I’ve often been asked about the inspiration behind starting my own business. The one thing I know for sure is that it wasn’t an easy decision to make. Getting from no idea of what you want to do with your life, to making a choice and taking the plunge can be a grueling experience for anyone.
Before you start your business, there are many things to consider.
- Is this the right time? Are you ready mentally and emotionally?
- Do you have the money to support it?
- Can you handle the stress of running a company?
Many questions arise when you decide to go at it alone: Will this work? Is this right for me? Is there something else out there waiting? What if people don’t like my products/services/ideas?
GET REAL IN YOUR CONFIDENCE
Real confidence isn’t based on thoughts like “I’m the best,” but rather on actions and results.
In order to get real in your confidence, you need to know your strengths and weaknesses as a business owner, as well as what it will take for your idea to succeed. You also need to understand who your ideal customers are and how they’ll use or buy from you. And finally, be realistic about what you can achieve within the time frame available for this project (or series of projects).
START BEFORE YOU’RE READY
You may be thinking, “I don’t have enough money! I don’t know anyone in the industry! I’m not ready!” But if you wait until you are completely prepared, it will never happen. As much as you might want to believe otherwise, there is no such thing as perfect timing or a perfect moment to take action.
If you wait too long, fear will creep in and overwhelm your desire to make change happen. The longer that fear has its way with your mind and heart, the harder it will be for you to make progress toward your goals—and even worse: the longer that fear has its way with your mind and heart, the more likely it is that those fears will become reality.
In short: if anything is worth doing (starting a business), then it’s worth doing before we’re ready.
MAKE SURE YOU GOT THE CASH
Cash flow is the lifeblood of your business. You need to ensure that you have enough cash on hand to pay your monthly expenses and bills. The best way to do this is by calculating your cash-to-debt ratio, or C/D ratio.
To calculate your C/D ratio:
- Subtract all liabilities from all assets
- Divide that total by net profit (or sales)
KNOW WHAT YOU CAN BEAR TO COPE WITH
How do you deal with uncertainty? What are your strategies for dealing with it? How do you expect others to react when they come into contact with this uncertainty, such as customers and investors? If you don’t know how to deal with it yet, how can you learn how to deal with it better?
- The ups and downs of running your own business:
- The stress of making payroll
- The uncertainty of the future
You may have some great days where everything is going smoothly, but then there are other days when you’re stressed because you don’t know how you’ll make payroll or how to handle a difficult employee.
These situations can feel overwhelming and stressful. But it’s important to remember that everyone goes through this at some point in their career. The key is knowing how to cope with these things when they happen so that you can keep moving forward toward your goals instead of getting stuck in a negative cycle of stress and worry.
ONLY START-UP WHEN IT’S PASSION, NOT JUST PROFITS
To get started, you need to make sure that you have a passion for this business. It should be something that you enjoy doing and can’t wait to get back to when your day is done. You should also make sure that it’s a good fit for your skills and personality. If you’re not suited for the job, it will drive you crazy trying to do something that doesn’t come naturally or feed into who you are as a person.
You also need to consider whether or not there’s room in the industry for more competition; if so, how long do experts estimate until things start getting crowded? And finally, are there any other factors—like the location—that may make starting up difficult?
CONCLUSION
Starting a business is not for the faint-hearted. It’s a huge step that will change your life and the lives of those around you. But if you are determined to go ahead, then it can be an exciting time full of opportunities to grow as an individual and make money while doing so. We hope this guide has helped you consider some of the things that might affect whether or not starting up is right for you!