The time to get your idea off the ground and kick start your new business cannot be any better than now. It’s the beginning of the year, businesses and individuals are setting goals and creating to-do lists. Well, you could add “launch a new business by month ending”. If you have ever thought about launching your business, the opportune moment is now, make the necessary research and get it off the ground. If you are passionate enough about a new business, I don’t see why should not try it now!
Do some background check
Starting with the industry and market Analyses, mapping out where your product or service will fit into the market. But it’s not a full blown research, just the basics to satisfy your curiosity about the viability of your idea. Find out all you need to know about your idea. You don’t want to waste your time now and realize along the way the idea is not right for you or better still there is not market for your business. Why would you be in business where there is no business. In any case even if you are failing, fail fast and move on.
Related: Beginning Your Own Business: Getting Started on the Right Foot
Get feedback
You will need all the feedback you can gather to shape your idea into a great concept. Talking to people about your idea is essential and important to you. As you develop the ability to talk about the idea many new concepts will come to you. If there are patentable aspects of your idea, those need to be protect if that will make you comfortable, temporarily, but otherwise your idea need not be a secret.
Be agile and adaptable
Ideas go through changes and what you will end up working on may be different from what with. And you don’t be too worried about making money right from the beginning. Very few startups make their money based on their original idea. Microsoft sold a BASIC interpreter. Apple sold printed circuit boards for do-it-yourself hobbyists who wanted to build their own computers. Google had a great search engine but had no clue how to make money from it. Facebook and Twitter are changing social communication and are stilling figuring out how to make money.
Finding talent
You are going to want to find people with the necessary skills and build your team going forward. It’s okay to outsource some tasks. Getting on your feet takes time and once you kick off you will need all the smart people on the bus.
An executive plan will help in the future.
Most people waste time writing 30 page business plans, when in actual fact, they should be in business. Don’t get me wrong, you need to plan but be cautious of where to focus your time and energy right from the beginning.
The business plan is obviously important for presenting your case to angels or venture capital investors, as potential backers for your new business. That is a long-term goal. You probably will be better off bootstrapping from the beginning i.e if you have the means. Even if you don’t have it, angels won’t come to your rescue unless you are offering something they REALLY want to be a part of, and you idea answers most of their questions.
Success or failure is more about getting things done than having a great idea. Get your idea off the ground now, it’s better to fail trying than not try at all.
Related: An Action Plan for Getting A New Business Up and Running
