Tigger and Eeyore are hardly known for their business acumen, but you’ll want to keep them in mind as you tell friends and family about your business idea.
Why? Because you’ll run into both characters — and they can mess with your thinking.
Some people will practically bounce with excitement when they hear about your new product or service. They’ll declare it the best thing since sliced, whole wheat, preservative-free bread. They’ll ooh and ah and promise to be your first customer. Say hello to Tigger.
Other people will lean in and nod grimly, as if they’re listening to you tell about a recent car accident. They’ll warn you about the bad economy (“Why don’t you wait?”), the extra work (“Aren’t you busy enough?”), the prospect of failure (“I hear that 90 percent of companies go belly up the first year), the strain on your loved ones (“Don’t you love them?”), and other assorted doom-and-gloom scenarios. Think Eeyore.
No need to push them away. Let’s face it, Tigger is fun and funny, and Eeyore is so depressed you hate to reject him. But please, keep their perspectives in perspective.
That Tigger-like optimism is wonderful to hear, but don’t let it make you naïve. Few people will be bouncing around to first in the order line, especially if you’re just starting your business. Sure, you’ll eventually get fans who bring a certain Tiggerness to their love for your company, but you’ll have to do plenty of hard work to get your business started — and even more to keep it going and growing.
As for those Eeyore types, hear them out but don’t get sucked in. You want to be a realist, not a fatalist. It’s important to listen because they might raise a point you hadn’t thought about. But if you keep listening ad nauseam, they’ll shake your inner confidence and get you second-guessing just about everything. Recognize that an all-awful frame of thinking simply doesn’t square with reality.
In the meantime, seek out people who can give you some balanced input — people who fall somewhere between the Tigger and Eeyore profiles.
Perhaps your business-minded neighbor would be happy to chat. Or your sister’s friend is a successful entrepreneur who wouldn’t mind 30 minutes on the phone. Or it could be that a buddy of yours — someone with no start-up experience — is one of those types who listens well, asks great questions, and leaves you smarter.
You can only benefit by reaching out to these people. Tigger and Eeyore will understand.
