Requirements for starting a new business

Case breakdown: Movie What Men Want

The scene that you just saw shows Ali Davis being appointed as a partner of the company she works in. She worked very hard for this company, only to realize that she doesn’t want to be a partner with the firm anymore.

This realization came to her through her journey in the movie. She declares that she is starting her new agency.

Requirements for Starting a new business:

Starting a new venture takes a lot of determination and effort. Requires certain steps that need to be fulfilled before even starting the venture.

Deeply Understanding Yourself

Getting to know yourself is something that cannot be bypassed. There are things in life that can be bypassed, but not this one. It is crucial to the core. Now, understanding oneself isn’t for the fainthearted. It requires understanding yourself at a deeper level and accepting both the good and the bad (which you consider) in yourself and loving them.

Answering some existential questions becomes important too such as:

• Who am I?
• What are my motivations?
• Why am I doing this?

Once you have done this, it becomes easier to answer questions of strengths and weaknesses. Defining the values you are driven by is crucial. For example, you could be driven by love, joy, integrity, and freedom. These values will propel your actions. You can easily evaluate yourself by being true to yourself. Many people try to fool themselves by not being authentic.

Why Entrepreneurship

Answering this question is important. If you are in a bad job and continuously say I want to start my own business because you are frustrated, that’s not a good reason, to begin with. In the scene that we saw, Ali Davis (played by Taraji P Henson) clearly knows that her self-worth is not derived from the approval of a man. She is very clear on why she wants to start her own venture. Hence, having that understanding will not only give you clarity of thought but also the direction in which you’ll be heading.

Self Evaluation Questions

1. Is money important to you right now according to your living situation and age?
2. Are you driven by a purpose to make a change?
3. Do you panic when you don’t have money?
4. Do you want to be safe in a job and earn a decent salary?
5. Are you willing to take a risk?
6. Can you work for other people and is good at following orders?
7. Do you really want to start your own venture?
8. Are you ready for the challenges it will bring?
9. Do you want to become an entrepreneur?
10. Do you want it to be a full-time or a part-time venture?

Conduct your market research

Once you have decided, it is important to conduct your market research, the industry you are in matters. If your industry is a large one and has really little growth, then it is difficult for a new entrant to survive. Hence, doing good research would fetch big benefits. You can do this by studying the market reports of your industry online and talking to people from the industry.

Run your idea

One can run ads and survey to get audience reactions. This would help one understand how many people are really interested in the product or service that you are offering. Measure the reaction of people to gauge their interest.

Writing a Business Plan

This is an important part. It could also give you a sense of whether you want to raise capital or fund your own business. This will give you a roadmap of where you are headed and how much initially you want to invest in the business.