How To Start Small Business

"How To Start Small Business?", I think was the most common question I heard when employees, retirees, soldiers, stay-at-home moms and dads came to my local chamber of commerce office.

Most of the time, they came to speak with the SCORE adviser,who set up his hours in our office, to receive tips and tricks and advice of how to set up a business, how to incorporate a business , how to write a business plan , what a business partnership means or how to do research and find their customers to only name a few.

But sometimes they came in and wanted to sign up for the local chamber because they loved baking cakes, taking care of pets, had awesome ideas, or where tired to be employees and wanted to opening a small business and be their own bosses.

As a German in USA I couldn't believe first how much entrepreneurship and passion to be a small biz owner exists in the United States. For sure, all the business motivational books that are available here in this huge variety do their part of it too.

It isn't very common in Germany to have your own business, so I was positively surprised.

Is opening a small business easy?

Sure you could go to your city and get your occupational license or to your local chamber and get your membership. But what happens then? Are you a business owner afterward?

I am sorry to say that but no, you are not.

Difference between a hobby and a business

You love backing cakes and you are thinking about to leave your job and to open up a bakery? Ask yourself, "Do you really want to get up early in the morning and start preparing your dough, waiting for the first customers, ordering new supplies, cleaning your kitchen equipment, and taking care of bookkeeping and taxes in the evening after work?" No? Then you better have a plan in place when and what kind of people to hire, systems to set up to make your business more efficient and effective, and so on.

If you didn't read the book "The E-Myth" by Michael Gerber yet, you have to. It is awesome and you understand that you should work on your business, not in your business. Best of all you learn how to start small business.

Why would you change a job where you work for somebody else and get a salary with a job you create for yourself and have a hard time to make any money?

If you are a great technician and you are happy to be a technician and you really don't want to be bothered with any business administration tasks, stay as an employed technician.

If you have the desire to work on your business, don't stop reading. We are coming now close to the solution of our question above.

How To Start Small Business

A plan will give you the base you need to know how to start small business and to have something handy if you want to apply for a bank start-up loan .

Failing to plan is planning to fail. Why?

Let me explain it to you with an example.

A woman came to my chamber office and told me she wants to open up a coffee shop. She told me that she found a franchise for coffee and ice cream and that she already leased a store front in one of the most expensive neighborhoods and will start remodeling this store front in few weeks. I listened to her for around 15 minutes. She was so excited and you could hear that she put her whole heart blood in this idea.

Yes, I say idea. Why?

I interrupted her after 15 minutes and asked her how much sales she would need per week or day to succeed. She looked at me. No answer. She really didn't know. I asked her what was the average price for a cup of coffee or ice cream cone in this specific neighborhood. She didn't know. I asked her about her target customers and the demographics in this neighborhood. She didn't know. She didn't have an answer to any of my questions.

That is the reason I really would like to see you having a business plan, marketing plan and financial plan in place BEFORE you start your business or at least for you to understand how to start small business.

I know, I know. To write and create a business plan is boring. And perhaps you find out that your idea is not practical. But isn't it better to find this out BEFORE you invest your time, energy, health and money?

Are you looking for a SCORE advisor?

Do you have your own story to tell how to start small business or you decided not to start a business? Please share.

How did you start your small business?

Do you have a great start-up story? Share it!

Click below to see contributions from other visitors to this page...