Simple Secrets to How Successful Entrepreneurs ‘Really’ Build Businesses

Imagine you’re standing on the edge of a cliff, staring at the vast open sky, knowing you’re about to jump. But this isn’t a reckless leap. You’ve got a parachute strapped to your back, and even though you’re about to dive into the unknown, you feel a sense of calm. This parachute is your skills, your network, and your fallback plan, and it will catch you if the winds get too wild.

Now, meet Jessica. Jessica spent years working in sales, knocking on doors and pitching products. Every rejection she faced only sharpened her skills, teaching her how to sell, how to read people, and, most importantly, how to persevere. But Jessica had a dream—a dream she couldn’t shake. She wanted to create something of her own. So, one day, she took a leap. With the knowledge that her sales background was her parachute, Jessica launched her own line of eco-friendly home goods. She wasn’t stepping into the unknown blindly. She knew, worst-case scenario, she could always go back to her sales job and make ends meet.

What Jessica discovered—and what many entrepreneurs like her have learned—is that entrepreneurship isn’t the terrifying free fall it’s made out to be. It’s more like assembling a plane while you’re coasting through the sky. With the right skills in your pocket, the fall is much less dangerous.

That brings us to David. David, like Jessica, didn’t start with millions of dollars or a high-profile investor backing him. He was a waiter at a local restaurant, balancing long shifts and big dreams. In his mom’s living room, David began stitching together prototypes for his own clothing line, all while waiting tables to pay the bills. He was scrappy, resourceful, and determined. He didn’t take on unnecessary debt or burn through his savings. Instead, he waited for the right moment—after he’d built up enough demand and proven his concept—before seeking outside investment.

This method of bootstrapping, of building slowly but steadily, ensured that David was never truly free-falling. He was crafting his parachute with each small success, ready to pull the cord if things went awry.

Now, here’s a key takeaway from both Jessica and David’s stories: entrepreneurship is about problem-solving. Business is essentially a series of problems to be solved, and if you’re curious and passionate enough, you can solve any problem thrown your way.

Take for instance Olivia, who worked in marketing at a tech company. Olivia never imagined she’d find herself in the luggage business, but one day, while sprinting through an airport with a broken suitcase, she realized there was a gap in the market. There weren’t many options for travelers who wanted a reliable, stylish, and affordable suitcase. Olivia had found her problem, and she was eager to solve it.

She didn’t dive headfirst into designing a suitcase right away, though. Olivia spent weeks researching the luggage market, visiting stores, and talking to travelers. She even went to her friends’ homes to watch how they packed for trips, learning everything she could about the pain points of frequent travelers. Her curiosity became her greatest asset. By the time Olivia launched her own luggage brand, she wasn’t just guessing what people wanted—she knew.

That’s another key lesson: successful entrepreneurs don’t start with a cool idea and hope people will care. They start with a problem, and then they build a product that solves it better than anything else.

Now let’s shift gears a bit and talk about a couple of important components to getting your business off the ground: story and positioning.

Let me introduce you to Mark, the co-founder of a protein bar company. Mark wasn’t satisfied with the options on the market. Every bar was loaded with sugar and stuffed with ingredients that no one could pronounce. So, Mark and his team created a bar with simple, whole ingredients. And they didn’t hide those ingredients on the back of the package—they put them front and center.

Their story was about transparency. They were the company with “no BS.” And their story resonated with health-conscious athletes who wanted to know exactly what they were putting into their bodies. Mark’s brand grew not because of expensive ads or celebrity endorsements but because his customers loved the product so much they told their friends. Word of mouth spread, and soon, the company had taken off, fueled by a loyal community.

Storytelling and positioning matter because they help your business take flight. When people connect with your story, they become your biggest advocates. And when you position your product in a way that stands out—like Mark did by putting the ingredients on the front of the package—you create a space for your business that competitors can’t easily invade.

Now, once you’ve built your product and crafted your story, it’s time to get that plane in the air. Think of launching your business like releasing a blockbuster movie. You want to create buzz, generate excitement, and get people talking. But here’s the trick: it’s not just about the launch—it’s about what happens after. The true test of a successful business is when your early customers love your product so much, they bring their friends along for the ride.

Let’s look at Jenny and Mike, two friends who co-founded a social media app. Before launching it to the public, they invited a small group of designers and tech journalists to try it out. These early users weren’t just any customers—they were influencers in their field. They had the power to spread the word to thousands of potential users. And that’s exactly what they did. Jenny and Mike’s app spread like wildfire, not because of an expensive ad campaign, but because they gave the right people an early sneak peek.

By the time they officially launched, they had built enough buzz that the app shot to the top of the charts.

In the end, entrepreneurship isn’t about diving headfirst into danger. It’s about solving problems, crafting a story, and building your business one piece at a time. And as long as you’ve got your parachute—your skills, your network, your safety net—you can jump knowing that the winds will carry you.

So, what’s stopping you from taking the leap? Just remember, it’s not as scary as it looks when you’ve got the right tools and mindset to build your plane on the way down.

Imagine you’re standing on the edge of a cliff, staring at the vast open sky, knowing you’re about to jump. But this isn’t a reckless leap. You’ve got a parachute strapped to your back, and even though you’re about to dive into the unknown, you feel a sense of calm. This parachute is your skills,…