20 Steps to Starting a Small BusinessIf starting a business was easy, everyone would do it. However, I can tell you based on experience that it is the most rewarding thing you could do to earn the kind of money that you will never see in a job. The steps to starting a small business are easy to understand but difficult to implement – not because the implementation is an arduous process but because most people simply do not have the resolve that it takes to follow through. Most people get stuck before they start because they let their minds take them out of the game. If your mind says to you things like; it's risky, job security is important and I'm not cut out for business then you will fail. On the other hand if you replace those thoughts with empowering thoughts such as; I'm in the process of learning to be a great business person then eventually you will become one. Business is all about learning to become comfortable with risk but, as they say, "the greater the risk, the greater the reward." Here's a list of 20 steps to starting a small business. These 20 things are solely based on experience after having started 3 very successful, and now not so small, businesses. 1. Do something you love. Unless you choose a business that you are passionate about your will most likely fail before you get started. Starting a business for money is the last thing that should be one your mind. 2. Quit your job when you're business is making money. Many people make the mistake of quitting their job before the money starts to roll. Most businesses can be started in your spare time and then when they start to make money, enough to replace your current income, is when you should quit your job. 3. Planning is everything. Have a clearly laid out plan such as a business and financial plan. Sure the plans may change along the way but at least you'll know where you're going. 4. Learn from someone who's already successful at the business you want to be in. Trial and error is the longest route to success, don't do it. Find a mentor or pay for information from an expert. 5. Learn how to sell. Selling is the key to business. If you're not selling it's not a business it's a hobby. 6. Raise your level of energy. If you've ever heard the expression, "how you do anything is how you do everything," then you'll want to raise your energy to a new level to get a new result. If you go into business with the same level of energy you use in your job you will fail. 7. Try to resist the temptation to focus on your business problems. Fixing problems will only create more problems. Focus on what's working and you'll get more of what's working. 8. One of the quickest paths to success is to help others get what they want first. If you help others first you will have what ever you've given out ten times over. 9. Pay yourself first. You must get in the habit of paying yourself rather that for everything else. If you learn to pay yourself and are grateful for the money then more will come. 10. Make sure that whatever you do you have a big dream. Nothing big ever got created with a small idea. 11. Create a mastermind group. If you tried to push a boulder up a hill by yourself you would quickly realize that it is impossible to do so unless you had the help of others. A mastermind group is a great way of learning from and empowering others in the process. 12. Choose a business that has good cash flow and low overhead. Sounds simple but many rush into things with little or no knowledge of what makes a business fiscally sound. 13. Know exactly what you want. The number one reason why people don't succeed or get what they want is they don't knowing exactly what that is. Figure out first what you want in business and in your personal life and you will stand a much better chance of getting it. 14. Keep an open mind. Many things that happen in business are not what you'd want or even intended but, please know that these things have been custom designed to get you what you want faster than you think is possible. Therefore, don't take failures as a sign that you should quit. Thomas Edison said that, "success is 99% failure." 15. Never ever quit. Quitters never win and winners never quit. 16. Become a "learn-it-all." Learning is the key to business success. That's why know-it-alls never win. Those are the people who say they know a lot but know very little. If, on the other hand, you become a learn-it-all you will never stop learning and that is not only the key to business but to life itself. 17. Keep a lot of cash in your pocket. Cash will make you feel different and it attracts more cash. Cash is king! Ever heard that? It's also a lot easier to negotiate when you have cash. 18. Spend just enough to keep the business moving forward. You will have to risk investment but you must temper that with the potential reward. Spending money based on a whim is not a good idea. Get expert advice on when and where you should invest. 19. Become an expert marketer. Marketing is not the same as selling and is certainly not the same as having a great product. You could have the greatest product on the planet but if no one knows about it then how much of your product will you sell? 20. Automation, automation, automation. It's not a business unless you can walk away from it for a couple months and come back and it's still in the same shape and earning the same amount of money as when you left. If not, then it's not a business, you've created yourself a job. Show me where is says "job" in "small business." These 20 steps to starting a small business have been brought to you by me. If someone had given me these steps to starting my businesses it would have made things much much easier. But, for many years I struggled needlessly. Everything that is stated in these 20 steps to starting a small business I have used and continue to use in my businesses. I only wish that more people would learn them and adopt them. 85% of all business start-ups fail. Which simply means that most of them did not follow this advice or didn't know about it in the first place? Now you know, so you have no excuses. Paul Tobey PS: These 20 steps to starting a small business are part of the overall StreetSmart Marketer plan to help you build a successful business. For more information subscribe to our Free Marketing Tips Magazine. | |
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