is applying the common-sense principles of businesses towards building a profitable business first.
REFLECTION
Are you working hard on the business or running around and wasting time?
ACTION
Channel your energy into growing the business, not into writing business plan and pitching investors.
