Starting a company is a time of hectic planning, ambitious dreaming and constantly fine-tuning your goals. Whether you’re engaging in your first startup or starting another business in a long line of successful startups, here are some common mistakes that you can avoid in order to boost your chances of success.

Losing Focus

It can be easy to let your mind run in a thousand directions as you prepare to start a business. Whether you’re deciding which products to launch or considering locations for your storefront, it can be easy to become quickly bogged down in all the distractions.

Startups need to focus on their specialty. Find the core of your business idea and pursue it. Don’t let rabbit trails and side projects distract you from your main business focus. The initial phases of business planning may involve broad thinking, but once you settle on an idea you need laser focus to bring it into fruition.

Incorporate Every Piece of Advice

Once you start a business, you’ll realize that everyone you know has either attempted to start one or has been dreaming of it. You’ll encounter lots of information from people with varying degrees of credibility and insight. Choose to work with the advice that is both applicable and from a reputable source, and kindly thank your inexperienced friends and family for their input without attempting to work it into your business.

Track down professionals and trusted business leaders who are willing to give you advice about your startup. Don’t just follow every vague opinion, but carefully research and consider the advice that’s grounded in experience.

Keep Politics Out of It

Another way your business can quickly derail is to pay too much attention to politics and news sources. Certain current events and proposed laws do affect your business seriously. However, too often the news is simply dramatizing current events and distracting you with ungrounded fears and concerns. Keep up with industry news and information and dig deep in your own industry in order to keep your startup thriving.

Start Out Small

While there are a time and a place for small startups, too often these lead to less-than-successful results. Launching a startup requires courage and commitment. One of the biggest mistakes of a failed startup is to under commit with your time and investment. Treat your new business as a serious endeavor and you’ll have a far greater chance of success.