The 9 states of mind you go through when launching an online business

We can summarize the digital entrepreneur as a person who launches one or more online projects, with the goal of making money.

A short, concise and direct explanation. Perhaps even too much so.

Because the problems arise precisely from these two statements:

• Launching a project
• Earn

Con artist influencers

Over the past few years your Facebook or Instagram wall will have been bombarded with sponsored posts, of this type:

Or this…

The phrase that automatically clicks in your brain is, “Shit, they make all the money on the Internet, I want to get rich too and have money, power and fame. What does it take….”

Usually followed by:

“A friend of a friend opened an internet store and makes a lot of money.”

“My friend’s friend, on his Instagram profile, only posts pictures at the beach and travels all the time!”

“That guy is always posting club photos, popping bottles every night.”

Halt…

I am not arguing here about how fake what you see in the picture is, but about making you understand that the recipe of “all and now” is an absolute disaster. Personal and financial.

What you read in this article may cause an adverse reaction in you, and you may even decide to abandon this blog. That’s okay with me; I’m not here to sell you pipe dreams, but to make sure that your project lasts and grows over time, and to avoid making any gross mistakes.

The 9 stages of an entrepreneurial project

Have you ever wondered why many aspiring entrepreneurs give up even before their dream sees the light of day? Launching a first digital entrepreneurial project, almost always follows this process:

Table of Contents

• Initial enthusiasm
• Ends the novelty effect
• Pain phase
• Release of new features
• Doubts on the horizon
• False hopes
• The promised land
• Early takings
• Positive feedback from buyers
  • • HOW CAN I HELP YOU?

Initial enthusiasm

This is the “magic” phase of the whole project, because your mind will be freewheeling around looking for new opportunities and ideas. I guarantee that you will remember this period with nostalgia, because it will be the time when the spark that starts it all will be ignited.

Ends the novelty effect

You shared the news with friends and family. You’ve received pats on the back, and you’ve been told it’s cool.

The truth is that few have really understood what you intend to do. In my experience here in Italy, where I work, digital culture is still not widespread, so this happens often. And it is neither your friends nor your parents’ fault. Simply take note, because you will be alone in this adventure.

Yes, you will be alone.

Now you have to roll up your sleeves, because 80 percent of aspiring entrepreneurs at this stage give up.

In this blog you will find all the tools to create and plan your project from scratch. But if you do not put into practice the articles you read, you will remain in exactly the situation you are in now.

Pain phase

You’ve tried to do things the best you can, you’ve put in the effort by sacrificing your sleeping hours, but the results are slow in coming.

You start to get demoralized, and the first doubts come. This stage is very delicate, because in addition to growing professionally, you are changing your character.

The more you grow as a person, the more your business project will grow

You may also go through a period called “entrepreneur depression.”

Life outside flows by with the usual routine and small daily worries, you only have your business project on your mind, which is not working.

Relatives and friends to whom you had communicated the news with great enthusiasm start asking the classic questions:

“How are you doing? You’re billing great eeh?”

But you don’t know how to tell him that your project is struggling to get off the ground, even though you have put all your energy into it.

You would like to isolate yourself, you feel confused.

Tip: Try to look at things from a more detached point of view, and critically try to analyze the problems in your project. One at a time.

Also, take time to recover your energy. I know you will feel like a caged lion, but learn to unplug. Or you will do more damage than anything else. A few days off and total rest (no smartphones, emails, etc.).

Only 7 percent of those who started with a business plan pass this stage.

It will be a very hard time, but know that you will grow a lot character-wise, and you will be able to overcome with greater awareness the problems that life will present to you.

Take very good care of your finances at this stage! Finding yourself short of cash can put your personal and work life in serious crisis.

Release of new features

You decide not to let discouragement overwhelm you, but you begin to manage your emotions and pain. You realize that something has to change….

Here you can handle the situation in two ways.

⛔️ Wrong method of approach:

It will surely be the fault of the site design, which you have grown tired of. The homepage you wanted with those nice details, and it made your heart beat faster, is now starting to feel cramped. Then again, you’ve read that site design is important (responsive, mobile oriented, etc…). So you decide to make a change. Without any real logic.

It will definitely be the fault of the features. Too few, let’s add more. Users will find them cool, and your competitors don’t have them.

✅ Correct method of approach:

The design of the site is to blame; analyzing it with the right tools, I have noticed that users get stuck in multiple steps. Also, the fonts and images used are not in line with my target audience.

I blame the few features, but that was part of your initial strategy. You opted to give new features a little at a time, so you could understand what users actually want. Some of them you met in person or by phone. Now it is time to enrich the site.

Only 5 percent of those who started with a business plan pass this stage.

Doubts on the horizon

You expected immediate positive feedback after the updates posted on your site/app. But not a single leaf has moved.

The questions in your head increase: Am I doing the right thing? What if I drop everything? What will others think of me? Will I disappoint everyone?

You sleep badly at night, and the financial resources you had dedicated your project, begin to run out.

False hopes

The first collaborations start coming in, you figure out how to start promoting your site/app, and you start investing in marketing. The first potential clients leave you feedback, and spur you on to improve parts of your service.

You thought no one was interested in your site/app, but this time you feel you are on the right track.

Alternating peaks of enthusiasm with moments of disappointment.

Beware: as soon as you start opening your wallet a little more to invest and things start to turn around, you will find yourself surrounded by a few individuals trying to fleece you. Learn to recognize them, or you risk running out of money and abandoning everything.

The promised land

Your sacrifices are finally starting to pay off, and your marketing campaigns are attracting new potential customers. You have decided to offer one or more services for free, and some customers have clearly communicated to you their willingness to pay in order to take advantage of your site/app.

Your social media pages get interactions and you build your own small community of loyal users.

Early takings

You really understand what your users want, and you decide to offer paid services.

Although you continue to monitor costs and investments, the early receipts improve your morale.

You become aware of your means and capabilities, and you really start to feel like an entrepreneur.

You are determined to achieve the goals, and you pick up the Business Plan again to check all KPIs (performance indicators) monthly.

Positive feedback from buyers

Customers are increasing and feedback is positive, you have also learned how to handle unforeseen events, and you feel much more charged and calm.

You realize that you won’t be able to do it all alone, and you are joined by collaborators and new team members who come on board on this adventure.

You think about all the moments you went through to get here, and regardless of the future outcome of your project

You would redo all the mistakes because they made you a better professional and person

Creating a new digital project will be easier and faster because you now have all the tools in hand to avoid gross mistakes.

The formula for success

Making money with an online project is not easy.

But it is also not impossible.

It is simple:

[Work hard] +

[Make mistakes] +

[Learn from mistakes] =

Online success

HOW CAN I HELP YOU?

Do you have a business project in mind but don’t know where to start, or do you want to give your business more visibility to attract more customers over the Internet?

CONTACT ME