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If I had a pound for every time I saw this phrase used in a social media post about being an entrepreneur or building your own business, I’d have filled our first cap raise myself.

As much as it might make some roll their eyes, at its essence, when you remove the “hustle” and “grind” connotations it has manifested in vlogs or on your Instagram feed, it couldn’t be sounder advice. Being a Founder demands patience and resilience — I’ve had a front row seat to a couple of 10-year overnight successes, and you have to be willing to do things others won’t, beckon difficult situations, treat every experience as an opportunity to get better and when things are going your way, double-down on your momentum rather than sit back and coast.

This may sound like Founder advice 101 so far, but Mike Tyson wasn’t wrong when he said “everyone has a plan until they get punched in the face…” As a Founder and practitioner myself, I can tell you from experience that sometimes loving the process can be hard, and can be more about trusting it than anything else — I had a moment like that as recently as last week. But being present, aware of your situation and of your emotions when you’re starting or building a business is paramount to it’s success and to yours as a Founder.

I don’t prescribe to glorifying 16 hour work days or working under constant pressure, but you have to be prepared to accept that sometimes, those things are the cost of entry and come with the territory of starting a business. Which allows me to introduce you to one of my personal mantras. Accept and proceed. As Founders you must acknowledge that things will be hard, things won’t always go your way and you won’t always win, but you must persevere despite these truths, and excel as a result of them. In last week’s post, Iva referenced James Clear (if you haven’t read her post yet, you must, and if you haven’t read James Clear’s book — do that too!), who said “Winners and losers have the same goals.” In this context, the bit in the middle — the “process”, is the difference maker for successful Founders and businesses.

At Kavedon, you are central to what we do. We have a wealth of Founder experience in our team who understand the journey you are on, and will smile and nod knowingly at many of the situations you are faced with. We’re process junkies, made up of problem solvers, negotiators, listeners, doers and the list of adjectives goes on. We’ve walked the journey you’re on, we love the journey you’re on and you need to as well.

So, the next time you find yourself in a room with a Founder-turned successful business owner and the title of this blog post is the advice they give you, ask for the story behind the advice, watch their eyes light up, and lean in…

Article by

Founder & CEO

Markus Milsted

My role at Kavedon Kapital is to own the Vision & Mission we are on, collaborating with the teams that make up Kavedon Kapital to progressively deliver our strategic direction.

Over the last 17 years, I’ve developed a mixed-skills experience, from a technical capability to a sophisticated financial knowledge base which has always tended to Centre around the Startup Space.

My world view is quite a simple one. I put the essential need for changes at the heart of everything I engage, and always have a Founder Focus when working with Startups.

Previously, I have been a Founder and worked with Founding teams, and you can honestly believe me when I say I have the battle scars and stories that come with such experiences.

Professionally, I enjoy solving problems for a greater benefit and impact beyond that of simply a monetary outcome (although that is important). For me, I believe there is natural cohesion between measurable monetary outcomes and sustained beneficial change, and when looking at anything that is the key element I search for.

In my private downtime I enjoy reading about a wide variety of topics and ticking items on my “to do list”. The next big one is to get a private pilot license when time allows such a commitment.