Startups Aren’t For Lone Rangers

You can’t win as an entrepreneur working alone. You need to have business relationships with team members, investors, customers, and a myriad of other support people. That doesn’t mean you have to be a social butterfly to succeed, or introverts need not apply.

It does mean that you need to look, listen, and participate in the business world around you, and network through all available channels, like business-oriented social networks online (LinkedIn), local business organizations (Chamber of Commerce), and events or conferences in your domain.

I hope all this seems obvious to you, but I still get a good number of notes from “entrepreneurs” who have been busy inventing things all their lives but can’t find a partner to start their first business, and others trying to find an executive, an investor, or a lawyer.

What these people need is more relationships, not more experts, more blogs, or more books. So I thought I would drop back to some essentials in building and nurturing business relationships (most of these apply to personal relationships as well):

1. Build your network. These are people of all levels that have been there and done that, meaning people who know something that you need to know. See my recent article “Effective Networking Strategies for Entrepreneurs” on how and where to get started. You don’t need a thousand friends, but a few real ones can make all the difference.
2. Give and you will receive. Relationships need to be two-way, and can’t be just all about you. If you are active in helping others with what you know, they will be much more open to help you when you need it. The more you give, the more you get in return, both literally and figuratively.
3. Work on your elevator pitch. This is a concise, well-practiced description of your idea or your startup, delivered with conviction to start a relationship in the time it takes to ride up an elevator. It should end by asking for something, to start the relationship.
4. Don’t skip all business social settings. Facetime is critical, even with the current rage on social networks, phone texting, and email. Studies show that as much as 50-90% of communication is body language. That’s usually the important relationship part.
5. Nominate someone as your mentor. Build a two-way relationship with several people who can help you, and then kick it up a notch with one or more, by asking them to be your mentor. Most entrepreneurs love to help others and will be honored to help you.
6. Cultivate existing allies. These are people who already know and believe in you, but may not be able to help you directly in your new endeavors. But don’t forget that each of these allies also has their own network, which can be an extension of yours, if you treat them well.
7. Nurture existing relationships. We all know someone who claims to be a “close friend,” but never initiates anything. They never call, they never write, and wait for you to make the first move. If you don’t follow-up on a regular basis with someone, there is no relationship, only a former acquaintance.

In any business relationship, there will be give-and-take as situations and circumstances change, but you should also feel that, overall, the value is equal both ways. Good business relationships are your most valuable strategic assets. There aren’t many silver bullets, so don’t expect to survive as an entrepreneur Lone Ranger.