The dirty secret of entrepreneurship: making it up as we go

Here's What It Really Takes to Lead a Bootstrapped Business Building a company without external funding demands relentless resilience, bold pivots, and the ability to turn setbacks into stepping stones. This article shares insights from the author's journey co-founding Terakeet, highlighting the challenges and lessons learned along the way. He emphasises that failure often comes from self-inflicted missteps rather than external forces. Channeling the fear of failure into motivation can sharpen focus and determination. Empowering your team to take ownership and staying strategically agile—embracing experimentation and learning from mistakes—are also crucial for sustained growth. For business owners navigating the realities of bootstrapping, this article offers practical advice and a candid look at what it really takes to build a business from the ground up. #Leadership #Bootstrapping #Entrepreneurship #BusinessGrowth #Resilience

🔥 20 Years, 7 Scars, and the Hard Truths Every Entrepreneur Needs 💡 20 years in leadership and entrepreneurship have taught me one thing: no textbook prepares you for the battlefield. Here are the checkpoints I wish someone had told me earlier in my journey: 1️⃣ Cash flow is oxygen – I’ve seen profitable businesses collapse because the money cycle broke. Lesson: watch cash like your life depends on it. 2️⃣ Speed beats perfection – Early in my career, I delayed launches waiting for “perfect.” The market doesn’t wait. Execute, then improve. 3️⃣ Focus saves businesses – I once chased too many opportunities at once. Growth came only when I learned to say no. 4️⃣ The right team is everything – Strategy on paper means nothing if your people don’t own it. Great teams make miracles happen. 5️⃣ Profits, not vanity – I’ve managed brands with visibility and hype, but no profitability. Visibility is temporary. Profitability is survival. 6️⃣ Health is strategy – I’ve seen brilliant leaders burn out and lose it all. Protect your energy—your business runs on it. 7️⃣ Resilience is the ultimate skill – Every entrepreneur gets knocked down. The only difference between winners and quitters is getting back up. 👉 If you’re building today, save this list. It’s written in scars, not theory. #Entrepreneurship #Leadership #BusinessGrowth #Startups

Before starting my own business, I used to believe that strong professional skills were enough to carry me forward. But once I stepped out, I realized that’s just the entry ticket. Running Pursue Beyond requires me to tap into my entire skillset: vision, strategy, perspective, and understanding of human nature. When you're an employee at a company, you can always blame failure on your boss, colleagues, or a bad market. But when you’re running your own business, every outcome points back to one person—you. Once, my friend told me that "Every problem in a company can be traced back to the owner's capability." At first, I thought that was just a way to pass blame, but I realized—it’s true. When you start taking full accountability, that’s when you grow stronger inside. Leaning into this reality has forced me to drop illusions, take full ownership, and face myself. And it’s taught me this: entrepreneurship isn’t about who knows the business better—it’s about who sees the board clearer, understands people deeper, and dares to see further into the future. What's a lesson you didn't expect to learn in business? #startup#entrepreneurship

Light Minds Build Big Businesses A light kite always flies higher!! Similarly, a “light” entrepreneur can take the business much further. But wait—when I say “light,” I don’t mean body weight. I mean the weight of your brain. Most small & medium entrepreneurs try to do everything alone: ❌ Making the product ❌ Running the ads ❌ Replying to customers ❌ Even handling delivery The result? The brain becomes overloaded. And when your brain is heavy, your business struggles to fly. Think of the leaders we admire: ✅ Elon Musk → Focused as CEO ✅ Jeff Bezos → Focused as CEO ✅ Bill Gates → Focused as Software Architect They didn’t do everything themselves. They focused on vision, growth, and ideas. * Ritesh Agarwal (OYO) says: “I hire people better than me, so I can focus on areas where small improvements bring massive growth.” * Richard Branson (Virgin Group) says: “I don’t manage 400 companies—I hand them over to the right people.” * The truth is: Big entrepreneurs have big ideas because they keep their minds light. * If you’re buried inside every small task, you’ll never see the big picture. Step out, delegate, and focus on growth. Always remember: You should run your business—but never let your business start running you. #Entrepreneurship #Leadership #BusinessGrowth #MindsetMatters #StartupLife #ScaleUp #BusinessDevelopment

Here's What It Really Takes to Lead a Bootstrapped Business Building a company without external funding demands relentless resilience, bold pivots, and the ability to turn setbacks into stepping stones. This article shares insights from the author's journey co-founding Terakeet, highlighting the challenges and lessons learned along the way. He emphasises that failure often comes from self-inflicted missteps rather than external forces. Channeling the fear of failure into motivation can sharpen focus and determination. Empowering your team to take ownership and staying strategically agile—embracing experimentation and learning from mistakes—are also crucial for sustained growth. For business owners navigating the realities of bootstrapping, this article offers practical advice and a candid look at what it really takes to build a business from the ground up. #Leadership #Bootstrapping #Entrepreneurship #BusinessGrowth #Resilience

𝐔𝐧𝐥𝐨𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐞 𝐨𝐰𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩: 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝟒𝟎𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐮𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐥 𝐥𝐚𝐮𝐧𝐜𝐡𝐩𝐚𝐝. If you’ve spent decades climbing the corporate ladder, ask yourself a tough question — Will I truly reach the very top, or am I already at a level where younger talent will soon start overtaking me? That doesn’t mean your journey is over. In fact, it’s the right time to use your experience, network, and wisdom to build something of your own. 👉 If you dream of being an entrepreneur, your 40s might be the best decade to act. But remember — some basic discipline . 🎯Create a 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌𝒖𝒑 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒏 🏦 Keep at least a 12-𝒎𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒉 𝒇𝒊𝒏𝒂𝒏𝒄𝒊𝒂𝒍 𝒓𝒖𝒏𝒘𝒂𝒚 🚙 🏘️Ruthlessly 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒎𝒊𝒛𝒆 𝒍𝒊𝒂𝒃𝒊𝒍𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒆𝒔 & 𝑬𝑴𝑰𝒔 Not everyone will become the CEO of a corporate. But nothing stops you from becoming the CEO of your own enterprise. This is not about comfort — it’s about courage. Not about titles — it’s about ownership. Not about waiting — it’s about building. 🅱🅴 🅵🅴🅰🆁🅻🅴🆂🆂. 🅱🅴 🅳🅴🅲🅸🆂🅸🆅🅴 . 🅱🅴 🅰🆃🅼🅰 🅽🅸🆁🅱🅷🅰🆁 #Entrepreneurship #Leadership #CorporateLife #LifeAfter40 #BeYourOwnBoss #FinancialFreedom #AtmaNirbharBharat #StartupIndia🇮🇳

The Cost of Saying Yes Every founder starts with “yes.” Yes to clients. Yes to features. Yes to partnerships. Because in the early days, every “yes” feels like survival. But here’s the truth most founders learn the hard way Growth doesn’t collapse from too many failures. It collapses from too many approvals. 1. Every “yes” creates a new weight A new client means new expectations. A new feature means new dependencies. A new idea means new distractions. What looks like opportunity on the surface often hides invisible costs underneath. 2. Saying “no” isn’t rejection, it’s direction Focus is a muscle. The more you flex it, the stronger your business becomes. When you start saying no to things that don’t align, you’re not closing doors, you’re building walls that protect your purpose. 3. The world rewards clarity, not chaos We live in a world that confuses busyness with progress. But great founders don’t chase movement, they chase meaning. Clarity attracts the right people, the right clients, the right outcomes. --- Success isn’t about how much you can handle. It’s about how much you can hold onto without losing yourself in the process. So the next time an opportunity knocks, ask yourself Will this take me closer to my vision, or just make me look busy? Because sometimes, the most powerful “yes” is the one you never say. #Leadership #Focus #StartupLife #DecisionMaking #Entrepreneurship

The other day, I watched a clip from Dragons' Den that hit me hard and reminded me why we all start small. It was about an entrepreneur who built a multi-million-dollar empire by starting out selling food prep kits literally from the trunk of his car. 🚗 The sheer audacity of that beginning, driven by nothing but passion and belief, is a lesson for all of us. When I reflect on my own journey, I know the feeling of starting with limited resources, relying entirely on grit and the conviction that the idea would work. That early struggle builds resilience that no investment can buy. His pitch which reportedly left the judges speechless wasn't just about valuation; it was a testament to his resilience, vision, and mindset. He walked in proving that the foundations of massive success are laid with simple, consistent hard work. My takeaway : Whether you’re an entrepreneur, a leader, or an aspiring innovator, every big success story starts with a simple idea and the courage to execute it daily, regardless of the odds. Don't let the size of your current resources limit the size of your future vision. What’s the most valuable lesson you’ve learned from a small start? Share your thoughts below! 👇 #entrepreneurship #mindset #businessstrategy #leadership #startupjourney #motivation #professionaldevelopment #dragonsden #successstory #resilience

Entrepreneurship isn’t a straight line — it’s a rollercoaster. 🎢 To succeed, it takes more than a great idea. You need: 💸 Strong cash flow management ⚙️ Systems that scale 👥 The right people on your team 🧠 Resilience to push through setbacks I published this blog: The Realities of Running a Business: Lessons Every Entrepreneur Should Know. It’s a deep dive into the fundamentals that often get overlooked but ultimately determine long-term success. 📌 Read the full post here: https://rokfi.biz/JWblog #EntrepreneurshipInsights #BusinessLeadership #StartupGrowth #ScalingStrategies #CashFlowManagement #BusinessResilience #LeadershipDevelopment #EntrepreneurMindset #GrowthMindset #OperationalExcellence

💡 5 Habits That Helped Me Scale My Entrepreneurial Journey As an entrepreneur, I’ve realized that success isn’t just about ideas or funding — it’s about the habits you quietly build every day. Here are 5 habits that have shaped my journey: 1️⃣ Learning Before Doing – I always take time to understand trends, tools, and strategies before taking action. Knowledge compounds faster than effort alone. 2️⃣ Investing in Relationships – Building meaningful connections early has opened doors I never expected. Networking isn’t for when you need something; it’s for long-term growth. 3️⃣ Saying No to the Noise – Focus beats frenzy. Every “no” I’ve said has created room for the right opportunities. 4️⃣ Seeing Failures as Feedback – Setbacks are signals to pivot, iterate, and improve, not reasons to stop. 5️⃣ Delegating Smartly – I learned early that growth isn’t doing everything myself; it’s building strong teams and systems. Entrepreneurship is a journey of constant learning and refinement. These habits have made the difference in how I approach challenges and scale opportunities. What’s one habit that has transformed your entrepreneurial journey? I’d love to hear 👇 #Entrepreneurship #StartupLife #BusinessGrowth #Leadership #EntrepreneurMindset #ScalingBusiness #PersonalGrowth #SuccessHabits