6 Challenges Every Creator Faces

Launching a new creative project into the world is exhilarating. However, after the initial rush, unexpected challenges could pop up, sapping motivation and leaving creators discouraged and wondering if they made the right decision in the first place. If you understand the common challenges businesses face, from team development to cash flow management, you won't be caught off guard. Instead, you can proceed with confidence.

Here, we'll explore these challenges and provide insights to help you and other creators overcome them. 

Creative Challenges and How to Overcome Them

As you run your crowdfunding campaign or any business venture, problems can come out of nowhere. Knowing what to look for can help you navigate the uncertainties and seize the opportunities of running a small business.

Here are six business challenges that every entrepreneur must face:

1. Securing funding 

Finding ways to bring your great idea to life isn’t always easy. One of the most common small business challenges entrepreneurs face is securing funding. To acquire the resources to advance your business, you have a few options. To get your initial capital, you can stockpile a large amount of money, apply for a loan or government grant, or get funding from venture capitalists, but these all come with a costly reality. We're biased, but we recommend bringing your idea to life here on Kickstarter, where you get to own 100% of your creativity and ideas.

2. Building a strong team

Finding and hiring individuals who share your values and believe in your vision can help you compete in the market. A strong team can help reduce your operational burden by allowing you to confidently delegate tasks while ensuring they are completed to a high standard. However, assembling the right team can be a challenging and time-consuming process.

Before you start recruitment, prioritize roles and determine which skills and qualities are essential for success. While it’s easy to focus on technical and hard skills, remember that soft skills like leadership and communication can significantly impact team chemistry and productivity. 

When bringing your creative idea to life, depending on your category of project, we recommend seeking a graphic designer or creative, marketing consultation, operations and fulfillment expert if possible.

3. Marketing and promotion

When starting out, you may try to tackle all of the marketing yourself, especially if your budget is tight. Creating social media content, writing email newsletters, press releases, and replies to DM’s of potential backers might seem within your capacity but may distract you from organizational and strategic duties. Business challenges like these may seem minor, but try not to underestimate their importance.

One of the benefits of receiving adequate funding is that you can dedicate a portion of your budget to marketing and promotion, which can contribute to growth in a big way. Outsourcing marketing campaigns and sales-related activities can help your business connect with your customers effectively and consistently.

4. Managing time effectively

Entrepreneurs must put in significant legwork in the early stages to reap benefits down the road. How you choose to allot your time can be the difference between success and burnout. Learning how to manage your time effectively will allow you to direct your project without draining all of your energy in the process.

Time management takes practice along with some trial and error. Schedule your time carefully, and include some flexibility for unplanned meetings or calls so it’s easier to stick to your agenda. Plan out your day carefully to reduce the need for emergency multitasking. If you’re methodically working on one planned task at a time, an inconvenient surprise is less likely to turn into a catastrophe. Additionally, you can use new technology and software that can automate repetitive tasks, such as posting on social media, or you might use time-tracking tools to monitor your progress. 

5. Maintaining work-life balance

Continual mental strain can impede your judgment and creativity over time, so establishing a sense of balance is crucial. To maintain a healthy work-life balance, it's important to set clear boundaries to prevent overworking. When you're not working, try not to constantly dwell on your tasks. Allow yourself to relax so that when you work, you feel refreshed. Prioritize your tasks and try to avoid procrastination. By tackling the most important work first, it will be easier for you to disconnect when it's time.

6. Dealing with setbacks and failure

Entrepreneurship is a continuous learning process that involves cycles of success and frustration. Throughout your journey, you will experience your fair share of setbacks, and how you respond to them will determine the trajectory of your business. Becoming resilient in the face of setbacks requires both analyzing and learning from your defeats. 

Failure isn't always bad. Entrepreneurs who embrace a business's challenges and allow themselves to take calculated risks that may result in failure will also learn faster than those who don't. Accepting the possibility of failure can also lead to unexpected positive results when a gamble pays off.

Take the leap with confidence

Being a creator isn’t easy, but if you know what challenging business scenarios to expect, you can adapt to the stress, remain motivated, and drive your business toward its next milestone. Securing crowdfunding with Kickstarter can provide the financial flexibility to offer your new business a head start.