"Work 80 hours a week to avoid working 40 hours a week" — When Shark Tank's Lori Greiner revealed her essential principles for new entrepreneurs

Lori Greiner, a popular Shark Tank investor, once highlighted the amount of commitment needed to be a successful entrepreneur. In an interview with Daniel DiPiazza for the Entrepreneur, published on February 13, 2017, she pointed out that entrepreneurship takes more work than regular employment.

"Entrepreneurs are the only people who will work 80 hours a week to avoid working 40 hours a week." she said.

Greiner also shared several principles that new entrepreneurs should follow. These highlighted the importance of adaptability, perseverance, and willingness to invest significant time into an idea.

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The commitment and strategies behind entrepreneurial success according to Shark Tank Lori Greiner

Constantly seek feedback and adapt to market needs

In the same Entrepreneur interview, Lori Greiner stressed the importance of listening to customer feedback and being open to change. The Shark Tank investor explained:

"Don't fall in love with your idea to the point that you don't listen to feedback."

Lori stressed that although the passion for the service or product is important, entrepreneurs must be open to changing their offerings based on what the consumers require. She also mentioned that some entrepreneurs are so enamored with their original ideas that they do not end up making changes when necessary. Inspired by the investor, the interviewer, Daniel Dipiazza, additionally noted:

"Be passionate about doing great work, not about one idea."

He stressed that this perspective allows entrepreneurs to pivot when necessary, increasing their chances of long-term success.

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The importance of testing and experimenting with multiple ideas

Greiner spoke about how some ideas will fail, but with persistence, there is hope. During the same interview, she further stated that "it just takes one idea" to be a success.

She argued that even though most concepts fail, one that works is all it takes to build a successful business. What takes business entrepreneurs is being willing to experiment with multiple concepts, learning from failures, and refining the process until they find one that holds up with the market.

She has also emphasized the need to test different ideas to determine what works best. Based on those, Daniel DiPiazza also added:

"You need to test and experiment to see what does and doesn’t work."

He underscored that this approach allows entrepreneurs to refine their ideas and improve their chances of success by understanding market demand.

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Entrepreneurs must be willing to do whatever it takes

Greiner has pointed out that being an entrepreneur often requires a hands-on approach and a willingness to take on various tasks. The Shark Tank investor explained:

"A true entrepreneur does whatever it takes. That's the bottom line."

The Shark Tank investor implied that entrepreneurs need to be able to cope with more than one task, particularly at the start of their venture. During the interview, she also talked about the challenges at the beginning, observing that before the internet came along, she was forced to carry out research by hand.

She recalled that during her starting days, there was no Google, and she had to go to a library to find a list of every retailer in the country. Lori highlighted how much work it takes to construct a business, even when there are limited resources.

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Catch Shark Tank on ABC every Friday at 8 PM ET, or stream episodes later on Hulu.