Swim Out To Your Ship....

Have you ever thought about starting your own business? If you have, you've probably wondered "when is the best time to start a business". I know you'll be shocked; but, now is the best time to start a business. The down turn in the economy has left many of you without a job. What excuse will you use to stop yourself from making that leap to self-employment? If your waiting for your ship to sail into the harbor and pick you up at the dock you may be waiting a long time. It's more likely that your ship will sail into the harbor but you'll have to swim out to it. That's what happened to me. I was working three jobs trying to support my family and keep mother at home for the children. The unthinkable happened; I lost my primary income source. I wasn't without resources. I had a severance package, unpaid vacation and unemployment benefits. It was clear to me that this was as close to the perfect opportunity I was ever going to get to go full-time in my own business. It took me a half-a second to dive head first into the harbor. I swam out to the ship. I was cold, tired, hungry and wet when I pulled myself over the rails. I was aboard and there was no turning back. It couldn't have been a worst time economically to start a business. I knew it may be my only opportunity.

If you find yourself in a similar situation, take heart; this could be the best thing that ever happened to you.

I'll post more items of interest in the future about starting a business. The most important thing I want you to focus on when your making a decision is your marketplace. It's absolutely critical that you see the market for your product or service as global and not just local. The Internet is the single most important resource for the success of your business. The information super-highway can take you anywhere in the world for just pennies. I'm not the brightest guy in the world when it comes to the Internet. That's why I went to my friend and client, Kelly Cotiax. She's all things Internet. She helped me design a website that was attractive and useful to visitors and clients. She got me writing this blog. She has me twittering. I am also Linked In. Kelly turned me on to a guy named Chris Brogan. Chris is a social-networking guru you can find on Twitter. Chris made me a believer in the power of social-networking. Social-networking is using the Internet as a (mostly) free way to tell the world about your product or service and all the great things about you. It's also a powerful way to let others blow your horn for you (kinda like I'm doing for Kelly & Chris).

Let me be clear. I'm not advocating that you cash in your 401K fund (which is now a 201K) or take out a mortgage on the house or run up your credit cards to start a business. I just want you to see the opportunity for what it is: an opportunity.

I'll write more soon about what steps you should take to plan a new business start in later posts. For now, just keep your eyes open for your opportunity.

Thomas Hicks is a Certified Public Accountant working in Brewer, Maine. For more information or to contact Tom, click here.