If you are looking to get a business going, many people don’t have an idea of where to start or what to do first. Here’s a list of a few things that you can do BEFORE you really get started on your new business.
1. Learn, learn, learn. If you thought you were done learning after college, think again. We all need to continue learning and discovering. The first phase of starting a business is research. Interview a few people in your field, grab a couple of books, and do some online searching to see what competitors are doing. Find out as much as you can without getting analysis paralysis.
2. Make a Budget. One of the biggest reasons new businesses fail is that they don’t have enough capital to hold them through the tough times the first couple of years in business. While some businesses do start and become an instant profitable success, don’t bank on it. Make a budget, save all that you can, and over estimate your business expenses.
3. Ease into it. Unless you’ve recently lost your job, try to ease into starting your own business, work a second or part time job or do something else to have money coming in. Unfortunately, start-ups can take a little bit longer to start profiting than you first expect.
4. Expect Setbacks. Another challenge is that people usually over-estimate what they’ll make their first year and under-estimate how much time it’ll take to complete everything they want to get done. If you know, understand, and expect there to be challenges along the way you’ll be better prepared for when they do happen. And then don’t fret, every new business goes through some bumpy times. Just hold on, you’ll make it through.
5. Keep the passion alive. Once you start on your business, you’ll soon realize how much of everything else you are doing EXCEPT the one thing you started the business for. Like a photographer, very little time may be spent taking photographs at first, rather your time will be on admin, bookkeeping, website creation, marketing, networking, and so on. So keep the passion alive and realize that one day soon enough you can start delegating some of these tasks and do more of what you truly love.
If you are thinking about starting a business and in the very beginning phases of it, I’d love to hear from you. I am running a beta program helping conscious minded entrepreneurs get their business started very quickly. It starts in a few weeks, so send me an email right away.
Andrea Costantine 
I am in the process of setting up my own business in the UK. Am at the research stage at the moment. I have worked 14 years in Human Resources and have thought for a few years now about setting up my own business helping people find jobs e.g. workshops on where to find jobs, interview skills, help with CVs etc. Given the market, there is no better time to do it, so I need to seize the opportunity now. Research so far shows that no one in the region offers training events for the general public on such courses. They only offer interview 1-2-1s at a cost which most of the local population could not afford. So I know there is a gap, but I am at the stage of trying to establish if there is a need. Would welcome of any of your guidance. I have certainly read the rest of your blog with extreme interest.
Thank you
Message for Nicola, you might want to apply for a free EU Grant. http://www.yourbusinessservice.co.uk/businessgrant.html this is a grant to help your business startup and its easy to apply:)