100 Venturing out: What you need to know before you go

You’ve thought about it. But it’s now the time to start your own business. In this episode, we talk about venturing out: what you need to know before you go.

This week’s Inspire Me quote is from Maxwell Maltz:

“Often the difference between a successful person and a failure is not one has better abilities or ideas, but the courage that one has to bet on one’s ideas, to take a calculated risk—and to act.”

It’s a good time to launch a new business. But, before you start your new venture, consider:

1. Are you prepared? Mentally? Emotionally? Financially? Relationally?
2. Are you being intentional and strategic? Don’t act simply on opportunity.
3. Is there an alignment between you and your market? In passion? In skills? In needs?
4. Do you have the mindset of a learner? You won’t get it right the first time.
5. Do you embrace others in your venture? Formally? Informally?
6. Are you willing to sell? Don’t go into business if selling makes you cringe.
7. Do you have the three Cs? You need calling, competence, and confidence to be successful.

If you’re currently in business for yourself, we invite you to chime in and share your story and wisdom in our show notes below.

Quotes from the show:

• “I will generally encourage people to start businesses because I have learned more about myself, I’ve learned more about trusting God, I’ve learned more about growing closer to Anna through this, and more about what’s important to me through starting my own business—I don’t think I’d trade that for anything, as tough as it was.” —Leary
• “There are all kinds of good reasons to start a business now.” —Leary
• “This is something where, if you don’t have a love and a passion for it, it’s gonna be hard and you’re gonna give up on it. So why expend the energy to start up something that you don’t love?” —Leary
• “If you’re married and your spouse is not ready for you to do this and is not on-board for you to take this type of risk, just don’t do it. It’s bad timing. No matter how much you think you’re doing this on your own and it doesn’t effect the other person—how do I say this—you’re wrong. The other person is going to be just as involved—if not more—emotionally.” —Armin
• “Be married to your purpose, but hold your approach with a light, delicate touch—because there might be a better approach.” —Leary
• “If you have an idea and you’re passionate about the idea, you’re a hundred times more likely to make that idea work than the guy who maybe heard the idea and is just being opportunistic.” —Leary
• “Don’t be so quick to propose an NDA before you’ve even had a conversation—let the other person at least get a feeling [for your idea].” —Armin
• “Lower the barriers for people to be able to help you in your business.” —Leary
• “Before I even give you my idea, before I even really know who you are, ‘Sign this NDA because I don’t trust you,’ you’ve already killed a potential opportunity before it became one, because you’re paranoid—why?!” —Armin
• “If you don’t love your idea enough, then how can you sell it?” —Leary
• “When you get toward the end of life, you will never look back and regret the things you did. You’ll regret the things you didn’t do.” —Armin

This week’s Challenge Me:

If you’re considering venturing out, first write or journal your responses to the above questions. Be honest with yourself. Self-deception is self-destruction.

Resources mentioned in or related to this podcast that may be helpful to you:

• Episode 2: “Is it time to give your job a shove?“
• Episode 6: “How to be a better beginner.“
• Episode 30: “The secret to getting great feedback.“
• Episode 16: “How to network like a pro.“
• Episode 7: “Why you should be a lifelong apprentice.“
• Episode 8: “How to be an intentional apprentice.“
• Episode 44: “The art of self-promotion.“
• Presence: Bringing Your Boldest Self to Your Biggest Challenges by Amy Cuddy.