Here's What It Takes to Succeed as an Entrepreneur

Josh Dorkin started BiggerPockets about 15 years ago—a long time ago, right? And then I came on later. A lot of people think I started BiggerPockets. But I didn’t. It was Josh’s baby. He built it in his basement, sitting in his boxer shorts for five, 10 years before I came around. That’s why BiggerPockets is successful.

What I Learned About Entrepreneurship From Josh Dorkin

If you’re not willing to work like Josh worked for a decade at trying to build something—making almost no money—it’s not going to happen. Everyone told him he was stupid or shouldn’t do it. But if you’re not willing to do it anyway, you’re not going to build a successful business like Josh.

A lot of venture capitalists were telling him he was stupid and that his business would never gain traction. If you’re not willing to put in potentially years of hard work and effort, then you probably don’t have what it takes to be an entrepreneur. Most entrepreneurial ventures don’t even succeed in the first year. You need to be willing to stick it out. (The same is true for multifamily investing.)

If there’s one thing I’ve learned from BiggerPockets—especially from Josh—it’s that you need to put in the time. And trust me, it takes a lot of time. It’s not like you work for six months and then, poof, you’re rich! You need to put in years and years. There are times you’ll make a lot of money, and other times where you don’t.

See Josh persist has had a big impact on me, especially when it comes to my investing career. I have to remember to be patient. An example is how it’s been one month since we got a mobile home park under contract. And it’s tiring and I’m asking myself, “When will this pay off?” Patience is vital.

What has been your biggest obstacle as an entrepreneur—and how did you overcome it?

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Note By BiggerPockets: These are opinions written by the author and do not necessarily represent the opinions of BiggerPockets.