If you are like me, you don’t enjoy the idea of working for someone else all your life. Maybe you want to be able to produce on your own or you are tired of not doing what you love. To fulfill your objective, you will need to Start a Business.

My Grandpa was an entrepreneur and a very successful farmer.  I remember going with him to the bank to negotiate loans to purchase cattle. He knew his business! The cost per head, the time to get them fat and then, the contacts to sell it. He did not have a ledger, it was all in his mind. It was like magic. Many people overlook farmers as entrepreneurs and instead focus on high-profile startups from Silicon Valley, forgetting that successful entrepreneurship is about mastering the basics.

In my case, fear is what has kept me away from fulfilling my dreams all this time, and it is maybe the biggest reason why most of us still work for someone else. Mainly, the Fear that I will not have enough money to cover my current cash outflows (mortgage, car maintenance, food, etc.) However, facing fear is a topic for another post. Here I will lay down the basics for starting a business. Just like my grandpa, knowledge of what it is needed to get it done.

Above all, to start a business you first need to know The Basics. Secondly, let’s draw these basics into a Business Canvas to define our value as a business.  And finally, I will share the four most basics pieces of advice my MBA professor gave me to start a business.

The Basics

1. Brainstorm an idea (product or service)

First and foremost, you need an idea. It can stem from a hobby, an observed need, or even a continuation of a family business. Most importantly, it should be something you are passionate about and can identify with, as you may dedicate more than 12 hours a day to it. Here are some brainstorming tips:

• Jot down all ideas, then narrow down to the most promising ones.
• Research these ideas and related topics thoroughly.
• Seek feedback from friends, family, and potential customers.

Here a few steps on how to complete a brainstorm session:

• First, take a blank page and start writing whatever it comes to your mind. Maybe, things you like to do, necessities you’ve observed, things you wished existed, or even art that you have or a service you can provide based on your abilities (maybe you are an accountant or an architect, you can also be an entrepreneur with this).
• Second, read it aloud and try to reduce the list to three or four top ideas.
• Then, research these ideas or similar topics. Look for companies that relate to your ideas and learn the most you can about them. Not just stayed in google, do an Instagram and Facebook lookup.
• Finally, pick four or five ideas that you like the most or most voted for by your family and friends.

2. Validate market Demand

To succeed in business, there must be a market demand for your offering. Try various methods to study the market. So, what is a “market”?

A market is the people willing to purchase your product or service. Not necessarily who will use it, but who will purchase it.

For example, in a Flower Shop who do you think is the market? Women? Well, no! Are the gift-givers! the boyfriends, husbands, lovers, and friends that will like to give flowers as presents or simply to show-off affections. You need to understand who this market is, what size it is, how can you approach it, how they behave, what do they like, and so on.  Bottom line, if without it you don’t have a business, then you can see how important is that you get to understand it.

Try various methods to study the market, such as:

• Engaging with friends and family for initial feedback.
• Conducting online research and surveys.
• Analyzing demographic and industry data.
• Google it, google it and google it, not just the first two pages of the search. Do a lot of it. Recollect data, look for government information about population sizes, growth, trends and so on.

3. Understand all costs

Knowing the cost structure of your product or service is crucial. Devise a detailed understanding of your operational expenses and pricing strategy, including overhead costs and supply chain logistics. You need to be clear of all your product or service structure.

Ask yourself the following questions: do you need to rent a place? Or are you going to be working from home? Who provides you the supplies you need, how much you need? Will you need a web page? How much it costs you to produce one or ten? To know all this, you need to understand the producing line to deliver your idea.

Continuing with the flower shop example, to make arrangements you need to know the prices of the flowers, availability of blooms per season; the cost of bases or paper and supplies for bouquets, sizes of the arrangements; you will offer only one or various sizes? how many flowers do you need per delivery? and so on.  Hence, this understanding needs to be as detailed as possible. So, how do you get this knowledge?

Well, you have to practice/research, has much as possible. One way of doing this is to offer your product to close friends and family and keep track of costs, what went wrong, what you need to improve.

So, now that we know The Basics, let’s draw it.

What is a Business Canvas and how to complete one

A business Canvas is a small/practical summary that will give you a picture of your business model (the combination of the 3 aspects mentioned above). An important fact to know before we going into detail about it, is that this Canvas will not stay static and may change until you completely mature your idea. Above all, let it change. It will be hard once you have picture something, but be prepared to embrace change.

A Business Canvas is composed of the following 9  elements:

• Value Proposition: The core value your business offers to customers.
• Resources: Essential assets and requirements for delivering your offerings.
• Activities: Key operational tasks for executing your business model.
• Suppliers or Partners: External entities providing necessary inputs for your business.
• Customer Segments:Identifying and targeting specific customer groups.
• Customer Relationships: Building connections and loyalty with customers.
• Channels: Various distribution channels for reaching customers.
• Cost Structure:Understanding all costs involved in delivering your product or service.
• Revenue Stream: Different revenue generation avenues for your business.

Your canvas will help you understand the following:

You need KEY PARTNERS, ACTIVITIES, and RESOURCES to create your VALUE PROPOSITION, then you need CHANNELS to get to your CUSTOMERS SEGMENTS and ways to create a CUSTOMER RELATIONSHIP (so that you keep them coming). Your key partners, activities, and resources will generate your COST STRUCTURE while your customer relationships, channels, and customer segments will create your REVENUE STREAM.

Bonus: Four Pieces of Advice to Start a Business

Create a Budget

Certainly, to start our business you will need to make a Budget. It will maximize your money in the most important activities and help you focus on what you need. Make sure to align this budget with your Business Canvas to ensure financial sustainability.

Ensure Financial Security

Nobody can be effective under stress. You need to have a financial plan in place to support your living expenses while kickstarting your business. Therefore, as a general rule:

• separate your expenses from your business expenses,
• don’t increase your mortgage to have extra cash for your business, and if you do, make sure that for the first two years you have a way to make the payment.

It’s ok not to make it the first time you start a business 

Know this, the first time, you may fail. If not, ask Steve Jobs, or Thomas Edison. The key is to persevere. Actually, failure may be a strong word. Always, always, always learn what you have, analyze what went wrong and change it. Embrace failure and Persevere.

Belief in yourself. 

Certainly, to persevere, you need to believe in yourself and your idea. Image your childhood without Disney. Well, if Walt Disney hadn’t believed in his idea Mickey and Minnie Mouse would have never existed. Follow these examples.

Closing thoughts

Embarking on the journey of entrepreneurship involves resilience, passion, and strategic planning. While the prospect of starting a business may seem daunting, remember that success often stems from mastering the Basics we discussed above.

By using tools like the Business Canvas, you can equip yourself with the necessary guidance to navigate the challenges of starting a business. Embrace failures as stepping stones to growth, stay adaptable to change, and belief in your vision. Remember to Dream big, follow your instinct and trust in the process.