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Working so hard, why don’t we “community animals” start businesses. How can we successfully start a business? What is the essence of entrepreneurial success?
In the first half of 2020, I experienced a very failed entrepreneurial process. Now to recap, I feel that I personally still lack business experience, in-depth knowledge of business logic in the field of artificial intelligence, and the courage that an entrepreneur should have. At the beginning, I was also smug and felt that even if I couldn't become a big AI company, it was always possible to be a small algorithm company. However, it was later discovered that it is really impossible to make money by doing algorithms. If you want to make money, you must at least deliver a solution level to the customer.
Later, I didn't continue to start a business. Fortunately, my technical experience was reasonable. I was fooled by a friend I knew during the business and went to a domestic AI company to continue working as an algorithm engineer. Therefore, I am now an honorable hitman again.
Well, let’s leave aside this unsuccessful entrepreneurial journey. Today, I want to discuss with you the essence of entrepreneurial success. Of course, this is a thought from a failed former entrepreneur. I hope that everyone can point out the mistakes in my perception in the comment area, or express your views.
What is the essence of entrepreneurial success?
The author thinks that in a market economy, the essence of business is exchange. Any person, or company, wants to buy better and more services with limited funds. If Yuanfeng only has 3,000 yuan, I plan to buy a mobile phone. Under the original market situation, a smart phone needs to be sold for 3,000 yuan, and now there is a new startup company with the same configuration and quality, which only sells 1999, then I am sure Just buy this new brand product, and the remaining one thousand dollars, I can also buy an electronic paper book reader or other items. If there is such a company in the market, then it has a high probability of success (just like Xiaomi).
Therefore, whether it is a self-employed business or a company, whether we are developing products or selling services, our essence is to let others spend less money to buy better products or services, or spend the same money to buy more Our products or services, in a word, is that our things are more cost-effective. Of course, the most amazing thing is that this thing is only available in our family, then we are the forerunners in the market and it is easier to succeed.
More broadly speaking, the purpose of business progress is to make people live more lazily, but the quality of life can be higher. For example, today's telephone, instant messaging (QQ, WeChat, etc.), e-commerce, and food delivery, indeed, people can talk more smoothly, buy cheaper, and eat more conveniently; the development of automated equipment also allows people to have less You can do the work of dozens of people better and faster by simply operating some buttons.
Therefore, if we can gather a group of people and develop products that are more in line with people’s needs but are not available on the market; or there are products on the market that are more cost-effective, or higher-quality services, then there is a high probability of success. (E.g. Douyin, Xiaomi, Haidilao). Conversely, if our product is not as cost-effective as the products already on the market, it is likely to fail or survive.
As programmers, we should think more, if we start a business, whether what we do is more in line with human needs, or whether our technology can make the product quality better and more cost-effective; or is our service better than our friends ? If not, I don’t think we should start a business rashly.
Like Pinduoduo, Kuaishou, and Douyin, they have many similarities, that is, their growth has been accompanied by huge doubts and abuses, but they have actually explored a new blue ocean, and Pinduoduo has better satisfied the low-income group. Kuaishou and Douyin also fully enjoy the blue ocean of 4G’s technical dividends and short videos, which better meet the needs of human nature. Whether you like these companies or not, the general public just likes watching videos, and human nature just likes entertainment. (As of November 14, 2020, Pinduoduo's market value is already US$181.2 billion)
Why is the business successful?
Recently, the term "beater" has become popular. For a time, there were jokes and emoticons about workers and social animals everywhere. But, have you ever thought that since entrepreneurs can talk and laugh, live in big houses and drive luxury cars, why don't you start a business and become a boss?
In fact, successful entrepreneurs only account for a very small proportion of society. They are not in the same circle and class from ordinary workers. The two are basically isolated. Therefore, 90% of people have never thought about or dared to start a business. Said it is out of reach. For programmers, more people are also thinking about improving their technology and getting higher titile, never thinking about why I don't start a company.
In fact, the root cause of this situation is that successful entrepreneurship is too difficult, and it is not something ordinary people can hold. Entrepreneurship is a life of nine deaths. The reason is that entrepreneurship is a complex system engineering. Entrepreneurs need to understand the industry, the market, the management, the competition, and the human nature. On the other hand, in the 21st century, the opportunities in all walks of life have basically been pioneers. The era of discovery and occupation has come. If you don’t believe it, if you want a good company name, you can check it on the website of the Industrial and Commercial Bureau. Basically, it has been registered by others.
What do you do for a successful business?
In the early stage of reform and opening up, China could be said to be a waste of money. In the barren period of the market, those entrepreneurs who had the brains and dared to do something started from a small workshop, even if they produced flashlights, leather shoes, and electric fans, they could quickly Get started. Because the market is equivalent to a blank, most industries at that time belonged to the incremental market (this kind of emerging market without sufficient competition is called the blue ocean). Therefore, many young people now say that there are no opportunities now, and the good opportunities are left to the young people in the 80s and 90s during the window period of starting a business.
But today in 2020, China's basic material conditions are already relatively developed. In various industries such as communications, transportation, home appliances, and daily necessities, basically all the ideas we can think of have been realized by others. Even if you have a lot of niche product or service needs, you can find them on Universal Taobao or Meituan.
At this stage of development where basic materials and services are relatively abundant, if you now want to open another leather shoe factory or a restaurant, you will find that the competition is extremely fierce, and if you are not careful, you will have to shut down and run away. (This extremely competitive field is called the Red Sea). Today, it is indeed difficult to discover or explore a new blue ocean market.
Of course, this does not mean that our society has no chance. Just like the information flow, short video, live broadcast, and self-media that 4G spawned, they have brought great dividends and opportunities to companies such as Bytedance and Kuaishou, as well as major Internet celebrities.
However, even in the blue ocean, the difficulty of success varies. Just like 5G, in the 4G era, everyone must know that the 5G market is a blue ocean in the future, but ordinary entrepreneurs basically have no ability to produce 5G accessories or equipment, which has revolutionized Huawei and Ericsson. However, some thresholds are relatively low, such as self-media in the short video era, the threshold is much lower. For example, Douyin and Kuaishou now have hundreds of thousands of professional content producers and internet celebrities. Similarly, the Red Sea market has different thresholds.
Therefore, ordinary people go to start a business and choose the blue ocean market. With a low threshold, first occupy the market. This is a relatively risky and cost-effective choice. For example, in recent years, many young people have chosen to engage in self-media, whether they are writing texts, shooting videos, or engaging in live broadcasts, pioneers can quickly accumulate fans and users. The author knows or knows that many people make millions by writing official accounts, or those teams of three or five make millions by making videos. Of course, since the media was a blue ocean 5 years ago, everyone often ridiculed. In the past, there was a QR code on the manhole cover, and everyone could not help but feel it. Now, there are too many Internet celebrities or official accounts, which are basically saturated and close to the Red Sea. Up.
However, choosing the Red Sea is not impossible. A true master can also smash a blood path from the Red Sea through strength and subtle operation. However, this difficulty is too high, it is difficult for ordinary people to play.
As a worker, if we are eager to earn so much from the boss and are unwilling to be squeezed by the boss, it is not impossible for us to take a bunch of people to stand on their own feet and become bosses. However, to do so, we must also consider whether we have a disadvantage in terms of time to market compared to the company of the former boss, whether our management and organization efficiency is higher than that of him, and whether we have a talent advantage. If there are none, then the probability is still not as successful as the previous boss.
In short, in the blue ocean, the difficulty is the lowest, so some people are jealous when they know that others have made a lot of money, saying that at his level, they did not expect that their income would be dozens of times that of mine. However, society is so cruel. The first mover in the market, even if the level is not high, has a first-mover advantage over the latecomers. This advantage is often the most important in certain industries.
It is extremely difficult to succeed in the Red Sea, and it is very difficult to succeed.
to sum up
In general, successful entrepreneurship is actually the establishment of an organization or organism. Through the division of labor and cooperation of employees, this organization can efficiently provide products or services to other people in society or other organizations. Today's technology companies such as Huawei, Apple, Internet giants Ali, Tencent, Douyin, Pinduoduo, and Meituan are all like this. They either enjoy the technological dividends or better meet the needs of human nature. Through their superb management strategies, they have attracted the best talents in China, and created people with higher production effects and more fun. , Eat better products.
Therefore, for those friends who want to start a business, before they have no connections and ability to stand on their own feet and become their own bosses; or for those ambitious entrepreneurs who are unable to create products or products that make the society more effective and make people live better Before you serve, let’s be a hitman who continues to accumulate energy. After all, entrepreneurship is, after all, complex system work that a few talents can play.
I wish everyone a successful business one day and change the world, Make our world a better place.
But there is still a sentence for everyone: starting a business is a good time, the wallet falls into the crematorium.
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