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Expert Answers to Biz Questions
Listen in! Pick up some expert advice to a reader's question that we selected from CyberSchmooz.
3 Tips for Starting Your Own Business
The idea of steady, reliable work by having a good job has lost its appeal for many people. While a good job might look inviting when you’re unemployed and desperately need a source of income, it’s quite a different story once you get signed up.
You’ll quickly discover that the cost of living far exceeds the amount you’re paid. If you do earn a high salary, the amount of work and effort you have to put in will slowly take up most of your time. The idea of work/life balance won't last for long, and you'll slowly find yourself working longer hours in the day and taking work home at night. Ultimately, if you have an entrepreneurial spirit, the idea of being told what to do all the time, always falling short of the money you need, and feeling chronically exhausted doing work that bores you to tears begins to irk you. That’s when you decide you would be far better off starting your own business.
When starting a business, you should network and explore available resources to help small business owners. It’s also important to set aside time to learn more about your field—by reading about it, going to seminars, and building relationships with other small business owners.
Here are three tips help you with launch your own small business:
1. Find the right office space.
While starting a business from a spare bedroom might be a good place to start, you will eventually need to hire a few people to help you once the work gets too much for you to handle alone. As your business grows and your staff increases, you will outgrow the idea of a home-based business.
However, what do you do if you reach a point where you have insufficient cash flow to rent and furnish an office, but you need to impress clients with the appearance of a mature business? Inviting them to a business conference in your living room isn’t going to convince them to sign a contract. Even if you do a video conference, they will see that you’re working out of a spare bedroom.
The solution is to get a virtual office—an office that you rent out for a short time. For instance, if you live in Irvine, California, then a virtual office in Irvine will outfit you with an upscale office in a great location. Besides inviting your clients over to your Feng Shui –styled office, which is a blend of old-world furnishings and state-of-the-art amenities, you’ll be in a business district with a choice of shopping, dining and entertainment places.
3. Master the art of problem-solving.
When you face overwhelming business problems, it’s easy to get discouraged and believe you’re not cut out to run your own business. When things fail to go as planned, it’s tempting to just give in. While it’s only human to get upset about business problems and feel discouraged, you also have to realize that failure is only temporary.
The root cause of all business problems is that there is something you don’t know. Through the use of problem-solving strategies and seeking new knowledge, you can overcome each and every problem you face. It’s essential to develop an attitude that every problem has a solution and that you will find it.
In the final analysis, the only difference between a thriving business and one that closed its doors is that the successful business owner stayed the course long enough to figure out a way to overcome their most pressing problems.
3. Follow your passion.
A great business idea is only one click away. Googling for business ideas will yield an overwhelming number of good ideas. However, the most important thing is to find a good idea for you. That is an idea that fits in with your interests and skillsets. Only if there is a match between a business idea and your own knowledge, skills, ability, and interests will the idea work well for you.
In an age when it appears that working as an employee for a large corporation can help you meet all your basic needs like providing you with a schedule, giving you a salary, and offering a benefits package, why do people want to start their own business? It’s because all the comforts of being an employee are an illusion. The only way to build wealth is by creating your own business. Yes, it’s not easy, but after you succeed, it will all have been well worth it.
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