By 
A lot of startups started business with high spirits and hopes. But as the business begins to face harsh business realities, most of the businesses begin to slowly grind to a halt and the high hopes of some startups begin to fade away leaving behind a demotivated and sometimes confused startup.
What exactly makes some businesses run into troubled waters and cause them to stagnate? The following are the 7 top reasons startup businesses stagnate.
1) Not holding self-accountable
Being an entrepreneur often translates to being your own boss. To some startups who lack sound work ethic, reporting to self is the excuse for not living up to their job responsibilities. They simply choose to neglect their role and consistently fail to deliver on their deliverables. Delaying critical responsibilities and excusing their inactions without any punitive consequences in place to tame themselves. Most times the same startups do not hesitate to punish others for their inactions basically because of the potential negative impact their bad attitude to work may have on the business outcome. But the same startup ignores the likely negative effects of his own inactions on the business outcome. Startups who do not hold themselves accountable unwittingly make themselves the operational weak link and chief underminer of their business success by their irresponsible attitude to work. An irresponsible leader breeds a stagnated and declining business.
2) Process gap
Most startups do not have a well-defined business objective matched with a clear, structured, repeatable interlinked, and easy-to-manage set of business activities performed by well-spelled-out individuals, teams, or technology that will accomplish the desired business outcomes like customer satisfaction, profit maximization and feedback. Such processes enhance operational efficiency and effectiveness while driving brand growth. A startup that has no sound and established business processes will likely experience stunted business growth.
3) Poor decision-making skill
Business outcomes cannot be separated from decision-making. Great and consistent decisions accumulate into sustainable and measurable success over time. So are bad decisions. Bad decisions culminate in stagnation or outright business liquidation. Since every business failure is traceable to a major or series of bad executive decisions. A startup should seek to continually deepen his or her ability to make superior business decisions by constantly improving his decision-making capability through self-development. It will enable him to make quality decisions that will empower him to achieve immediate, short, and long-term business goals. A startup that is not thorough, retrospective, and calculative in decision-making is bound to stagnate or completely wreck the business.
4) Bad mentality
A startup's business philosophy has a strong impact on his attitude toward work. A business philosophy is about the individual's values and beliefs that influence his business decisions and actions. A startup's philosophy can stifle or boost business operations. Startups that places huge value on people, for instance, will likely place their people above profit. They will most likely listen to their employees and empathize with the staff concerns and have a competitive and robust staff welfare package. These may, in turn, result in committed and highly motivated employees and a measurable, and sustainable business performance. On the other hand, a startup whose mindset places profit above people will often be viewed by their employees as a mean and profit-driven leader, and this negative perception may over time create a toxic relationship within the organization that may cause a significant decline in the business performance.
5) Wrong strategy
The choice of the industry, sector, or category a startup chooses to play in and how it intends to compete against competitors and win in the marketplace has a far-reaching impact on the business's success. If the startup is playing in a category or sector where it has no real competitive advantage then the possibility of struggling or going into extinction will be very high in the face of fierce competition. A startup that didn't determine from the onset where its business strength and weakness lie, which sector or products will attract the highest profit, and how it intends to outclass the competitors and dominate the market will most likely have a stagnated business.
6) Developmental gap
The pace of change in our world is super fast and businesses especially startups would have to do extra to catch up. Skills, competencies, and technology that once recorded huge success become obsolete at a neck-breaking speed. A business with robust personnel development plans will fair far better than those with none. Upskilling and retooling are no longer optional but integral or critical to business success. A start-up that has no clear developmental plans for both the leader and the employees has no chance at business success given the effect of rapid change and fierce competition on the market. Every business leader who chooses not to adopt personnel development as a major part of the business strategy may never achieve his business goals and will turn out a struggling or stagnated business.
7) Weak problem-solving capability
Problem is a part of life. No problem no life. It is not different in business. In pursuit of business success, a startup encounters a lot of day-to-day issues within and outside of his business that must be resolved quickly and squarely. From the simple problem that could be resolved on one's feet to the more complex ones that requires a systemic and a more robust approach. Generally, as a business grows and seeks to meet the customer's needs it encounters its own peculiar needs that if not resolved may undermine business success. The ability to find solutions to myriads of critical business problems as they emerge is a big plus to a startup. It has a strong impact on operational progress and business sustainability. Startups who are incapable of problems solving are bad business managers and they place a limit on the progress and growth potential of the enterprise.
In conclusion, your business depends on you to achieve it's set objectives. By following the above guide, your chances of avoiding business stagnation and powering your business to sustainable success will be high.
