It’s easier than ever to start a business these days. Gone are the days of venture capital and begging for money. Now is the time to start a business. I wanted to write my own starting a business for dummies article.
Once college graduation is over with, many young people will opt to venture off on their own instead of entering the corporate world.
There’s nothing wrong with either option… as long as it’s what you truly want to do with your life. Deciding what to do after college is tough. The quicker you make this decision, the better off you’ll be.
If you happen to be one of those ambitious young people that would prefer to pursue an entrepreneurial venture and start a business with no money, instead of going straight to work, then please read this article first.
1. Consider saving up first.
With the rise of various online work, it’s now fairly easy to make money without having to spend lots of money. You’ll however want to have a little bit of money saved up to play around with various business ventures (from online to physical service).
Before you tap out family/friends for money, look for angel investors, give your soul to a vulture capitalist (just kidding!), you’ll want to exhaust your own personal savings/sweat equity first.
Aside: I just spent $200 on getting my own newsletter setup. Having money saved up, makes these types of business transactions easier to perform. If you need a few dollars to invest into your business (outsourcing or expanding) you won’t want to let a lack of money stop you.
Many of the internet entrepreneurs that I interviewed for my money makers series admitted that they held on to at least a part-time job for the first few years where they tried to get their business off the ground. There’s nothing wrong with taking a full-time position within a company so that you can save up some capital for your business. If you want to devote more time to your new business, then you could at least try to hold a part-time job.
The key here is that you have some money saved up so that your new business isn’t solely financed with debt.
2. Try using your God-given skills.
Instead of looking for the next “out-of-this-world” idea, why don’t you try using the skills that God gave you to make some money?
We would all love to create the next Facebook or Plenty of Fish, but realistically speaking we all just want to make some money. The whole point of an entrepreneurial venture is to have the freedom to make money on your own, the way you want to. Imagine mixing in your skills with some cash? Imagine getting paid to do something you’re already good at?
Some examples…
Before you try to create the next ab-roller, try freelancing your services as a personal trainer.
Before you try to create a portable guitar, consider giving guitar lessons to guys that want to learn guitar to impress chicks.
You get the point.
3. Don’t get too capital intensive right off the bat.
What do I mean by capital intensive? I strongly urge that unless you come from a rich family or you inherit a boatload of money, that you should NOT try to open a McDonald’s franchise as your first business.
The key here is to not get too carried away with hopes and dreams of opening a booming restaurant in the downtown district right off the bat. Start slow and see where the journey takes you. When you start a business, you want to have some fun too.
What else was missed? Any additional tips for aspiring entrepreneurs or those looking for starting a business for dummies style advice?
I’d DEFINITELY gain some tier 1 corporate experience for the first couple years at least, while working on your entrepreneurial business on the side.
If you never get the opportunity to work for a great corporation, then you might as well still work at whatever job you can and build your business up so you have something.
I’d say that if you want to start your own business, you must be ready to live on a minimal income for a few years. Reinvesting my profit in my online company for the past 3 years was the best way to ensure its growth without financing and getting stuck with bank (or worst: family)’s engagements.
I currently work full time and grow my business on the side. So instead of working extra hours at work, I put my “overtime” on my business. For 2 years, almost all money was reinvested in the company. We recently started to withdraw a few bucks per month as a “reward” of our hard work.
Working part time will slow down your company progression but will avoid to jeopardize your financial situation (you don’t want to go bankrupt at 25!).