Starting your own business isn’t an easy undertaking, especially if you want to succeed. It requires careful planning and implementation, plus attention to detail. Suppose you want to stay successful in the long run. In that case, it’s essential to understand the core principles of entrepreneurship as outlined by experts in business strategy and management. From how to make effective use of your time to why you need a sound support system, these principles will help you create more value as an entrepreneur. Here are some of the essential principles that help entrepreneurs create more value in their businesses.

1.   Create Your Business With Safety in Mind

Safety in your business planning and execution should always come first, followed by customer service and quality products or services. Safety should be a primary concern for any entrepreneur, whether it’s the procedures, products, or people you employ. If you’re not thinking about safety from day one, you’re setting yourself up for failure down the road—and putting yourself at risk for lawsuits that could cost you time and money.

For example, you need to keep your working area safe, including walkways, floors, and stairs. You may need to clear off debris, provide adequate lighting, and make sure there are no hazards such as protruding nails or protruding pipes. You can also protect against accidents with truncated dome pavers. These interlocking concrete tiles create a slip-resistant surface while adding color and style to your outdoor space.

2.   Identify Your Purpose

Before you begin to look for opportunities and make choices about your business, it’s essential to contemplate your purpose. If you can identify why you want to start a business and what makes your idea so special, you’ll be able to create value more effectively as an entrepreneur. For example, a company’s mission statement helps define its purpose regarding how its products or services will benefit society.

Similarly, if you’re starting a social enterprise, your goal might be to reduce poverty by creating jobs for the needy. Or, if you’re opening a restaurant, your objective might be to provide customers with delicious food at affordable prices. Whatever your goals are, they should drive every decision that follows—from where you locate your business to which suppliers you choose.

3.   Make a Commitment to Provide The Best Solution

Whether products, companies, ideas, etc., you need to commit to creating value from day one, no matter what you are creating. You have to be driven by something other than money and profit to do so. Value creation is a concept that is about more than just making money—it’s about making things better for people. If you can focus on how your product or service can improve someone’s life, you will have no problem finding ways to provide better solutions for your customers. That will allow you to create more value.

4.   Embrace Disruption

Don’t try to protect your turf; expect change and be ready for it. If you think all disruption is harmful, consider what would have happened if AT&T, back in its glory days as a monopoly, had tried to fight against competition from MCI and Sprint. What would have happened if Kodak hadn’t embraced digital photography but instead kept trying to protect film? Would Blockbuster still be around if it hadn’t been willing to adjust its business model to streaming video?

It’s not easy to embrace disruption, but it’s worth the struggle. It means letting go of old ideas and possibly even old ways of doing things—but embracing disruption can mean becoming more robust. Consequently, you will be able to create more value for yourself and others.

5.   Utilize Usable Knowledge

Though it might seem obvious, many people don’t take advantage of the available knowledge. Whether starting a business or developing a skill, educate yourself as much as possible. Read books, listen to podcasts and lectures and do whatever is available to absorb information. Knowledge truly is power, especially when it comes to entrepreneurship. By learning from those who have come before you, you can save yourself time and money in your endeavors.

Even if you learn something small about building a better mousetrap, applying that knowledge will help differentiate your product from others on the market. Learning also keeps you fresh and up-to-date on industry trends—and knowing what other companies are doing is essential for competing with them. It’s like Warren Buffett says: If you don’t know who your competition is, then you don’t know anything.

Conclusion

Your first focus in business or entrepreneurship should be on creating value. To create more value, you need to find your unique competence and invest in learning how to be valuable. In other words, you need to make good use of available helpful resources, figure out how you’re different from everyone else, and then learn more about how to become valuable. Your success does not depend on how many ideas you have but rather the quality of your execution. However, don’t forget customer service; it’s not just a nice-to-have, it’s a must-have