How To Be An Entrepreneur No Matter What City You Live In

Between my work on the show Cleveland Hustles and through attending social entrepreneurship events held by companies like Breakout, I’ve spent a lot of time in recent months focusing on “growing Main Street” by way of startups and small businesses.

It’s something I’m super passionate about because small businesses are the ones who actually solve the problems in our local communities, and the entrepreneurs who build them are ultimately the key factors when it comes to revitalizing these neighborhoods and cities.

There’s a common misconception out there that in order to truly be successful in growing a startup or small business, you need to live in a big market area like New York or Los Angeles, but in my recent experience, that definitely hasn’t been the case.

Every city has hidden gems. In reality, cities like Cleveland, Detroit, Baltimore, and Newark are just as innovative places as anywhere. It’s just as feasible to build a tech startup in one of those areas as it is in any other place in the nation.

If you don’t believe me, you should try sitting down with a few entrepreneurs from those regions. You’ll quickly see that they’re just as passionate and driven about building their company in Newark, New Jersey as any entrepreneur you’d find out in Silicon Valley.

That’s what I did recently when I met with a local entrepreneur named Anthony Frasier of Newark Venture Partners. I sat down with him and discussed some of his keys to success.

These were some of the takeaways:

Personal Development Matters

In building his startup, Anthony pointed to personal development as playing a huge part of his success. “It’s learning a lot of those things about being an entrepreneur that don’t come in a business book,” he said. “We need to develop ourselves as people. I noticed as my personal development rose, so did my business development alongside it. When you’re confident and love yourself, you approach the whole situation differently.”

He went on to point out that personal development requires patience and goal setting, which are two important qualities for any entrepreneurs to have, much less those younger ones who are just starting out and trying to rebuild their neighborhood.

Focus On Each Step

Anthony told me that “a lot of entrepreneurs think A to Z, they don’t think A to B,” which I thought was a pretty powerful statement. In starting and trying to grow your business, it’s important to consider where your finish line is, but in getting there, it’s even more important to focus on and execute against each individual step along the way.

Getting too far ahead of yourself could cause a major setback, especially if you are operating in a smaller city where you might not have quite as many resources at your disposal.

Let Your Passion Drive You Forward

And lastly, if you’re not passionate about what you’re doing in your local area, you will inevitably run out of gas. “You won’t be successful if there’s no level of passion in what you do,” Anthony told me. “You have to have a why because the money won’t come for a very long time.”

A lot of young entrepreneurs get into the game because they think it’s a good way to make a quick flip. They look at success as something that’s supposed to come fast. But if you’re building something in your neighborhood and trying to make a real impact in your community, it’s going to take time, so you better be passionate about the goal you set out to reach. Otherwise, it’s game over.

For my full chat with Anthony in Newark, watch my latest episode: