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Many entrepreneurs are afraid of failing when they first start out, but it's possible to push past that fear and find success. Today, more people than ever are driven to create their own businesses. While the thought of being your own boss and creating something you love can be exhilarating, many entrepreneurs also experience that prickly feeling of fear when they actually launch. After all, the potential for failure is high in the early stages of a startup, and new businesses don't always make it past their first few years. Some people will fold under the pressure while others will rise to the challenge despite their fear. To help you ensure you're in the latter camp, 14 members of Rolling Stone Culture Council share how entrepreneurs can overcome the fear of failure and push forward.

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There's always room for more creators and artists — you just have to know how to market yourself. With more social media platforms available than ever before, influencers, artists and content creators have multiple blank canvases ready for the taking. However, all these options may leave new creators unsure of where to begin with their brand promotion strategy. While it's easy to daydream about amassing hundreds of thousands of followers and "going viral" overnight, effectively growing your social media presence requires thoughtful planning and a strategic approach. To that end, 10 members of Rolling Stone Culture Council provide their best advice for new content creators who are ready to showcase and promote their brands on social media.

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A leader’s mindset can make a huge difference in how well a business succeeds during times of uncertainty. The business world can often feel like a roller coaster with unpredictable ups and downs. While it's easy for business leaders to stay positive during the good times, it can be harder to keep that same attitude when the going gets tough. Cultivating the right mindset can help leaders better navigate challenges and have a greater appreciation for the victories. If you're looking for a boost of positivity, the members of Rolling Stone Culture Council share their tried-and-true strategies for staying positive no matter the external circumstances.

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The key to differentiating yourself in the market is identifying and developing a strong brand identity. The way you position and identify your brand has a huge impact on the way you're perceived, from the business opportunities you’re offered to the type of customer who purchases your products or services. Developing this brand identity often begins by asking a series of introspective questions: What does your company stand for? What issues do you care about? What gap in the market do you fill? These are important questions to answer and reevaluate often as a business owner, but they're far from the only ways to conceptualize your brand. Below, 11 Rolling Stone Culture Council members offer their best advice for finding your brand's identity and explain why each step is so important.

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Sometimes just one question can let you know you’re on the right track. Business is full of tough decisions. During the course of a day, an entrepreneur could find themselves making anywhere from one to hundreds of tough decisions, big or small. While experience and time help make the decision-making process easier for many business owners, they can still often benefit from asking themselves a few clarifying questions. Below, a panel of Rolling Stone Culture Council members each share a question an entrepreneur can ask themselves before making a tough decision to ensure they’re on the right track.

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A podcast can be an excellent opportunity to gain recognition for your brand if you do it right. It seems that there's a podcast for every subject or interest nowadays, from true crime to financial advice to entrepreneurship. This medium has become a go-to source of entertainment and education for many, which is why business owners are clamoring to launch their own podcast ventures. While many podcasts have had unprecedented success and reach, many more have been made that have flown under the radar, so entrepreneurs considering starting a podcast for their company should do so cautiously and with a few considerations in mind. Below, 10 Rolling Stone Culture Council experts share what entrepreneurs should understand before they invest time, energy and resources into launching a podcast.

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It’s never too late to make changes for the better. In the excitement of getting their first business up and running, new entrepreneurs may rush through the website-building process, aiming for speed to market rather than a well-planned design. In doing so, though, they may end up missing a few key components along the way, making mistakes that could cost them in the long run. Even if your website is already live, however, it’s not too late to make some valuable changes. Below, a panel of Rolling Stone Culture Council members discuss some of the mistakes first-time entrepreneurs make when building their websites and what can be done to fix them.

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Do your strategic planning right.

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To get noticed, you’ll need to provide something worth noticing. With so much advice and content out in the world already, audiences are having their attention pulled in all sorts of directions, not only making it difficult for them to find true value in what they consume, but also making it challenging for thought leaders to get noticed.  But if you run a business or want to make a name for yourself in the world of thought leadership, rising above the noise is key for success. To do so, consider the following advice from the business leaders of Rolling Stone Culture Council. Their insights may give you that boost you need to stand out from the competition.