WHERE TO FIND THE BEST ADVICE ONLINE ABOUT STARTING A BUSINESS

The Internet is a deep sea of information. But you have to be really careful about what and who to believe.
The best place to go online when you are starting up and need information about, well… anything and everything in regards of starting a business is:

1. SBA.GOV - they have professional people dedicated to help you. And true information absolutely FREE!!!!   

• STARTING A BUSINESS 
• MANAGING A BUSINESS
• LEARNING CENTER
• LOCAL ASSISTANCE 

GOOD LUCK!! KEEP READING :)

ONLINE BUSINESS WHERE TO START...

  Wouldn't it be nice to be in charge? To be able to make your own hours? To make money for yourself and not just for 'the company'?
  Here are a few steps you can take to make your dream came true.


1ST STEP  -  KNOW YOURSELF

• Are you well organized?
• Do you follow thru on your own? 
• Are you GREAT at customer service?

If you failed at any of the questions above.. Don't fret! Those are skills that can be acquired. 

2nd STEP  - HAVE AN IDEA

• YES, you will need something that people would want to spend money on it.
• It can be a service tailored to the online community
• It can be something that can be downloaded
• It can be anything (legal) that can be shipped in a box

If nothing comes to mind at the moment, you can search the internet for success stories and inspiration.

3rd STEP  -  HAVE A PLAN

• Put it all on paper.. your vision, your future
• Make a step by step to do list of how to get there
• Include the WHY (for motivation)

If you have a hard time with this step… Go back to step 1!!!!

GOOD LUCK!! AND KEEP READING 

Before you start your entrepreneurial adventure

Organize your personal life!


  The first step in entrepreneurship is to evaluate yourself.


Your strengths and weaknesses.
 
   Do I finish my personal projects?
   Have I ever achieved any goals I set for myself?
   Do I have control over my finances?
   Am I always struggling to find time for myself?
   Is my desk a complete mess?
  Can I easily express my point of view?
   Do I know any aspects of customer service?


Exercise your strengths and deal with your weaknesses.


  Address any personal issues before starting a business venture.


 Take time to work on small achievable goals at first.
 Work with one problem at the time.
 Give yourself a time frame to make sure you can keep up with the new routine.
 Once it becomes a habit, tackle the next one.


  Use leverage to keep going and reward yourself when you get there.


  After you shape up your personal life, you will feel like there is nothing you can't conquer.




 Next, we will explore THE BUSINESS PLAN.
 

Get over your entrepreneur fears

  Human survival instinct intensify our fear of trying new things. If you are starting up a business when you are older, it means that you have more responsibilities and this fear of failure will grow exponentially.


 The questions will come: 
   
  'How do I..' 'When will I...' 'Who will I...' ???


  You don't need to worry about any of that. You will find the answers when you do the research and ask the right people. 


  The ONE question you cannot afford to haunt you is:

    'What if I fail?' 


 There are a few steps to follow so you can put this fear aside. 


  1. Self evaluation


    Take a good look at your strengths and weaknesses. 
    Focus on your strengths. Polish them. It will help you have absolute confidence in yourself.
    All you need to do to fix your weaknesses is find the right people or use the right tools.


  2. Research


    Do not venture into the unknown. Learn as much as you can about any new subject.


  3. Write your business plan


    I cannot express enough the importance of this step. It will put your future business into perspective. Do it for yourself, than perfect it for future investors. 


  4. Positive thinking


    I always believed that being a pessimist would save me a lot of grief. And it did. But I never let it hold me back. It helped me focus on the prize and how to be prepared for any major catastrophes. Once you have everything planned and all the aspects covered (with some room for overcoming obstacles) all you need to do is believe in yourself. Positive thinking will only boost your confidence. And you will know that there is no reason to think about the 'What if I fail?' question. 


  Next, lets work on the self evaluation. What questions will you ask yourself?

Helping you start your online business.

No matter what the politicians say... The US economy is going through rough times. There is a report stating that the unemployment rate is going down. In my opinion it is because overqualified people are taking any job just to keep their head above the water.

But what can one do to make up for the loss of income? Find a second job?

With little effort and time, people are making money with online businesses. There are so many success stories that makes it mouth watering and foolish not to try it out. Bright ideas had led young entrepreneurs to make billions of dollars on the online world. Also smart moms are shining by simply sharing their experience on how to save money.

What about you? Do you have an idea nagging at your head? Do you know where to start?

That is why ‘About e-business’ is here. It will help you take your idea and make it a reality. With knowledge and guidance, you will achieve the success you search. All you need is your will to make it happen.

Our first lesson will be about conquering your fears.

Let’s begin! Why don’t you tell us what is holding you back?

Getting ready to start a business

I made a list of great online places to visit if you are getting ready to start a business:

U.S. Small Business Administration
http://www.sba.gov/smallbusinessplanner/index.html

Aways good to check the IRS
http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=99336,00.html

Entrepreneur magazine
http://www.entrepreneur.com/bizstartups/index.html

Inc. magazine
http://www.inc.com/start-up

Anthill is an australian magazine
http://anthillonline.com/free-online-starting-a-business-course-for-those-with-an-idea/

About.com has great articles
http://sbinformation.about.com/od/bizopportunities/a/startup101.htm

Good luck! Connect with me on Twitter @aboutebusiness and on Facebook as Ab Ebus.

Tips for a successful videolog

Nowadays you see more and more entrepreneur videos emerging on the Internet. I have watched some really bad ones. So many that I decided to put together a list of tips to help us all.
 

1 Have real and useful information.
 
2 Have a captivating title and stay true to its essence.

3 Do a 'take' in front of a mirror. Ask yourself: 'Did I get my point across?’ WARNING: Do not rehearse too much. You might end up sounding fake. 

4 Whatever you do: Do not read from a script. Write a list of relevant words (NOT phrases) and post it next to the camera (at eye level). Glance at it, only IF needed.
 
5 Make ‘eye’ contact with the camera
 
6 Don’t view the feed as you are taping. We notice that and make us lose interest.
 
7 Background is important. We don’t want to see your kitchen, office, your bookcase, or dorm. It draws our attention away from you. Choose a plain (no art work) background with neutral color.
 
8 Appearance is important. Plan to dress as if you are going to a job interview. If your audience is the stay-at-home (like me), please, dress casual, but nicely.
 
9 Don’t waste your our time. Be direct, short and sweet, 3 to 8 minutes max.
 
10 Have a beginning, middle, and end to your presentation.
 
11 Introduce your topic and then introduce yourself. You only have 10 seconds to captivate us. Trust me, we don’t really want to know about you. We want to know if you have valuable information.
 
12 Make it a conversation. Do the talk for both of us. Answer questions that we may develop from your statements. Make us think that you are reading our minds.
 
13 Remember to thank us for our time.
 
14 Engage us. It might be a question for us to answer or a promise of more brilliant information. Just give us something to think about.
 
15 Show your confidence. Believe in yourself AND in what you are saying. 
 
Please give me a shout! Feel free to tell me if I missed anything.