Building your own business from scratch to market leader status is no easy task. It’s not surprising that over 70 percent of startups fail in their founding year. That’s why startup entrepreneurs need top-notch business skills, a thriving environment, and daily operations, among several other things, to satisfy customers’ needs and meet business goals. It also pays to follow a few entrepreneurial concepts that keep you going at all times. Here are three key business concepts every entrepreneur needs to know.

1. Learning never stops.

Entrepreneurship can be a full-time job, even for those who only consider their startups as a side hustle. Entrepreneurs can designate any time of the day as office-hours planning and ideating, as long as they don’t want their businesses to fail. For this reason, learning never stops. It can take several forms, from enrolling in a 2 year business management degree secondary program to reading a book on effective management principles.

What you know serves as a strong foundation to build your products and services as an entrepreneur. For instance, if you understand different cultures and the related impact on your sales goals, you can deploy efficient winning strategies that reach different customers. Generally, a learning habit can be a great stepping stone. Some startup founders who lead with a learning culture encourage employees to take up the learning habit during their stints.

There’s never a limit to what you can learn, but it’s essential to focus on subject areas that can churn maximum benefits. Reading about market research and business communication can be a good idea. Alternatively, entrepreneurs can focus on soft skills like critical thinking, efficient negotiating, and presentation skills.

2. Data is always king.

Modern devices and platforms provide large amounts of data frequently, and business owners can leverage data to advance business decision-making, personalize customer service, and boost returns on investments (ROI). But efficient data management is easier said than done, as businesses collect data from several sources, including social media, websites, and mobile apps.

Sometimes, managing a lot of data with traditional data resources can be daunting. Enlisting data labeling companies to efficiently manage data values from multiple data sources can be a great option. Data labeling prepares data for machine-learning projects and deep-learning algorithms. Data labeling supports various use case scenarios, including computer vision, natural language processing, and speech recognition.

Generally, data services can improve every entrepreneur’s journey, and many businesses deploy robots to improve operational efficiency and chatbots for personalized customer service. This is why data is king.

3. Cash flow is “more important than your mother.”

Financial managers and advisers have exploited this third concept in several discussions. Alan Shugart first introduced the concept in the quote, “It’s important to remember when starting and growing a new company that cash is more important than your mother.” There’s no better way to underscore the importance of cash flow in the business world, especially for businesses of all sizes.

Businesses spend money on several things, from logistics to salaries, but it’s important to keep outflows to the barest minimum and focus more on cash inflows. Elon Musk’s Tesla is a great example to entrench cash flow’s essence in every startup. The vehicle manufacturer continues to find difficulties in making profits. Tesla has lost billions of dollars since its inception, but this hasn’t curtailed the startup’s growth. What’s better is that its stocks continue to rise on the market, and a huge part of its growth can be ascribed to Tesla’s ability to raise and retain money using several strategies, including debt financing, downsizing, and more.

In conclusion, entrepreneurship comes with its pros and cons, but it’s essential to know that no challenge is reserved for only you. Building your competency and seeking help from colleagues and mentors can never be a miss.