This week I was asked to compile a list a tips for women starting out in business so I thought I should share them with my lovely readers. These tips are from the book Business & Baby on Board.
1. Follow your passion. If you’re not in love with your business idea before you take the plunge, it’ll be hard to keep it up commitment when it starts eating into your life.
2. Follow other entrepreneurs (women and men) on social media and interact with them to tap into their invaluable advice.
3. Find a mentor, i.e. someone you admire who is willing to spend time nutting out ideas with you, is happy to offer advice and hold your hand when necessary.
4. Find planning templates online for business and marketing and use these to develop your strategies. Include timed and measurable goals.
5. Research your customers and what they want/need before launching your business.
6. Ask for support before you need it. You’d be surprised at how happy people are to share their own experiences and advice.
7. Realise it’s OK to make mistakes. This is how we learn.
8. Start networking. It’s OK to network when you’re in the planning stages of your business (you might even get some great advice about what to do), and it’s great practice to hone the way you describe yourself and your business. The more people who know about what you do, the more who will think about you when someone asks for a service/product your business provides.
9. Make time for all the important things in your life, not just your business. You’re not a good business owner if you don’t eat properly, haven’t seen the sun in months and can’t remember the last time you switched off to be with friends/family.
10. Accept imperfection. You will realise some thing are more important than others, so prioritise those.
What would you add to this list?
If you want more tips like this and read the stories of the 21 amazing business mums behind them, get your copy of Business & Baby on Board from www.strawberrycommunications.com.au/books, ebook from www.editia.com or ask at your local book store.