the second in a series taken from How to Evaluate and Profit from a Business Opportunity

Going into business for yourself is a big decision, one that requires careful thought and a great deal of planning. Whether you decide to buy a business, or start one from an idea or a patent, you need to know yourself. In order to make the business successful, it has to be one you will like working in and its requirements have to match your skills, and attitude.

First, understand why you want to go in business for yourself. There are lots of reasons. Some people want to build an empire; others have an idea they passionately believe in. Some because they can't find a job and by owning their own business they will have income to take care of their needs. Still others want control over their lifestyle while many want to pass on something to their heirs.

Knowing why you want to own your own business will help you avoid mistakes and let you focus on what's right for you. A good match at the beginning will go a long way towards making you a successful business owner. We always do better at what we like.

As you start working on a self-assessment, remember that while it's important to know what you are, it's equally important to know what you aren't. Do you learn new things easily, on your own, or do you find it tough to deal with change? What was the last new thing you learned? What are you looking forward to learning right now?

Can you teach others how to do things? Can you motivate people; are you good at critiquing, negotiating and reprimanding? If so you may want to stay away from a business that employees many people and experiences a high turnover.

How about your personal lifestyle; is being home for dinner with the family important, or spending time with the kids on weekends? If so a retail business might not be right for you. Its time demands could be a conflict which causes many problems.

If you like tinkering with tools and equipment instead of sitting at a desk, you probably should consider some type of light manufacturing or assembly business. Besides being able to help your employees deal with the occasional machine breakdown, you may very well find new ways to do things, maybe even design a new process or tool which you can market.

Are you a detail person or do you always seem to grasp the bigger picture? As the owner you will have to be both, but knowing how a business makes money (a topic for a later article) will let you begin spending more of your time on the activities you like.

Do you enjoy making people happy, bringing a smile to their faces? Maybe you've always had an itch to go on the stage. If so perhaps you should look for a restaurant that serves great food but all the people out front add nothing to the fun of the dinning experience. Perhaps the owner/chef really knows how to cook but lacks people skills and would be willing to take in a partner who would be the out-front person. If you know accounting, you can also take over the bookkeeping functions and free the creative genius in the kitchen expand the culinary offerings.

Always remember you don't have to own it all to be in business for yourself.

At the end of Chapter Two in my book How to Evaluate and Profit from a Business Opportunity - The Entrepreneur's Guide there is a twenty- nine questions self assessment quiz which will help you learn more about yourself.

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