How to start a business when you don’t have the experience
There are several stories of entrepreneurs who have started successful businesses with little or no experience in the business. While expertise and experience are needed in running a business, it does not guarantee the success of the business. An entrepreneur may have the technical know-how but may not have sufficient capital to run the business. Such a business may not last long. Starting a business requires several factors of which experience is just a part of it. Some of the factors needed to run a successful business include; technical know-how, capital, partnership, management know-how and determination.
Richard Brandson is one of the most successful entrepreneurs today. However most of the businesses he started where not due to any accumulated knowledge of his. In a publication by CNBC, it describes how Richard Brandson started his airline business without much experience.
Billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson started his airline Virgin Atlantic in 1984 when his flight from Puerto Rico to the Virgin Islands was cancelled. Rather than waiting for the next available flight, “I hired a plane, borrowed a blackboard and as a joke, I wrote ‘Virgin Airlines’ on the top of the blackboard, ‘$39 one way to BVI,'” he says in a video by HP Matter. “I went out to round up all the passengers who had been bumped and I filled up my first plane.”
The following steps will guide you into launching your business even when you don’t have the experience.
Be determined
It’s not enough to want to launch a business, you need a great dose of determination to succeed. It’s determination that will keep you going even when challenges start to show. Determination shows a strength of your character. You must be prepared to face the unexpected in your business. Determination is directly proportional to your passion and work rate. If you are willing to put in the hard work at the initial stage of your business, then it shows you are determined to make the business succeed.
Find a mentor
We all need a mentor. Someone somewhere has done what you are about to do and have accumulated a great deal of knowledge in the field. It is important to seek such people to guide you in your new venture. Visionary founder of Apple Inc, Steve Jobs was mentored by Former CEO of Intel, Andy Groove. When seeking a mentor, it’s important to build relationship first. The mentor must be supportive, communicative, inspiring and must feel that your needs are important. It’s also important to know the person well before you ask him or her to become your mentor.
Pay for consultation
Sometimes this might be the only portion you may have to get all the knowledge required to run your new venture. Some industries are so technical, you will need to pay to acquire knowledge of the business.
Find a partner
One of the best ways to start a business without experience is to partner with someone who has gotten tons of experience and expertise on that field. However, getting a partner can be difficult due to difference in expectations, characters and business ownership. When choosing a business partner, it is best to go with someone you have built a relationship with, and someone who has the same amount of vested interest in the business as you are.
Starting a business without experience in a new industry is no joke. The chances that you are going to fail are quite high. However, if you use any of these strategies you can minimize your chances of failure. It is important to read widely about this new industry in order to have a working knowledge of the industry.
