The 7 Things You Absolutely Have To Know If You’re An Entrepreneur

So you have a great idea, and you want to start a business. This task may seem daunting for some but some people are ready to dive into the world of business headfirst. Well before you get carried away with the dollar signs in your eyes there are a few basic things that every entrepreneur should know.

1.You need to test your idea

You may think you have a brilliant idea, but if other people don’t jump right on board with you, your brilliant idea could drive you strait into the ground. You need to know if your idea will work. Do a test, on a small scale before throwing it into the large-scale business you are envisioning. Get an idea if there is outside public interest before you invest your savings on something.

2.Don’t quit your day job

At least not right away. You need a way to finance you’re new business idea or what have you. Just because you want to be an entrepreneur does not mean that can be your full time job right away. Every company has to start somewhere and most of the time that starting place is on the ground, you build up from there. Keeping your full time job, the one that finances your life has benefits when starting up a new business. It gives you a safety net, and time to test the new business and see if it is going so succeed. Entrepreneur magazine has a good resource for determining when it’s time to quit your day job.

3.Finance your business yourself in the beginning

It is true that right now the startup industry is booming. You see all the venture capital out there and everyone beings to think they are entitled to some magical millions of investor dollars. However, most of these companies you now see booming started at nothing, which is most likely where you are starting. They didn’t have someone handing them millions of start-up dollars, they did it themselves, and surprise, that is what you probably must do too. Don’t wait around for someone to discover you and throw handfuls of cash your way. Finance it for yourself.

4.Trust yourself, don’t assume you can count on others

It is your business and you want it to succeed. Other people want to help you, either with good intentions or not. Not to mention you need help, whether it be with creating a website, learning how to write great marketing materials, getting an expert to help you brand yourself, you may not always know how to do everything you need to. However, be wary in trusting others when they say with certainty they know what they are doing. Take the time to find a designer who can do graphics well, find an accountant who won’t mess up your numbers. Even if you have to go through a few hundred people, it is worth it to find the ones who can be counted on.

5.Learn the labor laws

You’re starting a business. This means you will probably have employees. Take the time to learn the federal and state labor laws. For example, did you know you might be required to post labor law posters in your workplace? This may seem boring or something that is obvious. However, just one small labor law infraction could cost you thousands of dollars or even shut your company down. Learning these laws and keeping up with them is crucial.

6.Have passion and be patient

Love what you are doing. You need to believe in it. If you have passion for your goal it will make achieving it come much easier.  If you have the passion for your business and a desire to succeed you won’t leave your goal undone, no matter what frustrations you face. Yet, on that note, you must also have patience. Rome wasn’t built in a day, and on that note neither were successful businesses. It takes, time, frustration and a lot of failures before things even start to go right. However, for those who stick it out, they find themselves the CEO of million dollar companies laughing about the days that the start up fund hadn’t even reached $100.

7.Be Professional

This seems like an obvious statement. Yet it is often forgotten. If you are trying to build a business from the ground up, every step you take is important. You must act accordingly when meeting people, you never know who may be able to help you. If you act professional, professional people will come willing to help. Networking is one of the most important factors these days. You need to make yourself well known in a positive light in the network.