How To Start A New Business

OK, You REALLY want to start a business, right? Well, do it right, and you can really accomplish what you want. Do it WRONG, and you're toast. (burnt toast.) This is a short article about how to start a business the RIGHT way, and why it's so important to get it right before you even start to play.

You see, as you probably know, it's VERY easy to start a business. Anyone can do it. But if you know anyone who has started a business, (think about it,) chances are, it went down in flames. Sure, you hear about the success stories (why else are they in the news?), but the "failure stories" are usually told at the PTO meeting, the bowling alley, or over a cup of coffee at Star Bucks. (As you look around and only wished you could own just ONE of these locations.....)

I would like to introduce just a couple ideas to anyone wishing to start a real businesss. I mean a "real business." No, you don't need a finance degree from a major university, or even an associate's degree from a trade school. But what you do need, and what you need to understand will make the ONLY difference.

You see, what most small businesses don't have is a (and get this,) "right mind." PLEASE understand this. A RIGHT MIND. This means that if you have any chance of making it, you need to understand that if you don't have the right mind going in, you're going to be toast. Trust me. I've done it 11 times. And I had the "right mind." And I really did. And if you have the right mind, you're more than likely going to succeed.

And if you have the "right mind," you can't even imagine the fun you're going to have, because I've been there. And it's like Camelot. It really is. By getting it "right," in my very first endeavor, at the ripe-old-age of 26, my CFO called me while I was on my speedboat to tell me I'd just hit my first $300,000 MONTH. Sure, there was some luck to be had, but let me give you my two MOST important "right ideas" to have IF you're going to start a business.

But one more thing. Getting it "right" means a whole lot of things. It did for me. Cash-flow. No financial burdens. Living a really cool life that included going to Las Vegas 4 to 6 times a year and staying in the best strip hotels (comp'd for most of the trips!). Sure, you get a lot of responsibility dished on your plate, but if you "get it right," you also can start hiring people to help you with the hardest parts. In other words, you get "MO." (that would be: Momentum.) You acquire assets and people who all of a sudden (since you're paying them,) people who are looking out for your best interest.

So in other words, "get it right," and you 1) have a growing asset, 2) build net worth, 3) build cash-flow 4) gain leverage 5) gain power (if you're into that, although it's part of the game no matter what,) 6) become respected, 7) start tasting the "finer things in life," and 8) truly control your destiny.

So what are the "couple points" to "get it right?"

O.K., I'll tell you, but, like the other 99% of the people who will fail, you probably won't listen. In fact (not to be negative, but...) you'll probably click out of this right now. BUT, I'm not trying to sell you anything, so maybe you'll go on.

The first MOST IMPORTANT POINT: You're going to sell your business. That's right. You're building this whole thing to sell it. And you will. Trust me. Even if you never hand over the stock to someone else for a huge amount of cash, you really did sell it. Because if you never sell it, than you bought it. Everyday. And remember this. It's huge. Everyday you keep your business, you chose to buy it, because you COULD sell it. (I've sold 8 of my 11 businesses, and the 3 left are here because I chose to keep them, which means in other words, I bought them.) Told ya, you probably already are ready to leave me. That's ok, because we know that most businesses fail, and if you don't grasp this point, you may want to think about it.

Well, if you're still here, let's talk quickly about the MOST IMPORTANT POINT. You're going to sell your business. If you thought of it this way, (like you would if you were going to build your very first starter home,) you'd make it a bad-ass model. You'd want it to be marketable. Built with the best material, trust-worthy, easy to explain to anyone why they may want it. BUT, that's NOT how most businesses are built. In fact, most businesses are built with sand and straw. They BREAK the owner's back. They kill the entrepreneurial spirit inside. NO ONE would want a business like that!

The SECOND MOST IMPORTANT POINT: (if you're going to be the C.E.O.): You can NOT let ANY "sub-C.E.O." role rely on you. ANY. NONE. At All. And better yet, if you can get to the point of hiring a professional C.E.O., than you cannot let ANY role rely on you other than that of being a board member or owner. This is HUGE. And this is where I'll probably lose you, if I haven't already. The ONLY time you can let your business rely on you for anything is when you've consciously decided that you want to OWN THAT JOB. It's that easy.

Why, you ask? Because ANYTIME your business relies on you for anything means that you are an employee of that business. And, in case you haven't noticed, the most successful businesses in the world have highly specialized people doing the task set at hand. Just like McDonald's or Star Bucks. Trust me. If you get this point, you can smell the difference between a "small business" from a "successful business" in about 5 seconds.

I've been involved with alot of start-ups, and a few REALLY bad partnerships. The small businesses in America remain "small" because the owner or starter refused to let go that they weren't the "best" person for the job. In fact, any "good" small business will eventually fade, simply because the owner finally (and yes you will,) become TIRED. VERY TIRED.

If you go in with the "right mind," and build your business as if you were going to sell it, you'd think a little differently. You'd build a brand. You'd build systems. You'd find great people to run your company to provide VERY systematic results for people (like Star Bucks, Target, McDonald's).

Even if you don't like "brand companies," you have to admit, you'd LOVE to be able to be in a position to sell your company if you owned it the way I'm talking about. Listen. I've been on both ends. Buying and selling. Trust me. If I were to buy your business, would I want to buy a business that instantly relied on me to work 100 hours a week? Or would I want to buy a business that was a money-machine, like Ray Kroc offered back in the day?

I hope this helps you, trust me. It's the truth!

Chris