After posting the 21 Secrets to Business Success video yesterday, I received great feedback via e-mail.

Here’s what Kathy Zdanowicz of http://peacefullivingthrufengshui.com emailed me:

“WOW Edison!  That was a definite WOW!!!  Very, very good.  I will definitely follow all of the steps.” 

This and many other comments were made, and I’m very glad the presentation was well received.

Since it was so well received, I figured that it may be a good idea to expand on each Business Secret right here on this blog. Since there are 21 Business Secrets, I will make at least 21 postings starting right now. (Very appropriate as the first day of the new year.)

I invite you to register with this blog and comment on each post made here. Although we moderate all postings, we welcome your thoughts and look forward to reading them so that we can help you run a successful business. 

Business Secret #1
Know Where You’re Going, With the Right Action Plan, Before Starting Your Journey

If you wanted to go to go on vacation this year, how would you go about it? Would your plan look a bit like this:

1) Decide where you are going based on likes, dislikes, budget, family input, etc.
2) Make travel plans based on where you’re going (Drive, fly, public transportation, etc.)
3) Reserve accommodations
4) Accumulate enough funds to pay for and spend on vacation
5) Make arrangements for ensuring the safety of your home while away on vacation
6) Ensure accommodations of your pets if necessary
7) Create itinerary for your vacation (Or simply plan to relax the entire vacation)
8) Make travel plans in order to be able to return from vacation

Yes, there will be the little details within the planning process, but you get the idea, right?

Well, what happens if you decide to go on vacation and you don’t choose a destination? You’ll probably vacation at home, unless you want to wonder around aimlessly until you decide where to go.

If you’re starting a business, you need to know where you’re going in order to know how to get there.

In other words, knowing that you’d like to start a business is not enough. You need to know what you’d like out of your business. You need to know why you’re starting a business. You need to know what it takes to start and run a business, and you need to then create a plan of action to ensure a successful business.

Besides creating a Business Plan, here’s the simple 5 step plan to start a business:

1) Decide on the type of business you’d like to start
2) Choose a name for your business
3) Choose and file the legal entity of your business (Sole proprietor, Partnership, Corporation, LLC, etc.)
4) Get an Employer Identification Number from IRS.gov
5) Establish a bank account for your business

That’s easy isn’t it?

Many individuals don’t realize that those 5 steps are just the beginning. Existing business owners know that you also need to:

1) Advertise
2) Systemize your business
3) File for the right permits
4) File the right tax forms
5) Get the right insurance
6) Hire the right employees
7) Delegate the right duties
8) Join the right associations
9) Constantly market your business
10) …and much more.

All of the steps above are slightly different depending on the business you’re starting. Unfortunately, I can’t go into each and every detail on everything needed to get you going. This is why SCORE offers free business counseling to anyone who would like to start their own business, and any existing business owner who would like to run their business successfully.

The face to face counseling sessions are free, and confidential. The best part is that our counselors get to tell you if your plan is a good plan, or a bad plan. We just don’t “yes” you and encourage you to start a business certain for failure. You tell us what you’d like to do, and we can help you create a plan to ensure success.

If you’re a business owner and need help, our counselors will help you get to wherever you’d like to go. If you need funding to grow, we’ll tell you your options. If you need to bounce ideas about business strategies, we can help with that as well.

If you know where you’d like your business to go, SCORE counselors can help you get there.

Post your comments and let me know what you think.

Have a prosperous 2008!

Edison R. Guzman
A&E Advertising and Web Design