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“Go for it!” is the refrain of every experienced business owner talking to a young entrepreneur. It isn’t bad advice; after all, fear is the most common reason people hesitate to launch their own startups. However, there is good reason to be hesitant of starting a new business. A staggering 25 percent of startups close in the first year of operation because their founders weren’t properly prepared.
Fortunately, that won’t be you. You will read this useful guide of things to do before you starting your startup, and you will have the best foundation possible on the road to success.
1. Know What You Like
On the inside, startups take five years to become profitable, but true success comes much farther down the road. Since you’ll be on this business journey for a while, you should know that you are going to enjoy your job. Passion truly is important in entrepreneurship, so you must find yours.
2. Know What You’re Doing
On the flipside, passion doesn’t keep a business up and running. If you’ve never spent a day in a manager’s position, you should go to business school to learn exactly how business works and ensure you’re ready to take the startup plunge. This link will take you to a reliable, flexible MBA program to teach you what you need to know before beginning your startup.
3. Know That You Can’t Know Everything
Business is always a risk. No matter how well you prepare ? with school, with strategies, with safeguards ? you will encounter unforeseen obstacles that will threaten your startup. You can’t know what the future will bring, but you can practice remaining calm and collected in the face of the unknown.
4. Make a Plan
Business school will teach you how to draft a rock-solid plan for your startup, to include market research, expansion tactics, and more. Not only do plans help you stay organized while you get started, but they are absolutely necessary when you approach banks and investors during the financing stage.
5. Make Friends
No startup is an island. Even if your business is just you for a few months, you will definitely need assistance to keep things on-track. Networking is an essential skill for budding entrepreneurs and one you should practice for a while before starting your startup.
6. Make Your Credit Better
Starting a business wrecks your personal credit score because it requires a significant amount of debt. You can try to get around this by refusing to take out small-business loans, which will postpone your startup dreams indefinitely. More realistically, you can spend a few months working hard to raise your credit score as high as you can before you decimate it with your new business.
7. Do Your Research
Again, business school should give you the skills to perform adequate market research. Essentially, you need to know as much as possible about everything related to your business before you begin, so you must do your due diligence. This includes learning about: your industry, your audience, your ideal consumer, your competition, and your local economy.
8. Do Your Taxes
If you think taxes are tough now, you will be in for a surprise when tax season comes after you start your startup. Understanding your taxes will give you better estimates of your earnings from your business ? plus, it will cut down on the likelihood of making a costly mistake on your tax forms.
9. Do a Test-Run
Before your business is your full-time job, you should check its viability. Sitting in stalls at weekend markets or industry conferences will help you gauge interest or opportunity for your startup. Otherwise, you can send out surveys using free and cheap online tools.
10. Find Some Talent
You don’t want just anyone working at your startup ? you want the best of the best. However, you won’t attract the best talent with posters around your hometown. You should use online job boards and enticing posts to generate interest in your open positions, and then you must offer excellent benefits to those brilliant employees you manage to hook.
11. Find a Name
Perhaps the single most important action you will take before starting your startup is this: choosing a name. The name of your business must perfectly exemplify your brand values while describing the service your startup provides. It should be trendy and long-lasting. This isn’t a snap decision, but you can’t overthink it, either. You might consult creative types to help you find the perfect name.
12. Find Yourself
Starting a startup is stressful, and running a startup is even more-so. Many entrepreneurs fail not because their business is unsound but because they were unable to balance work and life in a satisfying way. Your startup will be a significant part of your life, but it isn’t everything. Before you begin, you should soak up the time you have with your family and friends, so you can remember the importance of not working.
