What does "execution" mean in Entrepreneurship.
Besides the obvious implication of doing something well, I always hear "ideas are a dimes a dozen," and "the idea doesn't matter nearly as much as the execution does."
Could someone actually describe what it means to have good execution or recommend good content to consume on this subject?
Execution means getting things done.
Executing just means getting things done. You can design something into a super pretty powerpoint, but can you build the thing you're presenting or attract the talent who can? You can talk all day about how you will serve customers and deliver value but can you actually smile and dial, talk them into paying you, and deliver them the service/product as advertised? Can you fix problems when they inevitably arise or will it all fall apart at the sign of the first bugs/gaps in functionality? Content is generally not going to show you how execution works unless it's something like "a day on the job" type stuff that shadows someone during the workday, execution is what you do on the job vs just talking about what gets done.
it means to action the things you planned to do, successfully.
Good execution is when you guillotine your worst performing employee without staining the office carpet
"wouldn't it be great if we could mine for precious minerals and rare earth elements in the asteroid belt?"
There is a great idea. The execution is everything that comes after.
I mean, come on dude, are you really asking us to tell you what it means to build a vagye notion of a company in an undescribed field of activity? I'm sure the assignment is due tomorrow, but you gotta put in a little more effort than that.
Wantreprenuers think it's about having some novel never thought of idea. Then when they realize it's already made they smack their head like an idiot and say 'darn! that was my shot'
Entreprenuers realize it's about execution (see: every response in this thread), and that almost any idea can be profitable with the right person. Need an easy example? Gym Shark. 'Clothes to work out in' isn't remotely a revolutionary, novel, unique, or valuable idea. But execution is really all that matters and now it's a billion dollar brand.
You bet on the horse in the race, aka the person.
It's working relentlessly towards your goal, putting in the hours and willingness to deal with the bullshit that comes with operating.
Operating usually doesn't require someone to be brilliant. Really, if someone is on this site, they are definitely intellectually smart enough to build a company to $10m+ in revenue without any outside funding.
What is hard is delaying gratification and putting in 70 - 100 hour weeks until you get there. There is a huge element of luck with product-market fit, this can make things easy sometimes, but it's rare.
Sometimes it can take a while to find PMF.
My favorite example is a friend of mine who has an apparel brand. Guy started in a trailer park working 80+ hours a week, putting all of his $ into his apparel brand. Think about how hardcore you have to be to do this. Mediocre day job and dumping all the money into your apparel brand with 0 related experience and putting in as many hours as possible for years on end!
It basically went nowhere for a few years, then he cracked PMF and is probably going to do ~$50m - $60m this year with ~25% EBITDA margin - all bootstrapped. He is very generous with his time, works incredibly hard, and just continuously reinvests in his business. I will be shocked if he doesn't get to a $500m+ outcome. The guy still lives very normally relative to his income and puts in the hours. Legitimately doesn't care about the money and just loves the grind involved in becoming an excellent operator.
So, you kind of have to love that side of it, have a high tolerance for it, or it has to be your only option.
Personally, I am dumb + unemployable, so kind of forced into it.
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