It was a pleasure to interview Walid Abdul-Wahab at our New York offices last week on his journey to success and tips of how entrepreneurs can success. Walid is one of the leading diary industry influencers and has been featured in major publications like CNN, CNBC, Forbes, Huffington Post and Cheddar. His company Desert Farms is one of the fastest growing in the United States. Walid is regularly asked to give talks around the world at leading international food industry and entrepreneur events such as Web Summit, and TechCrunch Disrupt.
Being successful often means learning from those who have already achieved their goals. Having a mentor is an amazing blessing to an entrepreneur, but not everyone can find one in person.
If you haven’t yet found your personal business guru, Walid gives 21 tips for young or aspiring entrepreneur to help get you started.
1. Challenge yourself.
Richard Branson says his biggest motivation is to keep challenging himself. He treats life like one long university education, where he can learn more every day. You can too!
2. Do work you care about.
There’s no doubt that running a business take a lot of time. Steve Jobs noted that the only way to be satisfied in your life is to do work that you truly believe in.
3. Take the risk.
We never know the outcome of our efforts unless we actually do it. Jeff Bezos said it helped to know that he wouldn’t regret failure, but he would regret not trying.
Related: The 3 Key Elements to Make Your Business a Success
4. Believe in yourself.
As Henry Ford famously said, “Whether you think you can, or think you can’t, you’re right.” Believe that you can succeed, and you’ll find ways through different obstacles. If you don’t, you’ll just find excuses.
5. Have a vision.
The founder and CEO of Tumblr, David Karp, notes that an entrepreneur is someone who has a vision for something and a desire to create it. Keep your vision clear at all times.
6. Find good people.
Who you’re with is who you become. Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn, noted that the fastest way to change yourself is to hang out with people who are already the way you want to be.
7. Face your fears.
Overcoming fear isn’t easy, but it must be done. Arianna Huffington once said that she found fearlessness was like a muscle — the more she exercised it, the stronger it became.
8. Take action.
The world is full of great ideas, but success only comes through action. Walt Disney once said that the easiest way to get started is to quit talking and start doing. That’s true for your success as well.
9. Do the time.
No one succeeds immediately, and everyone was once a beginner. As Steve Jobs wisely noted, “if you look closely, most overnight successes took a long time.” Don’t be afraid to invest time in your company.
10. Manage energy, not time.
Your energy limits what you can do with your time, so manage it wisely.
