The Problems We See Most When Starting a Business (and That We Lived Too)

To close the first season of Pandas Creativos, we sat on the other side of the table for the first time. Rafa Borys, guest of episode 16, asked us the questions you sent in. One of them was direct: what is the main problem of the entrepreneurs you have interviewed?

After talking with more than 20 people who run a business, and after 12 years of starting businesses ourselves, the answer comes up again and again. Here we tell you what those problems are, how they look in real life and what to do so you do not get stuck in them.

The most common problems we have seen

1.Excuses: "I just do not have..."

There is always something missing: a shop, time, money, the perfect equipment. We saw it in almost every conversation, and we saw it in ourselves. For the team, the main problem of the entrepreneur is the excuse, and many times the obstacle is you, not your situation.

Their recommendation is to jump in and do things however you can and improve as you go.

2.The perfectionism that holds you back

We have come across people who did not launch their project because the brand guide was missing one shade of green. Our advice is uncomfortable but true: someone else already did it, uglier than yours, and is doing well.

It happened to us too. With the podcast, the temptation was to wait for better cameras, better audio and better lighting. Instead we started with inexpensive microphones, put up with a little dog's bark sneaking into the audio and improved episode after episode. Today the first episodes make us laugh, but they exist, and that is what counts.

3.A gorgeous business that does not sell

This is one of the cases we see most. The person has a logo, a brand guide, a website and even an office, all extremely pretty. But no sales. They come and ask: "what is wrong with my project?". And the answer is usually: nothing, everything is fine, now you have to go out and sell.

It happened to us with a product of our own: we obsessed over the typography and the packaging and were not selling. We learned the hard way that if you do not sell, you cannot pay for logistics or develop anything else.

4.Sabotaging yourself

When the team was asked what was hardest about starting Jumping Panda, it was not the technical part. It was believing that they really knew what they were doing. With 12 years of experience behind them, in front of a client the doubt appears: "what if they think I do not know?".

What helped them was having someone next to them saying "you do know, jump". It is a good reason to surround yourself with people who believe in you, or at least to speak to yourself more kindly when you start on your own.

5.Waiting years to take the leap

Roberto said it with no filter: it took him 12 years to do something that had been in his head since he met Chio, which was to make a podcast. Overthinking did not bring him closer to the goal, jumping did. Jumping Panda was born right when someone told them "jump in and teach a course, you know a ton", and they went for it.

What we learned (and it can save you years)

1.Start with what you have, today

Your old phone works to get started. The business itself gives you the means to improve: lights, equipment, people. It will never be enough if you wait until you have everything, so start, period.

2.Find someone to jump with you

In the 12 years they have been starting businesses, the common factor has been having a person by their side who takes the leap with you and pushes you to believe in yourself. If you are on your own, practice self-talk: speak to yourself the way you would speak to your best partner.

3.Swap "why" for "what for"

For the team, being an entrepreneur includes highways, dirt roads, potholes and even falling off a bridge, and getting back up. One of the words they chose to sum up what they learned was resilience: what counts is what you do after what you did not plan. It is fine to lament, but then ask "what was this for?".

4.Choose who you work with and protect your peace

One of the team's personal lessons was not wanting clients who do not want you. It is okay to say no to people who are toxic and to always choose your peace. Working with people who do trust you shows in the results.

5.Feed your creativity and use AI as a tool

Creativity does not come from nowhere: it is fed by reading, watching documentaries, traveling, observing advertising and also by being bored for a while without your phone. About artificial intelligence, the team's position is clear: it is a tool that saves time, it does not replace you. The ideas are still yours.

“Someone else already did it, and uglier, and is doing well. Do not be such a perfectionist.”

Is something like this happening to you?

If any of these sound familiar, your business is probably not doing badly: it just needs a push in the right direction. Ask yourself:

Listen to the full episode

This is only a summary. The full conversation has many more details, stories and tips. Watch it in full on YouTube (it is recorded in Spanish; turn on the captions and choose Auto-translate to read it in English) or find every episode on the Pandas Creativos podcast page (in Spanish).