Are you aware of the 7 immortal sins that have been inflicted upon humanity? Oh! You must be thinking why are we talking about it on Startup.pk wasn’t this a website for founders and startups?

Well that’s because those sins are not only relevant to our personal lives, if we really look closely, the 7 sins do apply in a startup’s journey as well. And if we don’t take care, they may have a very negative impact on the chances of success of our startup too!

While we are sure that you pay attention to the details and are already using the best practices, this article may help you even more in finding out how to avoid the mistakes that can be harmful to your business.

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Curious to know what are the 7 deadly sins of business?

Behold!

1. Pride:

Are you Mr. Know-it-all? The one who doesn’t need any advice?

Well you may not like it, but we must prick your inflated ego. The first deadly sin, is the sin of pride.

The sin of pride means being inflated with a sense of thinking that you are the font of all wisdom. This means not researching the market. Not going to the customers and getting feedback, ignoring the actual needs and wants of your customers. And most importantly not going for advice or help where others could help you in preventing you from making blunders (and sometimes deadly) mistakes.

2. Greed:

Greed is just like smoking. The greedier a person the more addicted he becomes to it. Sometimes in the pleonexia (Gotcha: it means extreme greed for wealth or material possessions; avarice) to own the whole marketplace, a person forgets that he/she first needs to establish his/her business which almost always starts with a small niche. This is why it is encouraged to opt for the beachhead strategy (starting from a smaller marketplace). For example, when Tapal was first introduced in the market, there was a huge chance that Lipton which already dominated the market would crush the brand. But, Tapal opted to start under the radar from a small marketplace which was interior Sindh. Once strong in the interior (through increased sales) this enabled Tapal to come back to the major market and compete with the giants.

3. Lust:

Lust can destroy perspective and rational decision making. Whether its lust for money or power, the desire for the best and biggest without building a strong foundation can destroy your chances of success. Let’s illustrate this through a very common sense example; imagine that you are a startup launching its services in a market, should you immediately go for the largest (read most prestigious) client or take baby steps by reaching out to smaller clients to build your portfolio. Yes you may go after the largest client, but if you spend all your energies on just that one client and don’t get it in the end, where would you be?

Or another example: you are playing the second innings of a one day cricket match, chasing a huge score. If you aim for just fours and sixes rather than running the singles and doubles, seriously what will be your chances of success?

4. Gluttony:

A startup has to be very careful in how it utilizes its resources. Often we hear that the biggest challenge with startups is access to cash.Which is why in the beginning all startups are in the bootstrapping mode, carefully managing their limited resources. Now if suddenly a startup gets access to a lot of funds (through investors, grants or sales), the results can be seriously disastrous if the founders lose their perspective or objectivity.

In the startup world, the sin of Gluttony refers to the unnecessary excesses like purchasing the latest tech gadgets, expensive furniture, a plush office and other material possessions that are more of an ego massage for the founders rather than actual requirements of the business.

To avoid this you must ensure that you raise funds when actually needed and secondly even when the startup starts becoming successful continue with the bootstrapping mindset.

5. Anger

“Patience is a virtue”

You may come across crossroads in your career where some situations will not always be in your favour. Don’t act in a haste. Don’t act in anger. Take your time and reflect. Think and analyse the situation. Take decisions cautiously. Because decisions taken in anger may often prove to be wrong.

6. Envy:

Agree with the quote “Excess of everything is bad”? Well, that’s true in the business world as well. It is OK to use someone’s success as an inspiration for the purpose of motivating oneself,but if that turns into envy and jealousy that is very dangerous for you. Since it may lead you into planning for the other person’s downfall instead of focusing on your own  business. Remember, focus on what really matters which is building your own business. Spend your energies where it matters, don’t  become a victim to envy.

7. Sloth:

The simplest rule to life is “If you want it, then work for it.”

Startup Founders are driven people, passionate and committed. They are willing to move mountains to meet their objectives. So definitely the startup scene wont work for anyone who wants to procrastinate, find excuses for delaying tasks and is unwilling to set and follow priorities and deadlines.

A person who finds it difficult to get off his couch in the morning but wants to establish a business can do nothing else but dream.

Now that you know the 7 Deadly Sins of Business, we are sure that you will take very good care not to fall victim to any of these and will pour all your energies in building the best startup possible. Building a startup is tough because life is tough. In the startup world only those with focus, commitment and passion pass the test of building great startups.

We wish you success in your startup journey!

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