4 Lessons Learned from Kickstarting a Business Venture

Opportunity Network’s CEO — Brian Pallas — shares his most eye-opening lessons about starting a business from scratch.

CEO of Opportunity Network — Brian Pallas — tells his most eye-opening lessons about starting a business from scratch.

I founded Opportunity Network in 2014 while achieving an MBA from Columbia University in New York. 

I had the chance to start by connecting all the companies represented in the Family Business Club of Columbia University and then exporting the model outside the academic world.

With the results, I understood that it could make an impact on the world. I thought I couldn’t miss the chance to at least try to make it happen.

Little did I know that I was starting a path of knowledge rather than applying what I knew.

My venture has definitely had its fair share of challenges, but having grown from my experience, I learned a lot about what it means to be a leader and take risks. Here are some of my most eye-opening lessons:

Surround yourself with good people

Surrounding yourself with good people will make you go anywhere — and further — together. 

I realized that my persona had little to do with my success and that of our company. The people around us count for much more than any of us as individuals. 

Leadership is more about encouraging your team to become a solid, strong group. That will make them want to give the best of them and contribute in a significant way. 

If you want to be a true leader, make sure that people are pleased about being you who’s there to look after them, instead of getting people to do what you want. 

It’s about going beyond being a run-of-the-mill “boss” and caring about your team.  

Strive for a collective purpose

If all of your team members pursuit the same purpose, the sense of belonging will be stronger. This will add value, not only to the group itself but to the entire community. When you want to change something, think of how it will affect everyone else.

Thinking as a collective, and thinking about them will make your team follow you because they will realize you care about them. You need to put yourself in someone else’s shoes, listen to their needs and understand their jobs. 

Take risks to seize opportunities

Make choices that will open as many opportunities as possible. The risk’s value will be bigger, but you have to remember that growing it is not only about successes but also grand failures. 

If you fail, at least you tried. If my company were to fail tomorrow, and I was forced to return as an employee somewhere, my career would still have progressed further than had I stayed where I was.

Commit yourself to a project that will change the world for the better

There’s nothing more encouraging than fighting for something you truly believe. You have set an objective and embrace it with courage. Putting your hearth on it will make you commit to reaching it, and will make your team believe in it as well. Listen to their suggestions, keep your mind open to new and creative ways to reach your goal. 

This will lay the groundwork for building your network, and ultimately your success as an entrepreneur.