Video: Are you ready to be a business owner?

If you are considering starting your own small business in Canada, the first step is to determine if you truly are ready.

The video above, titled “Are you ready to be a business owner”, will take you through the various steps to help you determine if you are ready.

This video is part of the small business video series, which you can access here to learn more about starting up, building a business plan, finding funding, and more.

Are you ready to be a business owner?

The first question you have to ask yourself before you jump into entrepreneurship is, “are you ready to be a business owner”?

It is an important question as you eventually become the business and are one of the crucial impacts to the success of the business.

If you have watched the video above, it will cover a few key points. But it is important to know that becoming a business owner has a number of requirements, not only in regards to the business itself, but personal requirements as well.

So, the 3 key things you will require personally to make your entrepreneurial dreams come true include:

1. Having a business idea in mind.

2. Being able to dedicate time to the business.

3. And, having enough money to get started.

Starting a business in today’s economy requires a bit of all 3.

So let’s break it down further and see if you are ready to be a business owner in Canada.

Your Business Idea

A business idea is not something you generally come up with overnight. It is something you develop into.

The best business ideas will come from an understanding of a specific industry, perhaps due to your experience or knowledge, but no matter what it is, researching and fully understanding what you’re getting into before you do, is crucial.

If you don’t have a business idea just yet, not to worry; perhaps you can take some time to plan out what you are good at, know about and use that to determine the pros and cons of turning that career into a business.

For those who don’t have an idea of their own, a franchise is often a helpful way to get into an already existing business with a proven process. While a franchise may cost more, the benefit of it is that you don’t have to go through the research phase as much. And you can immediately get into something that has a proven system.

However, if you do have an idea, your goal should be to prepare a business plan as the first step.

Having a business plan will ensure that you have noted down the key points of your idea into a business on paper. This will test your knowledge and see your shortcomings, allowing you to improve before you invest your time and money into the idea fully.

In addition to the business plan being helpful when planning your business, it will be a useful tool if you decide to seek money from the government, investors or banks.

Time Investment

Now that you have an idea of what you want to do, or still are considering what type of business to get into, it is also important to consider the other factors to determine if you would be ready to get into business.

Your available time is a crucial factor.

Time is something none of us have enough of. Not something you can buy, but, you can, however optimize it.

When it comes to business ownership, time management is a crucial step.

But, before you get into it, you have to know how much time you have to dedicate towards a business.

If you neglect your business and don’t dedicate time to successfully grow it, chances are, your business won’t see success.

So, how much time do you have?

A hour or two a day, or perhaps a couple of days a week? Maybe just the weekends? Or maybe this wouldn’t be an issue for you?

You might have a job or a career, be in school, have children, or have other priorities, and while this is all fine, getting into business has to be something you carefully plan out, to determine if you can, or can’t dedicate the needed time to.

It is estimated that a typical entrepreneur, starting out, will have to dedicate a good 6 months before they see results. This means working days, nights, weekends – whenever you have the time.

Can that fit into your schedule?

This is a question you carefully have to consider after doing some thinking.

Do you have the money?

Did you know that a typical small business owner can start with as little as $5,000 dollars?

Not all businesses are alike, and the expenses that you may have may be different from others, especially if you are starting a web-based business versus a brick-and-mortar location.

Generally speaking, the more money you have available to cover the needed costs, will actually determine if you are going down the easy road, or have some tough times ahead to plan thoroughly.

Money is available to borrow from banks, private investors, and government agencies, but it is crucial that you have a solid business plan in place to ensure you can get the funds and that you are not putting yourself at too much risk.

Many business owners will try to do it on their own as well – and while this is possible, putting yourself in a position to wear all the hats can’t last too long.

Remember, you have to spend money to make money – but before you spend it, plan it.

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As we are getting to the end here, we hope you’ve figured out what you need to start a business – at least from a personal stand point.

If you have determined an idea of what you want to do as a business, be it something you’ve got experience in, or knowledge of, or if you plan on buying an existing business or franchise, no matter what it is, planning for it ahead of time is always helpful.

It’s never a good idea to just jump into something without carefully thinking it through.

Once you’ve determined your business idea, knowing if you have the time to dedicate is a crucial component.

And lastly, having the money to make it happen is the next on the list.

If you have the 3 key components covered and there are no hesitations, you are ready to become your own boss and start your small business.

Remember, business ownership is not easy, it is, however highly rewarding if you dedicate your time to it.

If you have found the above video helpful, review the other small business startup videos in the series as we will be discussing various things related to small business ownership. From determining if you are ready to be a business owner to a few ideas that you can consider, uncovering some of the costs to start up or to run the business, and seeing all that you will need to be successful; be sure to check each video start to finish and share your comments with the experts at Canada Startups if you have any further questions.

Small Business Startups and Ownership