How to Start a New Business Before You Quit Your Job

 

Sure, it’s a dilemma to try to figure out how to start a new business while you’re still employed, especially if you don’t have enough assets. But millions of people have done it.

They’ve learned an entrepreneurial life has its rewards, but it’s very difficult. The first key is finding a need to fill. Perseverance and resilience are vital. It’s important to start learning now how to reduce stress and work happier for top performance. If you’re in a relationship, make sure you have the support of your significant other.

Don’t let your schedule deter you from your ambitions. It will require a balancing act, especially if you have a family. But don’t leap into the water before you know how to swim.

My sense is that it’s to best take a series of strategic baby steps:

Develop a mindset with powerful new habits. A business will tax your abilities to the max. Determine what you want to launch as a business. It’s best to love your work, and it will help if you have a space at home in which to work. Work on your idea each day.

Begin working on your idea concurrently while enhancing your leadership and soft skills. That’s accomplished by assessing your strengths and weaknesses.  Hone your acumen for leadership and soft-skills,  and lessen your weaknesses. Then focus on your opportunities and threats to success.

Cement your job situation. To prepare for launching a startup, start doing the job that more closely aligns you with your goals for a startup.

Therefore, become the go-to person in your workplace. Look for problems to solve that interfere with your employer’s goals – make your boss’s job easier, make revenue for the company or save costs.

This will increase your value and you’ll start getting valuable experience in advance of your startup.

Then, for even more experience, skillfully accomplish the following:

• Advance into management. Your boss will have to get approval from higher-ups for your promotion so read the tips on how to advance your career via your boss’s boss.
• Ask for a pay raise and try to get a more flexible schedule.

The two accomplishments will result in stronger self confidence. By becoming more accomplished in negotiation and management skills, you’ll be better prepared — maximum confidence in your business launch.

Start studying. Remember micro businesses position themselves to win.

At the minimum, you’ll need to study for other basic skills:

• Budgeting basics for a micro business, and a checklist to increase your startup’s cash flow.
• Learn strategies to give you pricing power.
• Develop a business plan with strategic planning. Believe it or not, you’ll need to include an exit strategy.
• Hone a great elevator pitch – you never know when you’ll have an opportunity to extemporaneously explain your product or service.
• Review tips on how to organically grow your business.
• Employ marketing for growth even on a tight budget.

Admittedly, this isn’t a complete list of ideas. Additionally, see this Checklist: 19 quick narketing tips for new entrepreneurs.

For more specifics, see the other sections in this Biz Coach portal. With my compliments, there are hundreds of business-coaching topics with proven solutions for maximum profits. It’s OK with me if you download this page and the pages associated with all the above links.

Soon, you’ll be ready to start part-time. Good luck!

From the Coach’s Corner, The New York Times honored me by publishing advice in two articles on my entrepreneurial advice:

• Been There… Done That… Here’s How – New York Times
• Advice on Taking an Entrepreneurial Leap – New York Times

“Business opportunities are like buses, there’s always another one coming.”

- Richard Branson

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Author Terry Corbell has written innumerable online business-enhancement articles, and is a business-performance consultant and profit professional. Click here to see his management services. For a complimentary chat about your business situation or to schedule him as a speaker, consultant or author, please contact Terry.