5 Startup Lessons from an Online Entrepreneur

Riccardo Ocleppo, the online entrepreneur behind student-sharing platform Docsity.com, shares five of the key startup lessons and essential entrepreneurial skills he’s learned along the way.

1.  Don’t give up

Keep in mind that founding a startup is a long road; there will be lots more startup lessons to learn, and you will need strength and courage. It’s natural to get discouraged, just don’t give up!

2.  Be prepared to work hard

No one will do the hard work for you. As an online entrepreneur or other type of founder, you will work more than most of the people you know. This is not a nine-to-five job, but nevertheless it’s much more fun!

3.  Always keep learning

This is probably the most important startup lesson to learn, because it is strictly connected to growing your entrepreneurial skills, yourself and pushing your limits. Always test yourself to check whether you’re still learning or not.

4.  Understand your mistakes

We learn much more from mistakes than from successes. As an online entrepreneur, you will need the lucidness to understand why mistakes have occurred and how to avoid them. This is essential for the future of your project.

5.  Follow your passion

Take your time to focus on what is really your passion, and do everything you need to follow it. This is indeed a difficult task, because most of the time we choose a traditional path, unable to see alternatives. Take a deep breath, and focus on a project that could really combine your talents, entrepreneurial skills, and your passion.

Riccardo Ocleppo is the founder of Docsity.com, a leading website for college students in Italy and Latin America. Docsity allows students to share and download study notes, exchange Q&As, chat, interact, and more. All content is user-generated, and the more users share, the more functionalities they can access. In 2014, Docsity received the FBN NxG Award, which celebrates young entrepreneurs, and reached 1 million registered users worldwide.