If you’re reading this then there’s every chance that you’re standing at one of the most exciting precipices you’ll come across in your lifetime. Facing up to the choice to either take a leap and try and turn a dream into a reality or to play it safe and keep that great idea stored in the recesses of your mind for a potentially uptopic ‘someday’. Many of us have wrestled with that potentially epic business idea we’ve had running around our heads but fewer have taken that business idea and decided that it was worth nurturing into a real-life business.
So, how do you decide if your idea is worth pursuing? You could look to the greats for business advice and read all the catchy quotes in business magazines. You’ve probably heard versions of these quotes, Jo Malone said ‘Passion, creativity, and resilience are the most crucial skills in business.’ Albert Einstein preceded the sentiment saying ‘Logic will get you from A to B. Imagination will take you everywhere.’ To encourage you to take the leap, there’s always the well-known nautical idiom, ‘a ship in the harbour is safe, but that’s not what ships are built for.’ A similar contemporary example, Drew Houston, the founder and CEO of DropBox, inspired young entrepreneurs saying: ‘Don’t worry about failure; you only have to be right once.’
There you have it. If you’re tough, resilient, passionate, creative and willing to take a chance then you just might have all the skills you need to become a successful entrepreneur. Remember to keep taking advice from those who have walked this road before you, here are the six most important pieces of advice for first time entrepreneurs.
- Leap For Love!
The reasons why someone starts a business are usually just as important as the business itself. Many of us have considered starting a business in the past or have stumbled upon a ‘killer idea for a business’ whilst daydreaming, however, not many of those daydreams become realities. If you’re reading this you’ve likely decided to make your dream into a reality. It’s important that if you’re taking the leap and starting your own business that you’re doing it for love and to fulfill your passion rather than to make money.
- Take Things Slowly
Slow it down. As exciting as it is to be starting a new business it’s important that you don’t put the cart before the horse. In business, this metaphor means that you shouldn’t expand before you’re ready. Begin by focusing on the fundamentals before you grow your business. If you want to double check that you’re ready to expand, check out this article from Forbes Business Council about the telltale signs your business can withstand expansion.
- Bend But Don’t Break
It’s important to be flexible with your plans when you’re starting a new business. In spite of all your hard work and careful preparation, it’s inevitable that things won’t always work out exactly as you’d planned. Even if you’re not exactly ‘new’ to the business world, it’s important to manage your expectations and be flexible. Your timelines might have to change based on things outside of your control, from suppliers to staffing issues or even just a shift in the market, however, even if you’re constantly being forced to adapt and change your plans it’s important not to get too disheartened. You should expect to bend to things outside of your control but try to hold strong and never break!
- Spend Where It Matters
It’s important to spend proportionately and not put the cart before the horse, splashing out on big, flashy business expenses before they’re necessary. The reality is that, when you’re starting a new business, you’re always going to have to spend a fair amount of cash but, how you spend your budget and what you spend it on can determine whether your business will succeed or fail. You have to make sure that you’ve got the foundations covered.
This informative article is packed with great advice to help you learn to stretch your money further by taking advantage of the gig economy, negotiating better prices for yourself and getting discounts wherever you can. By following these pieces of budgeting advice you’ll be able to manage the expenses and spend where it matters.
As important as budgeting is, there are some crucial areas in which you absolutely don’t want to be cutting corners. Insurance is one of those crucially important areas. When you’ve put your heart and soul into starting your own business it can be absolutely devastating to see it all taken away because you weren’t covered in the event of an accident or if you find yourself bankrupted by property damage or because of a lawsuit. When choosing which cover is right for them, many business professionals look to big name brands such as NRMA professional indemnity insurance. For a small business it’s important to have the weight of a big insurance company behind you when you need it. Remember, we all need a little back up sometimes!
- Testing: One, Two, Three.
It’s important to never go into things blind. You obviously can’t have the answers to every single question before you go into business, there’s a certain amount of faith involved in taking the leap into a new business endeavour. That being said, with a business plan you have to be practical and a great way to make a practical plan is to engage in thorough product testing and market research. By engaging in testing you’ll be able to ensure that when you finally go to market your product is absolutely perfect.
- Don’t Listen To Advice!
This may sound entirely counterintuitive in an article that’s all about advice but it’s important to remember that this is your dream and your professional reputation on the line so, at the end of the day, you have to back yourself 100% and stand by all the decisions that are being made about your business. Your passion and personality will be the driving force behind this business so if you’re given advice that you don’t agree with not only can you ignore it but you should ignore it! Back yourself!
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