Google “how to start a business” and you’ll get a wealth of information — some of it great, some of it… not so much. I’m here to help you cut through the white noise. After successfully launching and growing multiple businesses, I’ve learned a lot about what works and what doesn’t. In this blog, I’m sharing some of my best tips. Keep reading!
5 Tips for How to Start a Business
Here are some of the best things I’ve learned over the years.
1. Be “On” All the Time
These days, side hustles are all the rage. Many of us are looking for ways to earn money on top of our full-time income. However, if you want to start a business, there will come a point when it won’t be enough to treat it as a side hustle.
I understand that many of us start a new business while working a full-time job. And certainly, I’m not telling you to walk away from the security of your paycheck and livelihood for a new business. However, you will hit an inflection point where you have to decide: “Do I pursue this 100% or continue to keep it on the sidelines?”
If you want your new biz to skyrocket, you’re going to have to make it your front-and-center priority.
What happens if you hit that point and realize that for some reason, you can’t give it the attention that it deserves? Well, you might need to readjust your expectations. Instead of striving to turn this business into a huge money-maker, you might need to make peace with it not going any further than it is right now: a side hustle.
2. Decide that Failure is Not an Option
Becoming an entrepreneur and growing a successful business is really hard — probably harder than most people realize. If you want to learn how to start a business, one of the best pieces of advice I can give you is this. You have to fully understand that failure is not an option.
You will — without a doubt — run into many hiccups along your journey. And they never end. You will always be solving new problems and putting out fires. You’re going to try some things and they won’t work.
You have to know that these are not failures. They’re feedback. If you tried something and it didn’t work, guess what? You just ruled that thing out! Pivot and try something else.
3. Pick the Right Business
Finding the right business for you isn’t necessarily intuitive. In fact, don’t be surprised if you have to kiss a lot of frogs. You might try to start a few businesses, find that they’re not winners, and toss them away. (That’s okay!)
So, what should you look for in a potential business opportunity? Well, ideally, the business needs to be solving a problem that not a lot of other businesses are solving. In other words, look for a business that doesn’t have a ton of competition. If the greater industry you want to work in is competitive, that doesn’t mean it’s a bad idea. What it means is that you need to find a unique twist for your business. For example, opening a frozen yogurt shop in your neighborhood probably isn’t the best idea if there are already 10 shops within a three-mile radius. However, maybe your frozen yogurt is all vegan. Now, you’re eliminating much of the competition and targeting a much more specific crowd.
Learn more about a red ocean vs a blue ocean. It all comes down to avoiding waters that are already too crowded.
Second, you need to like it! Don’t pick a business purely because you see the profit potential. If you end up hating it, money likely won’t compensate for that fact. Your business needs to speak to you and spark a sense of passion within you in some way. Remember, you’re in this for the long haul.
4. Research the Business You’re Considering Starting
One of the quickest paths to failure is to assume you already know everything you need to know. Instead, approach this potential business like a complete beginner. One of the best things you can do is research the competition.
Visit their locations, if possible. Become a client/customer. Sign up for the mailing list. Check out their social media channels. Go through their website. Read their reviews.
Another suggestion? This might be a little tougher but if possible, get a job in that industry. For example, if you’re considering starting a limo business, try to get a job with a limo company, even just for a few months. You’ll get a better behind-the-scenes look, and you get to learn on their dime.
5. Make Sure the Business Can Scale Without You
This one is huge. Without it, all you’re doing is creating another job for yourself (in addition to the job you might already be working).
You need to create a business that can run and grow without you. Sure, you might need to be heavily invested for the first couple of years. But ideally, you should be able to step back from the business and allow others to run it for you. Then, that gives you the time, energy, and space to work on the business and not in it. This is one important leadership quality that many entrepreneurs overlook.
If a business can’t function without you, something is wrong. Think about this very early on in the process, because once you get settled into the routine of having to be there to run your business every day, it’s really hard to get out of it.
This is just the tip of the iceberg — let’s keep the conversation going. Over on YouTube, I published a video with five more tips. Watch it below and don’t forget to give it a thumbs up! Questions? Drop me a comment.
