18 Pieces of Advice to New Founders From Experienced Entrepreneurs

Navigating the early stages of a startup is an exciting but challenging endeavor. While there’s no shortage of business advice out there, hearing directly from those who have successfully met this challenge can be especially invaluable.

To help, 18 members of Newsweek Expert Forum share their top nuggets of wisdom for new startup founders. Read on to discover the lessons they’ve learned in their own entrepreneurial journeys and how these insights can help shape your own path.

1. Push Through Minor Setbacks

Don’t give up when you have a minor setback. This is a pivotal moment for a new entrepreneur to understand that things will not always go the way you hoped. If you stay steadfast, push through those setback moments and strive toward perfection, you will be rewarded. – Tammy Sons, Tn Nursery

2. Understand the Variables That Can Impact Success

I would start by asking a new startup founder what would be the price to pay for embarking on a startup venture. I would then tell them that their best is not enough for them to succeed. It takes luck, skill, the cooperation of the people around them, suppliers, clients and more—and even then, it might still not work. Even if the startup fails, if they do not regret doing it, then maybe it is worth doing. – Zain Jaffer, Zain Ventures

3. Embrace Failure

It is okay to fail; embrace failure as your greatest teacher, not your enemy. This statement is meant to encourage a growth mindset and resilience, which are necessary when navigating the complicated realm of entrepreneurship. Setbacks are inevitable but they can also prove to be transformative. – Dr. Kira Graves, Kira Graves Consulting

4. Prioritize Customer Value

Focus on solving a real problem for your customers, and ensure everything you do adds value to them. A business thrives not by the product it sell, but by the problem it solves. – Britton Bloch, Navy Federal

5. Follow Your Sales

Follow the money. If prospects are not buying your product or services, you must change your offering before it is too late. – Krisztina Veres, Veres Career Consulting

6. Honor Your Boundaries

Honor your boundaries and non-negotiables. Don’t let them be overshadowed by urgency and impulsivity. – Leah Marone, Corporate Wellness Consultant

7. View Entrepreneurship as a Marathon

Remember that it’s a marathon, not a sprint. Try to take a breath and enjoy the journey. – Jacob Kupietzky, HCT Executive Interim Management & Consulting

8. Start with Small Steps

Do the doable. As a new startup founder, it’s easy to get lost in the overwhelm and caught up in an endless sea of action items. Start small—take it five minutes at a time, one task at a time. Small steps build momentum. Momentum builds progress. Progress builds results. – Karen Mangia, The Engineered Innovation Group

9. Be the Leader Your People Need

Are you the leader you need to be or the leader your people need you to be for success? New startup founders must determine how they will accurately and specifically determine that answer for each of their people. – Jay Steven Levin, WinThinking

10. Value Those Around You

Value the people around you. Avoid resorting to intimidation as a management practice. – Suzanne Mattaboni, Suzanne Mattaboni Communications

11. Prepare for a Lifetime Commitment

Those who start up anything must go into it like they would a marriage. That means being committed for the rest of your life. This is the attitude you must have because there will come many times when you won’t love it and there will be times when you want to give up. Your attitude and the level of commitment you set at the beginning of the journey will determine how successful you will become. – Baruch Labunski, Rank Secure

12. Solve a Real Problem

Focus on solving a real problem and providing value to your customers to help solve the problem. This advice is crucial because it reminds startup founders to prioritize their target market’s needs and pain points. By addressing a genuine problem, founders can create a product or service that people want. – Alan Wozniak, Business Health Matters (BHM) Executive Consulting

13. Make Customer Success Your Main Focus

From the start, make customer success your main focus. I recognize that my business’s growth depends on continuously learning and adapting. I involve my customers in this process by listening to their feedback, which helps us improve and makes them feel valued. Startup founders can benefit from this strategy by boosting customer loyalty and driving referrals, contributing to sustainable growth. – Gergo Vari, Lensa

14. Hire People Smarter Than You

Hire people who are smarter than you are. Do whatever it takes to make these hires successful—your reward will be your own success! – Darlene Andert, Accounting for Profitability LLC

15. Protect Your Interests With a Good Lawyer

Get a good lawyer because business is a dirty game. You never know who is looking to steal your ideas, money, employees and so on. In those moments of betrayal, you need someone on hand who can defend your interests and protect all your time and energy. Trust no one except your lawyer. – Cynthia Salarizadeh, House of Saka, Inc.

16. Choose Initial Team Members Wisely

Choose your first hires wisely, as they will shape your company’s culture. These initial team members act as culture carriers, setting the tone for the workplace environment. Their attitudes, behaviors and dedication will influence future hires and impact the overall success of your organization. – John Quinn, Quinn Emanuel

17. Know Happiness Is the Key to Success

As Albert Schweitzer once said, “Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful.” This timeless advice underscores the importance of passion, fulfillment and joy in one’s entrepreneurial pursuits, emphasizing that genuine happiness fuels the drive toward achieving success in business. This philosophy not only breeds success but also sustains resilience and cultivates fulfillment. – Anna Yusim, MD, Yusim Psychiatry, Consulting & Executive Coaching

18. Don’t Quit

There is no shortage of insights and advice for new startup founders, though the most profound and valuable piece of advice is to not quit. Plenty of experts and examples show new founders the way to their mountaintops with clarified visions, strong complementary teams, continuous customer feedback, innovative solutions, resilience and integrity while brushing off naysayers. See you at the top! – Lillian Gregory, The 4D Unicorn LLC