So it’s not a good time to start a business.  Right?

Wrong!

If you’re the kind of person that just wants to keep their head down and hope the governments sort their problems out, then you may want to stay where you are.  Latest data shows it may take 10 years before the economy recovers to any reasonable level.

The alternative is to take things into your own hands and find a business type that suits your abilities and start trading and making some money.  The costs of starting up are as low as or lower than they’ve ever been.  Starting small doesn’t require much funding so aim to start self funded and low risk.  It may take 2 or 3 attempts to start a workable business.  Working from home is low on overhead costs.  One of your greatest assets is unlimited free overtime.   With the sad fact of so many people out of work or looking to take charge of their destinies there will be people who want to help for a favour or an exchange of goods or services.

Advice for a Sustainable Business
Get used to keeping on top of your finances and record keeping.  Some systems are free for the first 12 months to specifically help startups, and include a complete set of management tools so you can focus on doing business and making some money from it.

Understand that selling is at the core.  Not a hard sell but an honest sell of your product or service.

Provide good service.  It’s easier to keep customers than keep finding new ones.  Repeat business is a wonderful thing.

Listen to what the market wants – friends and business people are always happy to tell you what they have trouble buying.  Remember that friends and family may just want to be nice to you rather than objective.

Join a local business club to get objective feedback on your ideas and to meet like minded people.   Advice from more experienced people is always worth having but remember it’s your decision in the end, not theirs.

Start small, self fund, reinvest your profits and only grow at the rate you can manage.  That way you don’t have to be answerable to anyone else.

The Road to Success – We’re All Good at Something
Be honest with yourself and do what you can do.  This is not about the business equivalent of winning the lottery and getting the Ferrari and the yacht.  We can’t all be like the TV business people but you can be happy, solvent and in more control of your destiny.