Your idea and expertise are cheap!
Common pitfalls that make new venture fail in Viet Nam.
In Vietnam, set aside the cases of street vendors, mom-and-pop shops, people trying to make ends meet by selling anything, and all the freelancers/solopreneurs..., when someone starts a business/ a company, it's mainly because of 2 reasons:
- They have strong expertise in something, and they are fed up with their current company/boss/colleagues...and they wanna do something on their own and have freedom. They wanna be their own bosses.
- They come up with a great idea/ they see a market opportunity/ they want to change the world/Vietnam...
And mostly (statistically told), a new venture fails after a few years (either bankrupt or stuck/surviving never thriving...). Why?
1. Being extremely excellent at something is not enough. You need strong management skill/leadership skills to lead a team. Some new founders cut costs by hiring cheaply. Nope, if you can, try to hire key team leads (expensive) from the beginning, they will then help you build teams. Otherwise, you are the only senior with the strongest expertise in your team (mostly juniors) and you micromanage everything and you are stuck with the same problem as before. There is no freedom. Instead of working for another company, you now "work for your company" with a boss title on paper.
2. Idea is likely not the most important thing in this current world. It's the execution. Be careful with thinking "I have a great idea that no one else thinks of". Trust me, tons of other people have the same idea as you, it's who could execute it better. And when it comes to execution, it goes back to point 1 above. It's the team and your leadership/management ability.
That's why experienced founders (someone who has strong corporate/startup experience) have a higher chance of success. They have accumulated enough capital/management/leadership ability and network/relationships to get started. When you have those resources, try to do things right in the beginning by hiring the most suitable team leads.
Again, no matter how much experience you have, cultivate yourself with strong leadership capability, EQ skills, psychology understanding, and the ability to work with/inspire other people. Your idea or expertise doesn't rank that high on the list ;)
This is my hard lesson. How about you? Any other reason why a new venture fails in Vietnam? Love to hear your thoughts on this.
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