Starting a Small Business
Section 2. - Starting Up
When talking about starting a small business, we first need to address what “starting a small business” means? You wouldn’t think this would even be a question, but many 20 and 30-something business folks believe that business startups were strictly the result of the Internet. Many of we “pre-Internet” entrepreneurs have been chastised for saying we worked on small business "startups" before the advent of the Internet. Yes, I know; it doesn’t make sense, but it happens nonetheless.
The point is: business startups are NOT limited to high tech. In fact, starting a new business in high tech is harder today than in times past, and the number of high tech (with high income potential) startups is actually decreasing each year. At the same time, “necessity” entrepreneurship is increasing.So, take heart—total business startups are at an all-time high and today is one of the best times ever for starting a business. At the same time, preparation for starting a business should be approached with knowledge and diligence. If not, you could be one of the 5 million businesses that fail each year. Are you thinking of starting a small business? If so, this is where it all begins. The Foundation
It is hard to read anything relating to business today without being told we should start our own business, because “it is really simple and pays well.” Sadly, that is not the case. Starting a small business is a difficult and time-consuming task…and too many people do not spend enough time and effort in preparation for their new business. Excitement overcomes diligence, and the results can be disastrous. That’s mainly why so many businesses fail each year. Sadly, there are many would-be business owners who do not have the knowledge to become successful when starting a small business. Unfortunately, even the business schools do not adequately teach people how to start a business, since most of their curriculum is either theoretical, esoteric, or directed toward big business. Few teachers have ever run a small business, or felt the sting of a business failure. It takes time to obtain that knowledge and experience. That is the reason for developing this web site—to share the knowledge that comes only from experience. I encourage new entrepreneurs to do your homework, build your foundation, and “hit the ground running” when you start a new business. To help you with this I have developed a series of reports that can provide guidance to help you through the labyrinth of considerations and work steps it takes to start a successful business. These reports are shown in the following List of Reports. You may read them in order, or as you need the information. These are the major topics currently available, and additional reports will be added as they are developed:
List of Reports For This Section SMALL BUSINESS IDEAS
Many of you desire to become an entrepreneur, but you do not have a passion about a specific business idea yet—you only know you want your own business. This report helps you pick out a business idea you can become passionate about. FEAR OF FAILURE
This seems to be the primary underlying reason for NOT starting a business. This report discusses this issue in some depth and, hopefully, helps some of you deal with this problem. HOW TO START A BUSINESS
This topic helps guide you through the startup process and directs you to specific resources you may need in your startup process. INCORPORATING A SMALL BUSINESS
This report deals with the various forms of organization for your business and discusses the relative merits of each, from sole proprietorship to various corporate structures. BUSINESS STARTUP COSTS
Most new entrepreneurs really miss the boat in this area. They simply do not take the time to visualize, in detail, starting their business and then assigning estimated costs to each item. This report helps guide you through this process. ADVICE ON STARTING A BUSINESS
There is more advice on the Internet about starting a small business than anyone could ever hope to read. Yet, there is very little advice based primarily on experience and common sense. This section attempts to fill that void with suggestions you may not find elsewhere.
If you are new to entrepreneurship, I suggest you start with the report on Small Business Ideas.
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