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Welcome to New Venture Mentor. This week's episode is another of my rare, but necessary,
public service announcements and it's about the importance of learning to identify and
accept "good enough" as an entrepreneur.
Most of us were not raised to strive for good enough and one of the biggest challenges that
many successful people transitioning into entrepreneurship face is getting over their
deeply ingrained perfectionism. Though you wouldn't know it based on some of the low
quality videos I have on my YouTube channel and the constantly changing, but never really
that awesome, design of my website - I suffer from perfectionism as well. I basically cringe
with every new post I make.
However, I make myself push forward anyway because, in the entrepreneurship world, perfectionism
can be the enemy of success because perfection is unachievable. Imagine if Windows never
released a product until all of the annoying bugs were out - many of us wouldn't have a
word processor or spreadsheet or powerpoint; or if athletes didn't compete until they never
made a mistake - so much for professional sports. There is a famous quote from Reid
Hoffman, the founder of Linkedin where he says: "If you are not embarrassed by the first
version of your product, you've launched too late."
-Actually, that's a good one, you should probably tweet it out -
Now, I'm not arguing that you should just release crap into the world, you do have to
be mindful of your company's reputation. However, it is often better to release something that
is "good enough" and then constantly improve it, than to never release anything at all
because you're never quite happy with the product.
So how do you tell what counts as good enough? Ask yourself a few questions:
Does this version solve the problem that I set out to solve?
Are the things that aren't perfect fundamental to the product or are they extras or aesthetics?
If it weren't my product, would I be as critical as I am of it now or would I use it and love
it and just hope for a few tweeks in the next update?
Can I build a user base with the current version or not?
You get the point so I won't go on.
If you're just starting out building your business - and don't have some odd personality
defect where you think everything you touch is gold - you're more than likely going to
feel a bit of embarrasment as you begin to put your products or services and yourself
out there. Push through it, because if you want success you can't wait for perfection.
-That's me but I think that's another tweet-worthy quote!-
Okay, enough of me, please leave a comment below letting me know about your struggles
with perfectionism as it applies to entrepreneurship and what tricks you use to help overcome it.
And, if you found this video helpful, please spread the love by liking it and sharing it
with your friends and colleagues.
If you have a question about planning, launching, or building your new business, head over to
the Q&A with Cate section of catecosta.com and drop me line...and while you're there
make sure you're not missing out on any tips or tricks or tutorials to help your business
grow by signing up for my newsletter.