To work or not to work during ‘s a tough question for many entrepreneurs. There are two primary pulls either way — a full-time startup gets your full attention and shortens the time to making money, but working during startup keeps the bills paid and provides a back-up plan for the risk of going out on your own. The best option for you depends on a number of factors, and with either method it is essential that you manage your time and money effectively.
Business Type
The type of business you are planning to start is the first consideration in whether to launch full-time or part-time. There are some ventures that require you to be available during the standard workweek — 9 to 5, Monday through Friday. If your current job includes these hours, it may be impossible to get your business off the ground. The best option in those cases is to develop a complete plan for your business while still employed, including a full marketing plan, budget, and beginning to network. The more developed your business idea, the more clear it will be when the best time to commit full-time will be.
Available Capital
The amount of capital you have for your startup is another critical factor. If you haven’t developed a full startup budget yet, do so before you quit your day job. Startup costs are easy to underestimate, especially without working through the details of the business idea. In addition to the actual startup costs, you will need enough cash to keep your personal bills covered. Often, entrepreneurs discover the hard way that the few thousand they thought would be sufficient disappears rapidly once work starts on the they end up going back to work anyway. Set a realistic budget based on a realistic time frame for getting the venture off the ground before you commit to full-time entrepreneur status.
If You Decide to Start Part Time
If you do decide to keep a job while working on your business, your first priority is to get organized. You will have to master time and task management in order to make reasonable progress on your business idea. The odds are that your work hours aren’t the only time consumers on your schedule, so it is critical to establish dedicated blocks of time to focus on your startup. Eliminate as many time killers as possible and consider getting up a few hours earlier or staying up a few hours later to get the venture going.
Do not even consider using your time on another job to work on your startup. In the first place, it is disrespectful and probably a terminable offense. You won’t want your employees working on outside interests on your time, so you shouldn’t either. In the second place, most professional jobs include provisions within the employment contract that deem all of your work product as owned by the company. Thus, if you create a new or innovative product or service using company assets (even …
There are excellent reasons to start a business — and, of course, there are other excellent reasons not to. This is why it’s important to weigh the pros and cons for yourself, as your situation is unique, and advice that worked for one entrepreneur’s business may not be applicable to your own.
Let’s look at the general pros and cons of starting a business.
Starting a Small Business: Pros
Being your own boss has quite a few perks, as we will learn below.
Job Security: When you’re the boss, you’re never in danger of being fired.
Decision-making Power: If you decide to make any changes in your small business, there’s no one above you to tell you you can’t, and little to no red tape when it comes to implementing those changes.
Retirement Value: Building a successful business and then selling it at the end of your career can give you a boost in your retirement funds (in addition to the 401k many business structures allow you to open).
Self Fulfillment: Working for yourself gives you a sense of pride in your work, allowing you to feel personally and professionally fulfilled. You are the master of your own destiny!
Community: Owning your own business and putting down roots gives you a connection to your local community in a way that being an employee does not.
One important thing to keep in mind is that the fulfillment, security, and stability your role as a small business owner can bring you comes to fruition only with hard work, dedication, and perseverance.
Starting a Small Business: Cons
However, starting a business is no walk in the park. There are cons to starting your own business as well, which we’ll discuss below.
Financial Risk: Starting a small business involves some amount of startup capital, which will require you to find investors, take out a loan, or dip into your own account — neither of which is without its risks.
Workload: It’s been said that the decision to become an entrepreneur is not simply a career, it’s a lifestyle. This couldn’t be more true; if you believe that you’re going to confine your role as a small business owner to 40 hours a week, you’re in for a surprise.
Slow Initial Business: Statistics show that most new businesses do not begin to recover their investment for something like 2 years after they began. Are you prepared to go without an income during these uncertain times?
Decision-making Responsibility: Great for letting you make your own decisions on products or pricing; not so great when it comes to reprimanding or firing a friend or turning down a family member.
It’s clear that the decision to start a business or not to start a business is one that must be made carefully and thoughtfully, with family and future in mind, in order to determine if it’s a decision you’re prepared to follow through with and help through the rough patches.
With hard work and determination, your business dreams …
A recent article provided by stated that one of the most common traits that all billionaires share is the ability to crunch numbers. But what does this mean exactly? After all, everyone has taken math in school or can use a calculator. So, why aren’t more people wealthy?
Surprisingly, many people go into business without taking the time to really sit down and analyze what it’s going to take to make a profit in the business that they have chosen. Many simply decide to rent or lease a property, stock inventory, open the doors and hope for the best. While this scenario may work for some, it’s best to make a study of several factors that determine to a large measure the chances of any commercial success. Here are some tips on how you can “crunch the numbers” for your particular business and succeed.
Billionaire investors often buy commercial buildings, shopping malls, luxury hotels, trade in stocks and commodities, and invest in hedge funds. When they enter a trade or buy a property, they already have made an in-depth study of the numbers that factor into such a transaction or deal. What are the traffic patterns, for example, that pass by a particular corner, the buying habits of the clientele, the average salaries of people who live in the area, the cultural composition of the neighborhood, the nature of the competition, etc.? Crunching the numbers can give a real indication of the potential success or failure of any enterprise. Put the odds, in other words, as much in your favor as possible. Be smart when you enter the business waters, because once you dive in, there’s no turning back.
Whatever type of business you are planning to start, an online presence is an absolute necessity. The internet serves as the new Yellow steroids. Not only do consumers search the web for a specific business or service, but they are able to comparison shop and learn all about their options from the comfort of their living rooms. The online options range from a simple business card style page to a comprehensive ecommerce site, but the important factor is that your potential clients are able to find you with a simple web search.
Depending on the type of business you start, you may need only a basic business card-style website. Something as simple as a home page introducing your business, a contact page to help build your customer database, and a few pages of information to help your customers make the right selection of your products or services will go a long way in marketing your venture. In the information age, it is imperative that you provide useful knowledge to your customers. If you choose not to, plenty of your competitors that’s who will make the sale.
The information you provide online does not have to give away the house secrets, but should teach your prospective clients something about what you do. For example, a dog training business might include short article on house-training tips and descriptions of the various dog sports that you teach. A restaurant might include the menu along with articles about the right wine to select with different types of food. A service business might explain how using the available services will save the consumer time, money, or the like. The important factor is to offer useful information in a clear, coherent manner that shows your expertise and builds confidence in you and your business.
More developed websites can include ecommerce, where you customers can buy directly from you through your website. If you sell retail products, making them available online can increase your sales dramatically, often 30% or more. Including products, a shopping cart, and an online merchant account costs a bit more to set up, but the payoff is usually worth every penny. Selling your products on the web provides an opportunity to deliver your sales pitch for each item. Including a short paragraph about each product or service is common, and you can even incorporate a rating system or popularity scale for each. Consumers can find out all they need to know about your offerings without leaving the house.
All types of businesses are finding success using interactive websites. Some restaurants have had great success with allowing their take-out customers to order online. Some salons allow clients to set their own appointments online. And a mobile auto detailer we know fills over 50% of his schedule through online requests. The internet is the present and future of all business. If your startup isn’t represented on the web, your growth potential is inherently limited. But if your website is a high-quality, informative, useful tool for …
Starting a new business can be very scary. For a new business owner, it can be very difficult to know where to start. If you are looking for advice, then you have come to the right place. This article will help you get started and give you tips for where to go next.
The first step to any successful business is a business plan. You need to make sure that you have one of these laid out. Throughout the life of your business, your plan will adapt and develop as your business grows.
Your plan will contain many important points. Firstly, you will need to look at your budget. Do a cost count and do a projection of the setup costs for the first 12 months of operation. When doing this, look at the costs month to month. If you can, factor in both the worst case scenario and the best case scenario.
Next, define your business strategy. Define your target market. Who are going to be your clients/customers, and why have you chosen this group. Do a SWOT analysis (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats). By considering the current state of your market you can look at what sets you apart from the others and where you stand.
When starting a new business, you need to access what makes you unique. You are competing with already established business. You need to give potential customers a reason to come to you instead! This leads on to the next item you need to consider; an exit strategy. If you cannot draw the customers, you will need to have a plan to get out. Is it therefore wise to get others involved? Can you be prepared to sell your business? These questions are tough but you need to have answers for them.
On top of a business plan, you should also consider getting a mentor. A great mentor is an important asset to your business. They can give you a different perspective on your business decisions, and provide wise advice. As long as you are prepared to listen to tough advice, a mentor will be of great help to you.
The next question for you to ask is who should be your mentor. Don’t only look to advisors within your business field. You are first and foremost an entrepreneur. Look to a successful entrepreneur who has a proven record in business.
Lastly, be sure you register as a business. To register in Australia, choose a business name with the ABR (Australian Business Register), the ASIC (Australian Securities and Investment Commission) and your state’s Department of Fair Trade. Make sure your business name is available. Otherwise, your business will not be counted!
Starting a new business can seem overwhelming. Don’t worry; its not that hard! The important thing is to keep a cool head and not get overwhelmed. With these tips you should be setup and running in no time.…
Getting rich is the number one goal of people thinking about starting their own business. But what are the actual factors that launch entrepreneurs from struggling startup to lifelong financial security? Here are a few ideas to keep in mind if your startup goal is to make yourself rich.
Work for yourself
It is very difficult to become wealthy working for somebody else. At the end of the day, employees are another business expense that must be controlled, and there is little motivation for the guy holding all the cards (and all the risk) to pay you any more than the minimum required to get someone to do the job. Working for yourself takes back control over your work life and financial future. If you want more money, you can do what needs to be done to increase your income.
Carry no debt
Debt is a wealth killer, both for a business and for your personal life. Paying interest is like flushing your cash down the toilet. Run your business and personal budgets on a cash-only basis, at least during the early stages of startup. Be stingy with your money and pay attention to fees and interest on any credit terms you are extended. You’ll be surprised how much better the cash flow looks when you are not wasting money on debt fees!
Develop multiple income streams
As long as you are taking responsibility for your worklife and financial future, you might as well throw as many hooks in the water as you can handle. Whether you develop multiple income streams through a single business idea or you pursue several opportunities at once, the more chances you have of making a profitable sale, the more likely you are to succeed.
Learn the numbers
Whether you consider yourself a numbers person or not, you will need to understand how to look forward and back at the numbers to make the best strategic decisions. Accounting is the primary record of where your business has been and those results are used in financial ratios to determine the present health of the company. You MUST understand how these systems work so that you can identify problems and opportunities as they come. And, you must be able to develop strategic plans based on viable financial projections. Don’t leave these critical tasks to anyone else. The bottom line in business is making money, and you need to have a firm grasp on what all those numbers mean to you.
Balance your priorities
Be careful of devoting ALL of your time and energy into the business, especially as the venture grows and develops. Don’t be afraid to delegate when the time comes, because blowing off other important parts of your life can be financially devastating. Basically, that’s a PC way of saying divorce is so are health problems. Take care of your whole life on the path to wealth, or you might well find it all up in smoke when you least expect it.…
This article is meant as a practical outline for starting a web/world based business from someone in the process of doing so. I started to put a merchandising business together about a month ago and assumed that a presence on the internet was a necessity. The first thing I did was to research tax laws and file a DBA (“doing business as”) in the counties clerk’s offices where I anticipated doing “physical” business. The tax laws for an individual doing business “under an assumed (business) name are simpler than the more complicated corporate tax laws. Filing the DBA legally establishes you under the business name chosen. At each step from here you need to ensure compliance with manifold regulations, such as permits and licenses for your activities if you wish to sell things in various venues.
Next, you need to ensure the production of your product. This depends on what you produce. Keep record of all your business related expenditures and income. Do not do this in an electronic database only. Keep hard records!
When you have or are close to having a product, you need a website. You should look up “web hosting services” and compare reviews and rankings from those who have used them. Good customer service is essential with a web host. For a small business, you may want to use a shared server or a “VPS” (virtual private server), which costs a bit more. You need to either build the site yourself with software provided by the host or chosen from the marketplace (varied options) or hire it out. It depends on the scope of your site, but inquire about building it yourself as this can be cost effective and more fun. You will need to configure your e-commerce setup by providing online payment services. You can use Pay Pal, Checks, or Credit Cards as a few possibilities. Credit Card processing generally requires a merchant account with Visa/Mastercard. This can be an involved process. Once you are online, you need to promote your site. While there are tricks to web programming (search engine optimization) that make your site accessible, traditional real-life contact is indispensable where you share your name and website while building a rapport with the customer is just essential to a startup business. I am now at the point of marketing and advertising. Best of luck with your own start-up business.…
Starting an internet business can be tricky and as anyone who has become successful online can attest, making mistakes is a part of the process. In order to reach success online, there are going to be some failures along the way. How someone deals with those mistakes and failures is going to determine whether or not they will ultimately reach success in their venture.
One of the biggest mistakes that many people make when starting an internet business is not taking the time to learn everything possible before getting started. Making a living online is much different than making a living in any other way. There are a lot of people who have found a great amount of success when starting an internet business. Learning from those people can help new internet business people to avoid many of the other mistakes associated with online earning.
Another mistake that people make when starting an internet business is to ignore the huge benefits involved in social media. Internet marketers who don’t involve themselves in social media are missing the boat. Social media has taken over the internet – one only has to look at statistics for sites like Facebook and Twitter to understand just how important these types of sites can be to the success of an online business. Taking the time to learn how to leverage sites like this from someone who has already done it is a great idea when starting an internet business.
Not having a comprehensive marketing plan is another error that many people make when starting an online business. Just like in offline businesses, marketing is key to overall success. Online, there are even more websites and businesses that are clamoring for the attention of customers than in the "real" world. Creating a marketing plan that works and sticking to it is crucial in the overall success of any online business.
Giving up too quickly is a huge mistake that people make when starting an internet business. Becoming a success on the internet will take time and it will take some hard work. For most people, it’s fun work but it’s not always easy. Giving up before a business has had a chance to succeed is quite possibly the biggest reason that new businesses fail online.
Failing to get involved in an online community of like-minded people is another common mistake when starting an internet business. No one is an island and making a living online can be a lonely place if there is no one to talk to and get advice from. Smart online business people find a community of like-minded people to talk to, share concerns with, and get advice from. This can make the difference between loving the online world of earning and giving up in frustration.
Starting an internet business isn’t the easiest thing in the world to do. Everyone is going to make some mistakes along the way. How someone chooses to deal with those mistakes will determine their success or failure …
If you are thinking of starting a business online then it could be one of the best decisions you ever make as long as you are prepared to work hard and learn what is required and don’t treat it as a get rich quick scheme because it isn’t. Making money online is feasible for anyone willing to learn, and the earning potential can be huge for those who do it well.
There are a few methods you can use to start and run a successful online business without spending much money. Most, if not all online businesses will have a website of some sorts. A good place for you to start with this would be for you to get your own blog. You can set up a blog very easily and for free through sites like and . A blog can provide a perfect platform to base your online business around and to sell products from.
Social networking sites such as Twitter and Facebook are becoming very powerful tools for online business owners to use. You can brand yourself and quickly develop a large following if you use these sites correctly and they can help you market your business very effectively.
Article marketing is another effective method of building your online business. If you are able to write a quality article of around 400 words about a subject that people are interested in then you will be able to make some money using this method. By placing a link at the end of your article then you can drive traffic to anywhere you want such as your Blog or a product you want to sell.
Affiliate marketing means to sell somebody else’s product from which you will earn a commission. You do this by creating an affiliate link to the product you want to sell, in that link will be a code that is unique to you so when somebody buys through that link you receive them commission. You can use your blog to put your affiliate links on and use article marketing to send people to your blog.
These methods are incredibly affective and are used a lot by successful internet marketers every day. They are easy to set up and the whole process is quick to learn and implement.…
Starting a business from home can be both scary and exciting at the same time. In today’s economy many people are going into business for themselves and want to be the boss and earn the money that they deserve. This Article focuses on 9 important tips that can help you have success with your new venture.
Tip #1 – Check with you local business agencies or the sba to see if you need any license or permits to run a venture from your house. Some states do require these licenses and without them you can face fines and have your business shut down.
Tip #2 – Build you venture around the skills that you have, if you are a great graphic designer, then make sure to offer that as a service. Trying to learn a new craft and making a living off it is very difficult and it is not recommended at all. Your goal is to start making a living right away from your new venture, use your skills that made you some money in your former job.
This may sound funny but some folks try to build a new business around new skills that they have not polished yet and it ends up costing them their business, clients will leave you quickly and the complaints can build up quickly too.
Tip #3 – Make sure to have a website with a catchy domain name, if you are a graphic designer then make sure to include those keywords in your domain name. This will tell your clients what your business is all about, this builds branding right away.
Tip #4 – Build or have someone design you a professional website or blog. Image is everything and a sloppy looking site or blog will simply tell your clients that your business is sloppy too. If your site looks like a site from the 90s, then forget about having clients take you and your venture serious.
Tip #5 – Check on your competition and see what they are doing and how they are running their business. You will want to do this for sure, see how their site looks. Look at their products and services, see how much they are charging and what their unique selling propositions are.
Smart business owners do this all the time, they get tons of information from their competition and use it to their advantage and build a stronger more profitable business.
Tip #6 – Make it easy for your clients to order from you, do not make it an obstacle. If you plan on selling online then simply add a PayPal button to your website and make sure that your shopping cart works without any problems.
Tip #7 – Make sure that your site is not too heavy on the graphics and flash banners, slow loading sites will drive visitors away and this can reduce your sales drastically.
Tip #8 – Offer great customer support and make sure clients can contact you if they have …