I've wanted to start my own business since I was a teenager. That was 20+ years ago and I still haven't done it. I've gone so far as incorporating two different business "ideas," but always with the idea of not risking anything, keeping it a small work-from-home venture. I'm so over that. My first endeavor was to sell art on the internet, but I don't know art, didn't want to invest in the technical development, and just didn't have the committment. Now there are many sites on the web that sell commercial art, fine art, arts & crafts (etsy.com is really cool).
My second endeavor was literary in nature, much more suited to be a non-profit. But again, I didn't dedicate time to it, was buried in my full-time job, traveling frequently. It was an "ideal" I fell in love with, owning a business I could love. I would be spreading love of literature, getting people to read and write, but my heart was not in it as a full-time venture, more of a part-time occasional pursuit that I can now still do from time to time without attempting to turn it into a business. I did sign up to teach a non-credit literature course at the local college, that's what I needed. And I belong to an active book club. That works fine.
But I still want to own my own business. I'd love to have a small shop, but I know how difficult that can be. A fast food franchise is out, way out. I'm still thinking, I have a list of over 50 ideas I've charted through the past years, less than 5% are viable at the level of profit I'd like to take it to.
The most glaring thing here for me is the risk. I've never been in the position financially (or gutsy-wise) to take the level of risk I needed to. I've also picked the wrong business ideas for me, ideas that I could not commit to, was not passionate about, or perhaps too passionate about and lacking the profit potential I was hoping for. But I'm getting there. Along the way, I'm learning everything I can from my day job on how to run a business. The best learning for me so far has been my years at a start-up, helping it grow from start-up to full fledged corporation. Now, I'm at a corporation where there is more time to think, more development opportunity, and I'm meeting people from whom I'm learning everyday. I may also be meeting prospective business partners. So for now I'm set. But not content. I subscribe to Inc. Magazine, Money, and Entreprenuer, and I read books like "The Girls' Guide to Building a Million-Dollar Business." And I'm constanting analyzing and narrowing, focusing, combining, morphing, my top business ideas.
Right here, right now. I think I'm just talking out loud. But, now that I've announced publicly on the Internet that I'm starting a business, it's real, right?
According to Entreprenuer magazine, the top entreprenurial business trends for 2008 are: 2008 Hot List.
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