Many people believe that they have a good business idea, and plenty like the thought of being their own boss, but the majority of people will never actually try to start their own company. The idea of losing money or hurting their reputation if it goes wrong is too much to bear.
One way to make entrepreneurship a bit less intimidating is to take things one small step at a time. Wondering if you’ve got what it takes to manage 10,000 employees in 18 countries is a waste of time when you’re not there yet. Take things slowly and deal with the most immediate tasks.
With that in mind, here are the first things you should do to get your business started. Each one is very easy, but if you work systematically through each of them, you’ll have already done more than the majority of people will ever do.
1. Be honest with yourself
If you’re thinking about starting a business, then chances are you’ve already got a product or service and a name in mind. This can be exciting and you might want to jump straight to company business name registration, but before you can you should ask yourself some hard questions to gauge your readiness for the challenge ahead.
These are questions like whether you possess the skills and knowledge you need to make your vision a reality, whether you are prepared to put in long hours and work through weekends, and whether you can afford to forgo a salary if you need to.
2. Critique your idea
Before you can move onto more exciting things like making your first product or designing your office, there’s more hard questions to answer. This time they’re about your business. You need to do some research to figure out whether there is a demand for it, and whether your business model can actually turn a profit.
This might mean sending out surveys and questionnaires or analysing public information, or both. You will need to know how much demand there is, whether it’s growing, whether you can make money from your idea, and what makes your idea different from people already providing similar things. This research will form the basis of your formal business plan if you need to raise money.
3.Name your company and choose a structure
If you already have an idea for a name, make sure that it isn’t already in use. Once you’ve got the name down, you’ve got a more important decision to make – the company structure.
For example, will you be a limited company, a partnership, or a trust? This is important because it influences how your company will be taxed in future and how it can be financed.
4. Register your business
The last step of starting your business before you can actually begin making money is to formally register it with the authorities.
Conclusion
As soon as these four simple steps have been completed, you will have an official, legal business that can start earning. Where to go from here really depends on what your business is. You may need to hire staff, raise money, or start manufacturing your products.
