Enough excuses: Here’s how to FINALLY start your own business

Starting your own business is one of the most powerful ways to take control of your life and make extra money month after month. You can start with just a few hours a week. And best of all, you get to choose your hours, pick projects you find exciting, and meet interesting people.

You know this, yet haven’t started. Why? Excuses.

It’s totally normal. So if starting a business doesn’t sound like it’s for you, But here, I’m revealing the advanced strategies behind launching a successful business that gives you the freedom to share your skills with the world — and create something people will pay you for, even when you aren’t working.

Excuse 1: I can’t start my own business, I have no money!

Candidly, if you’re struggling financially, I would not try to start a business first. I would get a good job, get financially stable, THEN try to create one.

Excuse 2: Running a business seems like a lot of work. I just want to sit with my laptop on a beach.

we all want to go into online businesses because it will give us flexibility, time to spend with family, more money, and a bunch of other great reasons…

…but those shouldn’t be the ONLY reasons. That can’t be where you start but it can be where you end.

If you really want all those things, you need learn to dig deep into what your customers really want and put their needs first. This takes work, and you need to be prepared to dedicate time EVERY week to make it happen.

Only by factoring your customers into your system can you turn your dream or passion into a real business that’ll make you money.

Excuse 3: My boss/spouse/friends won’t let me start a business.

It’s not up to them to approve of your idea or let you know whether starting a business is right for you. Only YOU can do that. This is very different from what we were taught as kids. Starting in kindergarten, we had to raise our hand. We had to get permission for everything we did.

At a certain point though — and this is scary — there is no one to ask permission from.

It’s your decision.

And when you’re running your own business there is often no one to ask, no guide to consult, no manual to read. It’s all on you. So get used to it!

Excuse 4: I’m having trouble finding an idea.

The number one barrier to starting a business is “I don’t have an idea.”

But not all ideas were created equal. When you are coming up with business ideas, silence the inner critic that says you can’t teach something unless you are credentialed or the world’s greatest expert on the subject. All you have to be is good enough to help people achieve their goals.

 Follow 3 steps:

1. Find 1 person — JUST ONE! — who might be interested in your idea. You can do this via email or in person. If you’re not sure, ask ANYONE that’s close to you, even your parents. We’re not aiming for perfection right now, just people.

2. “Test” for language using this script: “I’m thinking of starting some kind of website around [YOUR IDEA]. When you talk to your friends about it, what do you say? What’s the biggest problem around [YOUR IDEA]?”

3. Write down the exact language they use. Did they really say, “I want a solution that’s easy, fast, and secure?” No, they did not. WRITE DOWN WHAT THEY ACTUALLY SAY. “I hate how these jeans look on me” is a terrific response. “Every day I wake up, I just dread going to work” is another.

Excuse 5: I’m so overwhelmed by all the options. What kind of online business should I start?

there are only SIX viable options.

1.    Software (including apps)

2.    Physical products

3.    Advertising

4.    Affiliate marketing

5.    Coaching

6.    Online courses

But not all businesses are created equal. You want the right mix of PROFIT and COST.

Excuse 6: I’m not sure my idea is any good.

If you ask people about an idea they will all say “YEAH! THAT SOUNDS GREAT!” And then they don’t buy. Get past this base level of feedback. To figure out if your idea has legs it helps to plot it on a demand matrix like the one below:

This is a very simple way of taking your ideas and figuring out what is worth your time. As you can tell, you want ideas in the “Golden Goose” quadrant, one where there are lots of potential customers and a high price. Plotting your ideas on this matrix help you to not fall in love with your first idea, something we call “idea one-itis.”

But most importantly, it helps you start to contextualize your ideas by how they will play in the real world. Not how you HOPE they will work out or not by what you’re the most excited about — but by what has the best chance of working.

Excuse 7: Business cards, bank accounts, sales pages… I have no idea where to start!

Stop worrying about stuff that doesn’t matter. So many people think PASSION is the key to business success. That if you just care enough the rest will take care of itself. First, any successful person that says this doesn’t take into account the PASSIONATE people that failed. Second, passion is just where we need to start. To truly succeed in business we need SYSTEMS. Three, specifically:

1.    A system for getting people’s attention

2.    A system for getting them to subscribe to your email list

3.    A system for selling them your product

Excuse 8: But what if I don’t live in a city / didn’t go to college / have long hair / am a special snowflake / blah blah blah.

We do this all the time. We see a famous CEO and point out how “he took 5 companies public and got a Harvard MBA.” We see a successful children’s book author and point out how “she already knew 4 publishers, so her book got published immediately.”

But that’s simplistic, and it’s an excuse to stay in your current state and do nothing differently. Instead of thinking of the reason they succeeded, ask what you can do TODAY to get closer to your goal. The fact that a famous entrepreneur went to Harvard has NOTHING to do with you finding your first customer or testing your first idea.

Excuse 9: But what if I fail?

The last excuse is the MOST important one. So many of us SAY we want to “take risks” and “start a business” for YEARS but never act. Why? We’re afraid of failing. Which really means   we’re afraid at what people will think of us for failing.

The most successful people I know have the most failures. Because they take the most chances. It’s not IF you will fail. It’s WHEN and what you do about it. The faster you can accept this paradigm the faster you can get over excuses like these and onto FINALLY starting your own business.