Are you looking to start a small business?
“The price of success is hard work, dedication to the job at hand, and the determination that whether we win or lose, we have applied the best of ourselves to the task at hand.”
– Vince Lombardi.
I always find myself reading articles on small business management and entrepreneurship. I even took courses in college on both areas. Unfortunately, just like with any other topic, college made both topics boring. This is why I love reading pieces from those that have been successful with entrepreneurship now. Steve over at My Wife Quit Her Job recently put up a piece on what makes a small business more likely to succeed.
Is your small business going to be a home run? Is there any way to determine in advance how your business is going to end up?
In the article mentioned above, Steve reviewed a video on running a successful small business that he saw on TechCrunch. The tips in the article include:
- Get a partner.
- Get some experience under your belt.
- It only gets tougher the longer you wait.
What do you think about these three tips? I wanted to add my input to all three of these points on growing a successful small business.
Get a partner to think of successful small business ideas.
I’m really on the fence on this one. At the end of the day I prefer to be in control of everything and to work on my own projects. That’s because my only experience with anything resembling a small business is blogging.
With that being said there’s no telling how far you can be pushed when you have someone holding you accountable.
Have you ever tried to compare your workouts from when you go with a training partner instead of going solo? It’s a different world. When you train alone you don’t push yourself as much. When you go to the gym with a training partner you push yourself harder than ever before and you see exactly what you’re made of. I imagine that it’s the same when running a small business. There’s only so much you can do alone.
Get some experience before starting your own small business.
What are you waiting for? The more you work and the more experience you get under your belt, the more knowledge you’ll acquire in your field of work. I think that this is a strong point but I don’t agree with it completely. I believe that the best experience can come from taking bold moves and failing once in a while. You don’t always have to acquire experience the conventional way.
It only gets tougher the longer you wait.
When is it the best time to plant a tree? Thirty years ago. When is it the second best time to plant a tree? TODAY.
I pondered the idea of starting Studenomics for so long that I don’t even want to admit the time frame. All I remember is getting frustrated watching other blogs grow while I still hadn’t even registered a domain name. Then finally one lazy afternoon I went through with it and launched Studenomics with the most disgusting theme possible. I didn’t care I just wanted to start writing about money management. As time went on I gave in and paid for a solid theme/design.
I think it’s true that it gets tougher the longer you wait. This can apply to any area of your life. What are you waiting for?
Do you have any thoughts to add to these 3 points? While starting your own small business isn’t easy, it can certainly be worth it in the long run.
My personal favourite Lombardi quote is, “Winning isn’t everything…It’s the ONLY thing.”
In this age of pure self esteem boosting at the expense of showing kids anything about how the real world operates I think we need to swing the pendulum back a little.
The partner issue is a double edged sword for sure. When your organization grows, inevitably, you need more trusted partners to lean on their areas of expertise.
Blogging is actually REALLY good for couples. Very synergistic and fun!
I like the last two points, as they’re related.
Waiting only makes it harder when you finally start. It also decreases the amount of time you could be gaining experience.
And, I’m like you in that I like to be in control of what I’m writing about on my blog.
Good solid, simple points. The only way to get experience is to get experience. Every moment, every shut down, every failure, every success, each step is experience and there’s seldom a real excuse for waiting if you’re sure what you want. At any point, a person can dive right in and start gaining trial and error experience, without a lot of risk when it comes to ventures like blogging. In the absolute worst case scenarios I can imagine, (and I can imagine some vivid and wild things), a simple delete the blog and start something else can solve.
Getting a partner, however, isn’t always as quick or easy. Some of us are single, maybe living in a new place or city, and don’t know very many people. Maybe a person just began their online presence and has few connections. In that case, it will take time. As you build your blog or business, take the time to comment on or otherwise engage others in their work. Talk about what you’re doing as you go about your day offline and as you encounter new people you’re building relationships with. In time, I believe, with lots of interesting content on your site, people will also begin to connect with you.
I believe partnering can be great for any start-up. It offers support and accountability as well as the practicality of additional hands.
Forgive my long rant, please. As a person starting over in business, your article hit key points for me at this time. I’m always welcoming an interest for a guest blogger on my site or a connection that may develop into a partnership.
I wish you all well in your endeavors!