1. Obsessing Over the Logo
This one’s a classic.
You’ve got no customers. No offer. But you’ve spent three days trying to pick the perfect font. You’re tweaking kerning like it’s going to change your life.
It won’t.
Your first 10 buyers won’t care what your brand looks like. They’ll care what it does. Keep it simple. Sell first. Design later.
2. Building in Isolation
It’s easy to hide behind a laptop. You tell yourself you’re “still refining” your idea.
But if you don’t put it out there, how will you know if it works?
Feedback is your fuel. Get it early. Get it often. Even if it stings.
3. Trying to Sell to Everyone
“I help everyone” sounds noble. It also means you’re talking to no one.
Pick a clear audience. A real person. One with a specific problem. That’s how you get traction.
Serving everyone comes later. Right now, just help one group well.
4. Waiting Until It’s Perfect
This is where momentum dies.
You don’t need a perfect version. You need a working one. One that people can try, react to, and help you improve.
The first version should make you cringe later. That means you’ve grown.
5. Avoiding Sales
A lot of founders secretly hope they can build something so good, it sells itself.
It won’t.
Sales isn’t sleazy. It’s just helping someone see the value in what you offer. If you avoid it, you delay everything.
Get over the awkwardness. It gets easier.
6. Mistaking Busy Work for Real Work
You’ve color-coded your Trello board. Spent 45 minutes designing a welcome email you haven’t sent. Reorganized your Google Drive again.
But you haven’t talked to a single customer.
Productive procrastination is a trap. Catch yourself early.
7. Getting Feedback from the Wrong People
Your best friend said your idea was “really cool”? That’s nice.
But would they pay for it?
Ask people who are actually in your target market. If they wouldn’t buy it, don’t build it for them.
8. Hiring Too Early
It’s tempting to hire help the second you feel overwhelmed.
But if you don’t have a working system, you’re just offloading chaos.
Learn your own process first. Clean it up. Then bring someone in to help you scale it.
9. Chasing Trends
Crypto, AI, digital planners, drop shipping, DTC water bottles…
Jumping from idea to idea feels exciting. But nothing grows if you don’t stick with it.
Ignore the noise. Focus on something boring that works. That’s where consistency lives.
10. Quitting Too Soon
This one hurts the most.
Most people quit right before it starts working. They confuse slow traction with failure.
Momentum doesn’t always show up in the numbers at first. Sometimes it’s hidden in the skills you’re building.
Stick around long enough to cash in on it.
