More mature age individuals are starting a business than ever before. We're here to help.
In this series of 9 articles, I’ll share an overview of the chapters of my new book – Generation Experience – which aims to help mature individuals start and run a successful business in their 40’s and beyond.
There are eight key steps to starting and running a business, and each involves a key skill that the business owner needs to be both competent and successful.
These along with the bonus preparation step that I’ll cover in this article, form the foundation for any good business – small or large.
So where do you need to start?
There are really only two things you need to do before you start a business.
The first is to be really sure you are ready to be a business owner, and also that the business idea you have has “legs”.
Starting a business isn’t for the faint hearted. It takes courage, and it takes resources. It isn’t something you should do on a whim. You need a plan, and you need to execute that plan.
I have a high level of affinity for business owners. They form the backbone of the economy in Australia, and are incredibly valuable individuals because they are willing to have a crack, despite the challenges. To put it on the line, take a risk, employ people in the search for a profitable outcome.
Before you start a business you need to ensure you are prepared both in terms of the business model and your value proposition – i.e. the value the customer gets from your business’s product or service. But you also need to be financially ready. It takes time for a new business to support itself from it’s own revenue. So you should never start a business without some reserves in order to operate and cover your own personal financial needs for at least 6-12 months.
To determine if your business idea has legs, we recommend exhaustive research of the market, your potential competition and your target audience to understand where your idea might fit into the market. Every business has to have a place in the market in which it is going to compete.
So to summarise, before you start a business – be financially ready with some reserves and be sure about your business idea through research.
We’ll see you for the next article in this series soon.
Stay tuned.
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