Ingvar Kamprad is the founder of IKEA and is one of the top five richest people in the world. IKEA’s annual revenues are now in excess of $10 billion and, next to the Bible, the annual IKEA catalogue is the most widely distributed publication in the world.

What is Kamprad’s message to entrepreneurs? Don’t be afraid to make mistakes.

I know that, if need be, there are those who correct my mistakes. If you only knew how many of them I’ve made, mistakes. There are few people who have made so many fiascoes in my life as I have. Only those who are asleep make no mistakes.

If you are starting a business from scratch, you are going to make many mistakes. If you are doing something new or you do not have all the experience necessary then you will be learning by doing. For my business, things change so quickly online that only one out of 50 things that I try hit it really big for my site. Some of the big wins for my site have been optimizing my Google Adsense account (made me realize I had a potential business on my hands), researching and understanding how to rank in the search engines (how I drive most of my traffic), and creating a system that would allow me to add close to 1,500 writers to my site.

Here is how to make business mistakes:

1) Find an opportunity that has a big upside
There are many potential opportunities for you to chase down. Look at the ones that can have a significant impact on your business. If it works will you have a big payoff or will you just be slightly ahead of where you are now?

2) Find a way to get started on the cheap
Most people never do anything with their ideas - it’s too difficult, it’s too expensive, you’re too busy. There is always an excuse to hold you back. Break down your idea and find a low cost way to get it going. If there is a positive response then continue investing into it. Don’t let an expensive project keep you from an exciting opportunity. Find a way to start on a shoestring budget, prove there is a market, and then expand.

3) Find a way to get started today
Don’t create excuses for yourself and put off making a decision. Test out your idea today so you can get some immediate feedback. Don’t be one of those people who see the success of YouTube and then say “I had that idea three years ago but never did anything about it.” Every opportunity has a limited window in which you can achieve success. Do not delay! Get started right now!

4) Don’t give up at the first roadblock
Building a business is not an easy task. The door is rarely held wide open for you to walk through. You need to fight and push your way to get your company off the ground. Not every idea will work, in fact most will not, but don’t give up at the first sign of failure. See if you can figure out another way around the problem. Can you make your offering better? Can you change it somehow to get a faster adoption rate? Can you do something differently to help you get some traction?

5) If it’s not right, move on to the next idea
You have to believe in your ideas but there is no point flogging a dead horse. If you are not getting the response you were expecting and your idea is not generating results, move on to the next idea. Fail fast and fail cheaply. Don’t spend so much time and money on one idea that you can’t follow through on other, just as promising ideas. If you try enough good ideas, a few will stick and you can expand them out to your heart’s content!

Evan Carmichael

Evan Carmichael
YoungEntrepreneur.com Blog Manager

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