How to Start Your Business, Part 2

People start businesses for different reasons.

Some are interested in the freedom – and the challenges – that come from venturing out on their own, others have lost a job and are using the opportunity to start a project they are passionate about. Some people start a business because they have deep seated dreams and a vision they know will only come true if they start a their own company.

Other people are getting tired of spending years at a job they don’t like, hoping that it will get better some day, realizing that the only way to improve their situation is by making a change.

Whatever your reason, if you are curious about starting a business, I am offering several steps that will start you on the journey of self-discovery. It will help you explore your life’s mission and find out what it is you are meant to do.

First, be honest with yourself.

Do you have what it takes to venture out on your own? Are you willing to take the risk that is involved in growing a successful business?

While being an entrepreneur offers amazing opportunities and designing a lifestyle you love is exciting, it also takes courage, persistence, and a burning desire to succeed. You have to put in the time to run your company, take on many new responsibilities, face your fears and weaknesses, and live without a steady paycheck. In return, you have the opportunity to find and accomplish your life’s mission and grow into the person you were born to be.

To gain more clarity, ask yourself these questions:

Do you like the certainty that comes from getting a regular paycheck?
Could you live without it?
Are you tired of working for someone else?
Do you enjoy calling the shots and being the boss?
Do you thrive on challenges, risks, and responsibility?
Do you like adventure?
Do you have a burning desire to be a source of good in the world?

Talk to people who know and appreciate you and who are willing to give you objective feedback. Do they think you have what it takes? Finally, take some time to tune into your heart to find out what’s true for you.

Next, start dreaming up your ideal life.

What’s your perfect job? What business model appeals to you? What are the adventures you want to experience? What impact do you want to have, what change initiate? Ask yourself, ”What do I really want? What did I always want to do but haven’t?”

Take your time for this important part of the journey. Write your answers down and make your vision as real as possible.

Where do you want to live, what do you want to do, how do you want to spend your time, and who do you want to spend your time with? Start a vision board with pictures, descriptions, outlines, etc. Or, make a collage that puts pictures to your dream and makes it come to life.

Next, find out what your gifts are.

What do you love doing more than anything? What are the activities that let you forget time? What are your best qualities? What service could you provide that other’s would pay for?

If it’s hard for you to see yourself for who you are, ask the people who love and appreciate you to give you some enlightening (and positive) feedback. It might help to think back at a time when you were really happy. What made that time so much fun and fulfilling? What were you doing? Add this to your list.

If you are serious about discovering your gifts and want to take this even deeper, I recommend you do the puzzle exercise or read my popular book ALIVE: A Practical Guide to Get Out of Your Head and into Your Heart. Both are excellent sources to help you find your special qualities.

By now you should have a lot of material to work with. Look at all the different pieces and ask yourself what it is that wants to emerge? What steps can you take today that will get you closer to where you want to be?

One of my clients went through this process of self-exploration and realized that what she wanted most was to find a husband and start a jewelry business. At the time she was working as a sales rep for an insurance company, a job she wasn’t fond of. She decided to go for it. Her first project was to find a husband. Relentlessly she searched for a man online and off. She succeeded and with her husband moved to an area she had always wanted to live in. She also left her job and started a jewelry business, which she grew fast and furious using her sales and marketing skills to promote it.

You can do this, too. You can start a business doing what you love. Don’t let anyone convince you otherwise.

As always, thank you for reading.

Karin

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And, if you’d like to work with me to discover your unique badass qualities, consider participating in a one-on-one session – for women who want to find their gift, fall in love with themselves and change the world.

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