2020 is already running, do you still want to start a business?
Thomas Clem
Starting a business, How to start a business
Business is tough, a renown author said "Business is war" another posited that business is more than war; as war is seasonal while business is perpetual. While these statement can be discouraging that business isn't a smooth ride or a walk in the park, it helps to position the mind that business can be quite challenging, either starting up or scaling up. Here is the sweet part, business comes with a great fulfilling reward is done rightly but you are still left out. How about we examine what is holding you a lot of people from starting business and proffers some solution.
Lack of Cash: This is usually the problem most people complain of even when they have great business idea, they are cash-strapped. Is this solvable?, yes. Let's see how you can manage this. If you really need to start a business but you are lacking fund, some few lifestyle steps would get you started.
a) Get a job: If you truly believe in your dreams, then generating startup capital through regular or irregular job is a way to push yourself. This may include regular job like office jobs, driving a taxi (Uber etc), sales roles, freelance online job etc. The goal is not to get a dream job, but to get a job that allows you to build your dream. While getting a job may be challenging, there is always someone ready to pay you if you can help them solve a problem. If you have a technical skill, then rendering services would help you gather some sizeable cash. Your goal at this point is to gather some cash within a timeframe to get started, so get your hands really dirty and you will be happier for it. you may even do multiple jobs but not to the detriment of your health.
b) Social capital: If you are very good with people, then this can be a great asset to you. Your social relationship may pay off by getting people to either support you with some funds or a business partner you can leverage on to get started. This however requires some level of trust as people would be unwilling to part with their resources if they hardly trust you.
c) Reduce spending: Getting discipline with money is very..very important in business, so managing your cash flow is one way to help you mop up and save fund to start your business. A way to do this is push some amount of money to another account on a regular basis, this help to reduce the amount of disposble income at your hence and the temptation to spend.
Lack of business knowledge
knowledge is wealth and lack of it is very expensive when starting a new business. Either your business is self-managed or by a third party, having a good knowledge of your business would save you headache in the long run. You may have to approach someone who has done what you intend to achieve or something similar to help you with the right footing. This person may be a mentor or trainer, however, it is important the person has a track record to avoid impractical knowledge about running a business. Online business courses on sales & marketing, basic accounting on Udemy, Coursera etc would be very helpful at this stage. Having a good knowledge about your business would save you from mistakes of wrong decision when you have some funds available.
Fright of failure
Failure is such a bitter enemy so people don't want to get associated with it, however it is totally unavoidable. It is a pointer to man's imperfection and could help us refine ourselves to become better. When starting a business be willing to fail, yes..fail. Be more willing to get up and push further. Your persistence in pushing further is the key determinant to your success. However , reckless failure can be avoided in business.
You can save yourself from investing all your hard-earned money on a business and it flop. A great way to avoid this is found by acquiring business knowledge, start small and iterate. This helps you take calculated risk not reckless ones. Your knowledge about business (marketing research, sales, basic accounting) would help you manage your risk appetite better. While learning curve can differ for individual, your ability to persist rightly would help you achieve your desired success.
Thoman Clem is a reowned Business Consultant.
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