10 Mistakes to Avoid as a Young Entrepreneur with Mr Kapil Khanna

In 2009, Kapil Khanna, an Indian-born entrepreneur, moved to Ireland with his wife (at the peak of the recession). He came without a job or business relations.

Before founding his own business, Kapil worked for Fortune 500 businesses in pharmaceuticals, advertising, and financial services.

The All Ireland Business Foundation (AIBF) is an independent national body that finds and celebrates the country's most ambitious and visionary firms. The AIBF certifies Best-In-Class Irish enterprises for their performance, reputation, and customer-centricity with the Business All-Star insignia.

AIBF already has over 500 accredited firms. Since 2014, AIBF has benefited nearly 3,500 businesses. The AIBF also hosts an annual All-Ireland Summit and weekly meetings to foster peer-to-peer learning and cooperation.

Kapil has been a mentor to me personally and advisor to various private enterprises in Ireland for the past 12 years, he talks and advises on business strategy and digital positioning.

Kapil has an MBA in Strategy and is a CFPcm. He now lives in Leixlip, Co. Kildare, with his young family.

Contact: Kapil@aibf.ie

1. Clarity is a superpower; if you intend to develop a business as a way of life, you must project it for success by altering your thinking and being crystal clear about your objectives;

2. Business is a chess game - always be at least five moves ahead, if not 100;

3. Avoid attempting to wear all hats; otherwise, you would burn out; instead, learn to delegate tasks;

4. Your greatest adversary is ignorance of your numbers; become one with numbers #UniteWithInfinity;

5. Strike a delicate balance between pursuing the 'larger picture' and maintaining an eye on the details.

6. Avoid undercutting yourself by lowering costs; better is not always more; quality is what counts. A low-cost consumer is unlikely to be your ideal customer.

7. Avoid hiring prematurely; first, identify your strengths and then seek for an ideal employee who can fill in the remaining gaps;

8. "Build it and they will come" - terrible mindset; "good artists copy and great artists steal" marketing methods and improve them in order to attract.

9. Remove yourself from all low-paying jobs and concentrate only on the business's HPA (High Paying Activities);

10. Develop a tribe of trustworthy advisers, grow with them, and always seek what you need.