Every year millions of people answer “Yes” when asked if “they are ready to start their own business.”

And every year, that answer costs many of them money, time, confidence, and heartache.

According to Fortunly:

• 78.5 small businesses survive the first year
• The most common reason for failure is the lack of need in the marketplace for their products or services
• Approximately 29% of businesses fail because they run out of cash

There are resources available to small business owners that not everyone might know. 

Are You Taking Advantage of the FREE Mentoring Available to all Small Business Owners?

SCORE is an association with over 12,500 volunteer small business owners and executives who are still working, retired, and in transition who give their time to counsel and mentor entrepreneurs and other small business owners.

How can you make sure you come out a winner in this “game”? Society helps create Entrepreneurs.

To determine if you are ready, ask yourself the following questions.

Are You Ready

Have you mentally prepared yourself for the changes that will take place when you switch from employee to boss?

You are going to be the one making decisions now about everything. So, you will be in complete control and have to be sure you are prepared.

This can be a double-edged sword in that the desire for complete control is often the driving force behind many people’s decision to start their own businesses. Yet it can also be the source of much angst for entrepreneurs.

It is important to remember that you will wear many hats in a small business. Even if you manage to start with one or more employees, you will fulfill more than one role in your new business.

And if you are running a one-man or one-woman show, you serve in every capacity from file clerk to maintenance crew to salesperson to CEO.

Can you handle switching from task to task and role to role like that? Are you willing to make those switches?

Similarly, have you prepared your family and friends for this switch in attitude?

Your life is going to change — probably pretty drastically — and that change can positively or negatively impact your family life and social interactions.

It will make things much easier if your friends and family are supportive going into the process.

What Is Your Niche?

Have you identified your niche yet? One of the reasons many businesses fail is that they fail to focus on a target audience.

If you are a major discount chain, you can sell everything from peanuts to wallpaper, but this type of business requires vast resources that aren’t available to many people.

But small businesses dominate the marketplace by finding a different approach — a niche.

Knowing your niche means you can better find, target, and maintain your customers and provide the best possible goods and services to that customer base.

That focus is one of your best chances to not only survive but to thrive in a very competitive marketplace.

What Is Your Plan of Action?

Another critical factor in your business’s survival and ultimate success is how much planning you do before you open your electronic or physical doors.

You need to decide if your business will be based on the internet or include more traditional models.

Are you going to work full-time or part-time at your new business? Will you hire help or go solo? Have you written (or at least outlined) your business plan?

Dreaming, thinking, and planning can save you a ton of trouble and waste later when things are hectic and problems strike.

Planning can also help keep you stay focused and balance your spending and time.

Who Are You Going to Call?

Ghost Busters! Sorry, I couldn’t resist that one ?. At some point, no matter how experienced a business person you are, you will need help.

You will need support, advice, tools, or information — or all of the above.

One of the beautiful and most frightening aspects of growth is that it can lead you to places you never imagined.

No matter how much planning and experience you bring to your new position as CEO, the unexpected will arise.

How will you cope with this? It is essential to recognize that no business is an island.

It is not a failure to seek help. Failure is when your business shuts down because you didn’t get the help you needed.

The best way to get timely help is to work on your support system while building your business.

That way, you will already have a ready list of resources available that you can quickly tap into when emergencies strike.

There are many excellent resources available to you in today’s world, no matter what your business model may be. These include:

• Publications (newsletters, magazines, books)
• People (professional advisers, mentors, teachers, consultants)
• Networks (organizations and forums in your niche as well as general business and marketing)
• Education and training (tutorials, courses, and seminars)

After answering these four essential questions, you are now ready to ask yourself that one big question again — are you prepared to start your own business?

Originally published 05/12/2013; republished 01/04/21 to update content and add infographic.