If you have your initial business startup information in place, your next steps will be ironing out the additional details for your company and increasing your circle of associates who will help you by promotion, marketing, and mentioning your work.
Here is my heart-to-heart checkin with you as you get started in "selling" your business:
1) Share yourself.
Through your business, you are truly fulfilling the statement "Work is love made visible" by Kahlil Gibran. Your work is something that you share with others who truly benefit from your knowledge and skill. Approach your networking with this in mind -- you truly reach out to others who will help you and who you will help. Share freely of your gifts and you'll find many opportunities coming back to you.
2) A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
Going into business is sometimes overwhelming for people: they get overwhelmed by the myriad of details needed, or they don't think they will get everything done. You will do it! Get help if you need to -- delegation is going to be key if you're in business -- it will totally get done!
Just getting started is the hardest step, but once you get started, you realize it is just a matter of taking the next step, and the next, and the next...
3) Your business is an extension of your values.
What do you value? What are you going to place on your "Mission, Vision, and Values" page on your website or in your promotional brochure? What will you look back at with fond nostalgia many years from now when you compile your 10th anniversary or 50th anniversary package?
Many successful women in business mention how important it is for them to use their business to fulfill their values. For me, I am thrilled and honored to support other women and their families (our staff and support team), to invest in women's entrepreneurship (Kiva microlending), and to encourage other women to go into business (see our portfolio of clients).
It's important to me that we increase the level of social and environmental responsibility that we share with our partners and customers. Through that sense of shared responsibility I envision a safe, clean, and prosperous future for all of us on our shared planet. This was important to me when I got started in business, and this has carried me forward in my mission of empowering, educating, and connecting with other women.
4) You have the opportunity to touch so many people.
Because of your business networking and because of the many people that your products and services serve, you expand your personal reach and you are able to communicate, connect, and inspire so many others.
Consider how your products and services impact your local community -- literally make a list. Then, your local clients, your customers in other states, and the people worldwide who use your products and services will find you through your shared values and support your mission.
For example, if you operate a green business, if you sell "green" products, or your business offers a green alternative to a conventional service, encourage all your customers to consider the net effect of their purchase with you. Your clients feel good about supporting your values through their purchase. Blog about your work and network with other green women in business -- the Green Girls Guru page is a great place to start.
5) Keep hope always in your heart.
The reality is that many businesses fail in their first or second year, most from a lack of cash flow. Your biggest challenge is to manage your cash flow, find investors including yourself, and develop a system or product that makes your business procedure work with minimal involvement on your part.
Some more resources:
- Identifying which structure you'll use to incorporate your business
Sole proprietorship, S or C corp, LLC, or partnership - some great free resources are available at Nolo.com: Starting a Business or at LegalZoom: Compare Business Structures
- Getting licensed in your county
Search your local government website for "Doing business in ____ County"
- Paperwork
Steps typically include filing your business name with your county and state, getting a FEIN federal employee identification number for tax purposes, advertising in the newspaper to demonstrate ownership of your business, applying for your city/county license, and filing any incorporation papers.
- Inspiration
The 4-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferriss, on creating systems for your business
The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber, on creating job descriptions and identifying how the entrepreneur can hire others to take on their own jobs
Your Money or Your Life by Vicki Robin and Joe Dominquez, with 9 steps to transforming your relationship with money and achieving financial independence
Now is the time for you to start networking and connecting with clients, customers, partners, and distributors. Get started by visiting:
your local Business Networking International group, your Chamber of Commerce, the Green Chamber, and the National Association of Women Business Owners, as well as trade and industry groups in your region.
Originally published by Monica S. Flores at TheGreenGirls.com
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