What better time to share about making our dreams a reality than at a time when we honor the Dreamer himself, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. This is my salute to Dr. King and to all of the other dreamers out there, with a special focus on entrepreneurship. So, how do you make your startup idea a reality? I have a few tips to share from my own experience.
It takes a fan to know a fan, and that’s where I started. As the founder of my own startup, Fanmire, a platform that connects fans with their favorite influencers, I’ve learned a lot along the way. From the outset, I wanted to create a space where people could truly connect. And it’s been quite a journey. I’ll share plenty about it in my “Fanmire’s Founder Shares” series in the coming weeks, but I’d like to begin with some advice for entrepreneurs, startups and even those who are just dreamers right now.
You have to start somewhere, so why not where it counts—with your dreams? Here’s my advice:
4 Tips for Getting from the Dream to the Startup
- Tap into your network. I reached out to my network in search of people with not just skills, but also character and integrity, to join my team. I looked for those who knew creative and design professionals who could share my passion and vision.
- Assemble a strong and loyal team. The key is to find your “committed core,” the team players who will stay for the long haul, regardless of challenges. And it’s important to establish those strong relationships, from your legal team to your creative group, in order to stay focused on your startup goal. I knew I needed to get buy-in from my team members and to choose people who were as committed as I was to making Fanmire work.
- Value your team. One thing that was important to me from day one was to have a concentrated effort on valuing people and creating an environment that showed them their value and that they are appreciated. That recognition can range from compensation to pep talks to public accolades. Letting each member know their value to the overall mission is key.
- Never underestimate the power of sweat equity. That’s a long one, I know, but it’s a big one. For me, it was critical for my team to buy in on the overall vision for Fanmire, to see the big picture in my vision for the company and the end product. That motivated my growing team to trust the process and to put in the work from day one. I think that the authenticity of the concept and my intentions for it were recognized early on by my team, and that helped others to see and to catch my vision and run with it.
Ultimately, I never stopped peeling back the layers of trying to produce my startup, neither should you.
For more on Fanmire, you can check out our website or our LinkedIn page.
What’s next? Stay tuned for the second installment of my “Fanmire’s Founder Shares” series because next up I’ll look at “Encouragement in Leadership” and how it’s helped me to find success. So, what’s your superpower?
