One of the critical things about starting your own business is that you need to pick something that you love doing. Being your own boss means long hours, weekend work and, in most cases, stress. The work will never be finished, and it can be all-consuming, both in time and focus. If you just feel a bit ‘meh’ about the whole thing and if the money isn’t a core driver (or you could make the same being employed elsewhere), you might find it to be a steeper uphill battle over time. You must at least believe in what you are doing. Otherwise, you might as well stop there and then.
It does help to be pursuing a business idea that is well thought out and researched. Just because you think it’s a good idea doesn’t make it so. This is a delicate balancing act. On the one hand, you will have your enthusiasm and somewhat rose-tinted glasses. On the other hand, you have the typical nay-sayers. You need to find a way to let yourself be carried away a bit with your ideas (as no one has started a business thinking they couldn’t do something), but also be brought back to earth with the occasional constructive criticism and pragmatism. In a way, the best entrepreneurs have someone who grounds them, but still leaves room for imagination and ambition. Some find this in their life partner, some find this in a business coach.
With a firm belief in your business, a genuinely innovative solution to a real need in the market, you are assured to succeed, right? Well, not really. Even the best of ideas can fail due to poor execution, delivery and/or marketing. Most experts will assure you that all three areas are needed. You can find poor execution in any product that people use but have a dismal UX. Poor delivery can be found in those examples where the product itself is superior, but some form of infrastructure is missing for it to succeed. Think Betamax and 3D TVs. Think about the slew of MP3 players, until the iPod changed that industry, very much driven by strong marketing. An enthusiastic business and strong idea need to be met with equally strong execution, delivery and marketing to succeed.
In any case, you will have to think of your liabilities. Make sure you are covered for any liabilities by getting proper business insurance. There are many different types of insurances you can get, so it’s important what to research and ask for. There is general liability insurance which covers the most common liabilities lawsuits and claims. There is commercial property insurance, which is advisable for businesses that own their building or other properties. There is commercial auto insurance that individual states require businesses to have for their automotive fleet. There is workers compensation insurance that would be advisable for companies with employees. And more recently, there is cyber liability insurance, which is gaining popularity due to hacks and consumer data leaks news stories. Maybe that’s good inspiration for your new business venture, cybersecurity.
