Every business starts somewhere.
Whether it’s your first attempt at getting something off the ground – or your fifth – you’ll benefit from our series that details the step-by-step process of taking an idea and turning it into a profitable enterprise through careful planning, dedicated execution, and skillful marketing.
In this article we’ll walk you through ideation, business formation, creating a business plan, getting funding, and building a presence. We’ll then give you a roadmap for countless small business opportunities and help you branch off into the business path that suits you best.
Let’s get started.
Define Your Goals
What Motivates You?
Money / Nice Things
Solving a Problem / Building Things
Providing for your family
Flexibility
There are more ways to make money than most people could ever dream. The challenge is finding one that provides you the life that you want.
Do you want to be a millionaire with a yacht and vacation house? Or do you want to make enough for a comfortable living that pays the bills?
The approach you take in building a business that supports these different lifestyles can be very different.
Find an Idea You’re Passionate About
There are 3 common places where people draw inspiration for a new business.
- Their current job
- Their hobbies
- Their family and/or health situation
Your Current Job
Are you working in a job you love, but with a boss you hate? Why not take a leap and start the same business? You likely already have an edge on most people because you have a specialized skillset that is attune with your industry and you can understand what is an isn’t successful about the business where you’re currently employed. Be a better leader for your new employees and watch your business grow!
Do you deal with equipment or software that that can be improved upon? What’s preventing you from pursuing the creation of a product that improves upon the flawed version you’re operating? There are only a small subset of people in the world who even know the problem exists and an even tinier population who care enough to do anything about it. This could be your opportunity!
Can you work with the owner of your company to open a new location? Is there a gap in the market a few towns (or states) over? If you’re working for a successful local company maybe the owner never considered that they could open a second location. Be the person who facilitates franchising the business and ask for an ownership stake as you help expand.
For most people inspiration isn’t the problem. It’s the follow-through.
