Fear That Someone Will Steal Your Business Idea Actually Leading Cause to Start-Up Failure

I enjoy helping entrepreneurs of all stripes.

It's something I really excel at, and I learn so much from the experience.

However, it's really hard -- if not impossible -- to help someone fearful that their next big thing will be copied or stolen before they get it off the ground.

Rookie entrepreneurs stumble upon their one great, awesome, Earth-shattering business idea, and spend so much time cloaking it under a veil of secrecy I sometimes wonder if they have spent any time actually building their business.

Because it's hard to work under a veil of secrecy, constantly looking over your shoulder, worrying you are being followed, or worse, that your phones are 'bugged' and Big Brother is watching.

Okay, maybe I'm exaggerating just a tad.

But if you can't tell me what you're working on, I can't help you.

And if you can't tell me what you are working on, you probably won't tell potential customers either -- so you'll never get the feedback you need from them to validate your business idea, and prove it to be a viable and sustainable business.

Validation of a business idea is really important, without it, you'll never know if all the sweat, blood and tears you're putting into your business will actually pay off.

And there's lots of ways to validate a business, the quickest and easiest is just to talk to potential customers. Find out if they are willing to pay for your product or service, and if they are, how much they are willing to spend.

Validation also comes from fellow entrepreneurs, that help each other.

Not just in winning us over with your idea, but in learning how to overcome your challenges as you grow your business.

Real entrepreneurs help each other. They reach out to each other, offer guidance, advice, even a shoulder to cry on in some cases.

It's sort of the unwritten rule of entrepreneurship -- to help your fellow business pioneers. 

When I meetup with rookie entrepreneurs, that tell me they are struggling with a problem, and I offer to help, their eyes light up like the Sun breaking through the storm clouds.

As they explain their challenge, they stumble to explain their problem, using vague language, or simply leaving out important parts of the problem, as they fear I'm "fishing" for my next big thing.

Relax newbie.

No one is going to steal your idea.

Why would I even attempt to do something when you've already put in the initial legwork? I'd have to start from scratch, and that's just too time consuming -- not too mention I'd be well behind you, that already has a lot more work in the game.

Fear that someone will steal your business idea is one of the leading causes of start-up failure, because no one can help you, if you can't explain to someone what it is you are doing.

So put your fear behind you. You'll have a better chance of communicating your problems to those that can really help you, and you're business will have a far better chance of success because of it.