So You Want to Start a Business Part 1

This article is written for anyone thinking about starting their own business. You may be working in the corporate world, working for a small company or maybe you are unemployed or taking a sabbatical. Whatever the case may be, there is plenty of opportunity for a person with motivation, determination and vigor to start a new business. I would add that it’s never been cheaper to start a new business. It can be argued that for would be entrepreneurs, there are more resources available right now at a cheaper price than at any other time in history.

The first thing I suggest is that you order a copy of The Portable MBA in Entrepreneurship. Don’t get the newest edition, it’s too expensive. Your first lesson from me in entrepreneurship will be to get the most for your money. The ISBN is 0471577804. While it’s an older edition, it’s a fraction of the price of the newest edition and the lessons in the book have not changed much over the years.

This is probably the best book that any entrepreneur starting out could read. It covers all the aspects of entrepreneurship from writing your business plan and marketing plan to the core concepts –the ingredients for success, the entry barriers, characteristics of a successful venture etc. Many of the lessons in this article are drawn from what I’ve read in that book and found in my real world experience to be true.

There are some questions you will need to answer before starting out on your adventure. The answers to these questions will help you gain insight into whether your business will be successful or not.

What problem does your business solve?

Since people will be paying you, your business needs to solve some problem that people have. If there is already a business that solves this problem, your business needs to solve it faster or more efficiently. In my case I solve computer problems. There are lots of people in Atlanta that have computer problems and they either don’t want to take the time to fix them or they don’t have the time to learn how to fix them. Their time is better spent on the work that they do.

Do you already have customers for your product or service?

To take a line from The MBA in Entrepreneurship, if you don’t have any customers that are ready to buy your product, you have only an idea, not a business. Before I went full time into computer support, I was already giving computer support on a part time basis, so I already had quite a few customers.

Skills

There are certain skills and qualities I think are essential to being a good entrepreneur. Is it possible to get by without these skills? Maybe, but I simply cannot fathom being successful if any of the following are lacking.

* Organization

I cannot fathom trying to run a successful business being disorganized. With so much to keep track of, good organization is key. I use my computer and various software programs to keep myself organized. I would say 95% of the info I store and use is in digital format. I hardly have anything in paper format, and if I do I try to take steps to get them into digital format.

* Communication

Again, I cannot imagine having a successful business without this ever important skill. This is an area where I personally need to improve and I try to do as much as possible to do so. Writing a blog is a great way to improve your communication skills because it forces you to structure your thoughts. Also I watch very little television. If I get a spare moment I try to read books instead. I always have an electronic dictionary nearby so that I can look up any words that I’m unsure of.

* Determination

If you are the type that gives up at the fist bump in the road then this is not for you because you will run into many road blocks. When faced with a challenge or trouble, certain people say “I can’t do this” and certain people say “I will do this”.

* Ability to make mistakes.

I have a notebook where I write down memorable quotes that I read. One such quote I’ve written down is “Failing is learning how to win”. I’ve known certain people in my life who cannot accept nor admit when they’ve made a mistake. This personality type would have a tough time running a business, because mistakes will be made. When mistakes happen you accept what has happened, learn what not to do and refrain from repeating the same mistake. There are other important skills but from my perspective I’ve found these to be the most important.

* Experience

It’s not a good idea to open a burrito joint if you’ve never worked in the food industry before. To borrow from The Portable MBA in Entrepreneurship “Starting a business is a very demanding undertaking indeed. It is no time for on-the-job training. Without relevant experience, the odds are stacked against the neophyte in any industry.” If you want to open a business in an industry that you have no experience in, my suggestion is you take a job with a company in the industry and work there for one to two years first.

Stay tuned for the next article of this multi-part series where I will be talking about the importance of good marketing.

Carlos Cabezas writes about entrepreneurship and solopreneurship on his web site, http://entrepreneurblogger.com. He runs a solo computer business called High Tech Homes and an online training and tutoring business called MyOnlineTutor.net.