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You want to work for yourself. You dream of flexibility in your schedule and being able to work from anywhere in the world, stay home with your kids, or just make enough money to boost the family finances a bit. Whatever your reason for starting a business, we love it!
But where do you start?
Dreaming about starting a business and the perks that come with it can be fun — but starting a business? That’s a whole other ball game. If you don’t come from a family of entrepreneurs, you may have no idea how to get a business up and running. Don’t worry, though. We’re here to help. Here are a few ways to stop letting fear stop you from starting your business.
Before we get started, our founder Christina Scalera would like to acknowledge her privilege. While we’re sharing about how to start a business, we also want to acknowledge that fears around starting a business are different from access.
From Christina: I am a white woman who went to law school, and came from a fairly traditional upbringing. I am privileged, and there are circumstances that may play into why you haven’t started a business that I cannot understand. Those reasons are valid.
I may not cover them here, but I do recognize that you may have other or additional obstacles affecting your decision. With that said, let's get into the reasons you might not be starting that dream business.
You’re worried that starting a business is going to cost a lot of money. When you think of a business, do you think of a fancy startup with a huge office space and everyone working on iMacs? Yes? Thankfully, your business doesn't have to be that. We know people who have started their business with nothing but an internet connection that they got from the library (for free!).
Pro tip: You do not have to have all the fancy and bells and whistles to get started. You don't have to have everything purchased to take the first step. You can start with $0 if you want!
Let's be honest: we're all going to make mistakes, especially when we try something new. However, unless your business works with nuclear energy, we wouldn’t be worried about the repercussions of your mistakes. This is why we always tell business owners that your business doesn’t have to cost a lot of money upfront — because you are going to make mistakes. Once you push past the fear of failure, you’ll start feeling more confident.
Pro tip: Go research people like Sarah Blakely of Spanx, who have openly admitted to failing and failing again!
If you're worried that you'll launch something new or create something and then have no one buy it, we get it. That actually happened to our founder, Christina Scalera, when she first started The Contract Shop®. She went months without a sale, despite people saying they needed her contracts. But she kept at it, kept learning more, and eventually that first sale came. (Now, we’re one of the most successful Shopify online shops, and one of the most well-known names in the contract template biz!)
The wait can be discouraging, and pushing a product with no sales or reviews is hard. Thankfully, there are a couple of ways to offer your time or product so you can bring in your first sale, receive your first review, and open that door for future opportunities.
They’ll be more receptive to what you’re selling and will leave a review!
Another way is to sell your product to a peer group, your church, etc., or custom-make something.
All you need is to get the first sale, client, or appointment, etc. From there, you can see if people want what you’re offering. Of course, this will take time and will include a lot of trial and error. Don’t get discouraged, though. Take it all as a learning opportunity.
Pro tip: If you’re really worried about not selling anything, don’t quit your day job until you start bringing in money. You’ll save yourself a lot of stress.
Starting a business comes with knowing the legalities of starting a business and your business itself. It can also come with a ton of questions if you’re not legally minded.
Will I get sued? Do I need a contract or any insurance? How do I protect myself and my business?
The questions never end. We answer a lot of legal questions on our YouTube channel, so take some time to browse and subscribe.
Our biggest piece of legal advice might surprise you, though: We don’t recommend worrying about the legal stuff just yet. We want you to sell something before you worry about contracts, creating an LLC, or dealing with problem clients.
Once you start selling you’ll need to introduce contracts and insurance into your business, but until then don’t let the legalities delay you actually starting your business.
When you’re daydreaming about starting your business, those dreams can quickly become nightmares with possible business scenarios. Specifically, worrying about all the things that can go wrong and all the ways that your business can fail. And it’s not just about what can go wrong tomorrow, but what about in 6 months? Or 6 years? Any aspiring business owner will have thousands of “What if’s” floating around in their mind — but our best tip is to put one foot in front of the other.
Those “What if’s” will stop you dead in your tracks if you let them. Instead, though, focus on figuring out what service or product you want to offer, and then organize it so you can sell it. Then focus on selling it. From there, you can focus on your business plan, your contract, or project management platforms. It’s one step at a time — don’t focus on your million and one negative “what if” thoughts.
Are you making starting a business more complicated than it needs to be? Probably! Getting a business started can be a lot of work and there are a ton of different routes to take, some harder than others. But you will be OK. You can totally do this! We’ve all overcomplicated things, including our founder, Christina. That’s why she created the Turnkey Business Binder.
With the Turnkey Business Binder, you can get your business organized, started, and profitable in not months, but days! This is the only product designed that creates a streamlined business plan and roadmap for your business.
With the Turnkey Business Binder, you’ll know that you’re starting your business correctly without any unnecessary steps, complications, or expenses.
We use this system and binder here at The Contract Shop®, too, and it helps Christina stay on top of the process for any new business adventure she starts — right from the beginning. This binder is a turn-key (ha) solution to start a profitable business, one that will put you on top of your industry and ahead of your competitors.
So… what are you waiting for? Get started today. Your business is waiting for you!
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