We’re continuing in our series on questions you should ask yourself if you want to start a business or have already:
- What’s your appetite for risk?
Some of us are more of a risk-taker than others. Take myself and my husband, for instance, …here in the Sickler house we refer to him sometimes, as the “safety guru”, because he’s the one that keeps the kids (and myself) from taking unnecessary risks – I feel like every household needs one of those types. Myself, on the other hand…I tend to like the rush of taking risks – I ride the scary rides and sail through uncharted waters. I like the surprise and the thrill of not knowing what’s up ahead!
When we talk about risk-taking in the business arena, we’re talking about needing both types.
If you don’t have a business partner and you’re going it alone, I would suggest you figure out your type and work on personal growth in that area you’re weakest in. You need both. Here’s why: you will encounter opportunities for business growth that will come with a bit of risk. If it’s too risky, you need someone to ground you and talk sense into you. If the risk looks like it’ll be worth it, you might need someone to push you forward into it.
With that being said, even if you’re really careful and wise with your risk-taking, you might find that some of those opportunities don’t pan out and you end up losing money on it. That’s ok. Don’t allow a couple of failures to determine the end of your business. Just pull yourself up, dry your eyes, and determine to be smarter next time. It’s growth…and growth doesn’t happen without some failure. I like the way this writer puts it – “If your uniform isn’t dirty, you didn’t play.”
- What’s the smartest way to fund my operation?
I can almost definitively say that the best way to fund your business is debt-free. There might be a few outliers – situations which might require credit cards or loans, but for most situations, debt-free is best.
But…doing this debt-free might mean penny-pinching during the first few years of your business. We were fortunate enough to start with a $75,000 settlement from a wrongful death in the family. That’s not the typical business start-up story, but aside from some school debt we have, our business is relatively debt-free still to this day, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.
And don’t forget….however it is that you decide to run your Colorado small business, we are here to help! Colorado multimedia production is what we do! That means providing Colorado with professional video production, professional graphics work, website design and hosting, social media assistance and virtually any other print, online, or AV media that you can think of! Call or email us to see how we can help propel you forward!