There are many steps to starting a business, but which are the right ones?

Thanks to the internet every budding entrepreneur has access to a stack of information on the crucial steps to starting a business.

But notice I didn’t say a “wealth” of information…

As I’m sure you agree, quantity and quality are not the same thing – and this is certainly true when looking for the right steps to starting a business. Sadly, a lot of business advice is the same advice that was given decades ago and has simply been regurgitated without any real thought being given to its accuracy or application in the new economy.

So what is this new economy and how does it affect the necessary steps to starting a business?

Okay, first thing you need to know before you set out in business is this: You and your business are disposable …but there is more opportunity in business than there has ever been.

I know that’s a kind of yin-yang statement highlighting both a negative and a positive, but it is a fair description of what business is like today …and any prescribed steps to starting a business would do well to take these two facts into account.

• Disposable: The world is moving at a million miles per hour, blink and you will have missed something! This is never more felt than in the business world where the customer has learnt that they can have just about anything they want at the touch of a button. Brand and customer loyalty are ideas of the past, this is the era of quick decisions where even the smallest of perceived issues are not tolerated. If your would-be customer doesn’t like what they see, they can move on without a second thought …as there is always someone else to choose from.

…Now which of the classic steps to starting a business covers that cold reality?!?

Then we have…

• Opportunity: Part of the reason why the customer, as I describe above, looks upon any business as disposable is down to technology. Those lightning decisions, ever-increasing array of choices and touch-button satisfaction is all thanks to advances like the web. Hey, 10-15 years ago we thought the fax was cool …now we have phones in our pockets that can run our lives! This continual acceleration of technology means businesses of today can operate in so many ways, offering all manner of services or products, delivered in a never-ending series of choices.

(If you have already grasped what I’m saying then you could just skip the rest of this article and dive into five free business videos I created specifically designed to get you thinking the right way when starting your business. Just click HERE now …or just keep reading!)

So what are the rights steps to starting a business?

Well, before we get back to first principles let me just tell you a little bit about myself…

I have been a very successful business consultant, coach and trainer for many, many years, hailed as a “catalyst for growth”, working closely with all manner of organisations from big corporates to one-man-businesses. But I didn’t start out that way… I was like a lot of people, I was in a J.O.B!

My role was business growth and development, your classic sales and marketing role – and I have to say I was very good at it, breaking sales records and seeing businesses grow into new markets and achieve great results.

But with every year of success it became increasingly harder and my frustration was forever rising…

Why?

…because so many of the businesses I worked for were still thinking about business in the conventional way. Which meant I was viewed as a maverick and some of my stays at certain employers were quite short …hey, on one occasion I even fired myself!

But all the time I still achieved great results. Go figure!

So naturally I decided to go it alone and setup my own business …and then something really weird happened. I was the one making the mistakes! Like some invisible force I found myself compelled to do things in a certain way… I was becoming conventional! …because “I am a business owner and that’s how a business owner is supposed to act”!

Ermmm, according to who?

So what’s this got to do with the right steps to starting a business? Well, what we’re talking about is convention and how many people, even faced with evidence there is a better way, still wish to stick with what is deemed safe. But… that definition of what is safe is outdated.

If as I suggest any business operating today is disposable yet has greater opportunity than ever before, then it suggests a different form of mindset.

Quick example: So many business books still talk about location… Every business must have well-placed premises. But who says you need a traditional office or shop? The web could be your shop window and your office could be at home.

Another quick example: “It’s important to keep a solid 9 to 5 day” …ermmm, according to who? The new economy is demanding instant access, not ‘normal business hours’! But let’s also consider you as the business owner… Technology allows you to work wherever and WHENever you want to. So wouldn’t it be interesting to have a business that works around what works best for you and your life?

Well, nowadays you can do just that – and in 2008 I finally came to my senses and now have a business which is EXACTLY how I want it to be.

So back to our question “What are the right steps to starting a business?”

Well, there are NO right steps!

Okay, let me clarify that… There are NO right steps which fit everyone all the time.

In 2008 thanks to a serious health scare…

(I’ll tell you more about that in the five FREE business videos and the exact steps I took which made my success ROCKET …click HERE if you’re impatient!)

…I discovered the key to business success was to realize it is YOUR business and is all about what YOU want to achieve.

So any supposedly ‘must do’ steps to starting a business may not actually be right for me – instead a better idea was to first know exactly what I wanted and let that decide the business strategy. The results have been astonishing for both me …and hundreds of my clients.

Five FREE business videos designed to get you thinking

To help you get a much clearer idea of what you actually want in business I have put together five FREE business videos that are designed to get you scratching your head as you rethink your approach to business.

For example, if we say ‘business is a journey’ and you have a destination in mind, then surely it makes sense to consider exactly where you’re at before taking any step forward? (Trust me, no matter how good your map (aka your business plan) is it’s pointless unless there’s a big X stating exactly where you’re at!)

If you have personal goals, do your business goals make your personal goals happen?

Do you want money? Or do you want money AND the time to spend it too?

…that last one makes a big difference to your business planning as most businesses are designed to ONLY make money …and not time.

Show me a “five steps to starting a business” that covers that one!?

You see, it’s about asking the right questions and knowing what you TRULY want in business …and those five FREE business videos are going to have you seeing past the convention and understanding with crystal certainty how to start your business …in the right way for YOU. Click HERE now!

Now that’s the kind of steps to starting a business that really makes a difference!