A lot of people always wish to start a business but do not know where or how to start. These are the main things that I have learnt from interaction with other entrepreneurs and researching.
1. You need to know what you are getting into
It's common sense that to start a business, you must have an idea.
It doesn't have to be something out of this world like the invention of the internet but simply a thought about a particular enterprise that you believe you can start.
Once you have the idea, the next step is to research on it.
From personal experience, I would advise that you research about a business not less than four months before going into it.
Usually, this will help you learn the ropes of the business in question.
From how it runs, what are the risks and what are the unique aspects that you can add to the enterprise to get a competitive advantage.
2. Decide whether you will run the business or employ someone
Now here is where most people give up. You may have a business idea, but due to time constraints or other factors such as inexperience, you fail to kick it off.
In such an instance, hiring someone would work well to make the kickoff, but is it the best thing to do? There are varied opinions and when it comes to that.
Some people argue that employing a person when the business is just starting would result in you getting conned and not getting back the much profit that would have been accumulated.
Others argue that it will help to set the business running since the employees usually are more experienced.
Consider carefully how you will run the business in order to come up with the right compromise.
3. Consider capital constraints
There's a lot of argument as to whether it's advisable to start a business with a loan or not.
My take, don't take a loan to start a business. So what then should you do?
Start a business with your savings or contributions from family and friends because it does not have a strict commitment to repay.
A loan is best taken when the business is at least six months old, and it's time to expand.
So the loan, in this case, goes into buying more stock and should the extra stock not sell, you can still service the loan from the income you've been making previously.
A loan only works well for big businesses and in this case, the loan comes in as a commitment to being part owner of the business.
Do not start a business that you don't know anything about. #hivisasaoriginal