Following the Development and Setup stages comes the Maturation stage. In fact, we might also refer to this as the Growth stage, because this is where the venture that has been built is carried forward through three parallel methods: Monitoring, Protection, and Improvement.
This is the stage in which our venture begins to evolve, its walls are built, and it is shaped into what it is meant to become. While the Development and Setup stages are largely based on research, analysis, and decision-making, the Maturation stage relies predominantly on execution and monitoring.
At this point, individuals and organizations begin to see the real-world results of their ventures and how they are received by their target audiences. As time passes, results, reactions, recommendations, and competitors become increasingly clear. This is the stage where resources begin to be actively deployed, and where the execution of earlier decisions becomes critical in terms of sustainability and efficiency.
There are generally three fundamental mistakes made during the Maturation stage.
The first is starting too early or too late. Spending too much time on setup or development and failing to act when the time is right, or rushing into action before the setup has been properly completed, is one of the most common mistakes. There may, of course, be exceptions where circumstances require a different approach, but timing is critically important during the Maturation stage.
The second fundamental mistake is seeking rapid growth during the maturation phase. In reality, the roots of this mistake usually lie in the Setup stage. Setting goals incorrectly or within unrealistic timeframes, or failing to adhere to those goals during execution at this stage, can sometimes lead to irreversible damage and even a loss of motivation.
The third mistake is evaluating the product or venture according to your own beliefs rather than according to the market.
You may have identified a major gap in the market. You may have created a far more advanced version of an existing service or product. You may even have genuinely created the best offering in your field. Perhaps that is true. Perhaps it is not.
What validates it, however, will always be your target audience.
Many people continue to believe blindly in their ventures, almost fanatically shutting themselves off from the market’s response. They see modifying, changing, or improving the product as an insult to their vision or as an admission of failure.
But this is not true.
Once again, this is an example of the damage caused by failing to distinguish between the individual and the organization, as well as by ego itself. What ultimately matters is never your own assessment of your venture; it is the market’s or your target audience’s assessment of it.
Your vision should, of course, focus on preserving the originality of the product, as long as doing so does not directly conflict with observed demand and feedback. However, the product should evolve with the audience, not in spite of it, and it should change when necessary.
Unlike the first and second stages, this phase does not follow a direct, sequential execution process. During implementation, your order of action and your priorities will inevitably be shaped, more often than not, not by your own preferences but by the market and industry you have entered.
For this reason, rather than presenting a fixed sequence of steps, we have compiled the most important points you should pay attention to.
Remember:
In physical reality, action creates reaction.
In all human activity, however, reaction creates action.
This is a reality that entrepreneurs and artists alike must never forget.
