What to do before you start a business

What to do before you start a business

So you’ve been toying with the idea of starting your business and the idea is growing more and more on you. As with everything worth anything in life, planning is the first step to a successful journey.

Use these steps to help you plan and prepare for your new business:

1. Make sure you have what it takes to be an entrepreneur. Many people dream of being their own boss but fail dismally when they actually go out on their own because they don’t have the qualities of an entrepreneur. It does take a certain type of personality to start a business and run it successfully. Entrepreneurship is definitely not for everyone.
2. Are you ready to be an entrepreneur? Even if you have the right qualities to be an entrepreneur, is it the right time for you to start a business? Besides the economic climate, you should also consider your personal circumstances.
3. Research your business idea. As genius as you think your idea may be, you need to do your homework. You have to make sure your idea is financially viable and that the target market actually wants or needs it.
4. Find a mentor. This is really important because no matter how good you are at your job, starting up and running a business will be a completely new challenge. You will need to build up skills in areas you may not have been exposed to, like finance, marketing, sales, HR, strategy and even admin. If you have someone you can bounce ideas off and who can guide you, you will feel a lot more confident about what you’re doing.
5. Start networking. Networking is really important for any business owner and especially for start-ups. You will be able to get referrals from other businesses, business ideas, advice, support and comradeship from attending networking events. Definitely something worth spending time and even some budget on.
6. Create a business plan. A business plan describes what your products and services are, who your target market is, how you will market to your target market, what costs you expect to have as well as revenue you predict to make and what resources you will need.
7. Exit plan. Nobody wants to think that their business will fail but it’s important to have an exit strategy in case it does happen. Unfortunately, 80% of businesses fail so it’s not uncommon. An exit strategy would describe what you will do if the business doesn’t work. For example, you could sell the assets to a competitor to cover your costs and go back to your old job.

The proof is in the planning. It really does pay to plan everything before you decide to go ahead. You will learn so much from the exercise which will put you in a better position all round, even if you learn that you shouldn’t start that business.