Are You Ready to Start Your Own Business? Find out With This Quick 5 Question Test

 

Starting your own business is an exciting step, but needs lots of thought and preparation. You need to be the right kind of person with the right kind of mindset.

Are You Ready to Start a New Business?

Are you ready to start your own business? The idea is an exciting one for many people. But entrepreneurship isn't right for everyone. It takes more than capital, a sound business plan, and a great concept to make a successful business. You need to be able to face the prospect of success and failure with equanimity and confidence.

While thorough planning and risk assessment are essential prerequisites to starting your own business, there's never a perfect time to commit. It takes a lot of guts to dive into the unknown. Whether you win or lose as an entrepreneur depends on you and you alone.

Are you ready?

Take this five-point test to find out. If you can answer yes to two or three of these questions, then being the master of your own destiny may be the thing for you.

1. You Don't Love Your Job and You Only Do It for the Money

If your current job isn't something you love, but nothing more than the daily grind which you do for one reason alone, which is to make money, you might be ready to work for yourself.

But simply not enjoying what you do at the moment isn't enough. And wanting to make more money isn't a good enough motivator to become an entrepreneur. If that's your only motive, you'd be better off seeking preferment or taking a look around the jobs market for alternative employment with a fatter salary.

If what bothers you about your day job is that it gets in the way of pursuing a serious, passionate interest that you know could also be monetized, then starting your own business could be for you.

The acid test? Ask yourself if you'd be prepared to take a reduction in your take-home pay in order to realize your self-employment dreams. If the answer is yes, you most likely have the spirit of a real entrepreneur burning inside you.

2. Your Head's in the Clouds . . . and Your Feet Are Firmly on the Ground

If you haven't just been daydreaming about independence but planning for it, that's another good sign that you might be ready to strike out on your own. Rather than simply wishing you could work for yourself, you've been making notes, thinking things through, doing research, making contacts, and building out a business plan.

Many people dream of running a business. But to make a success of it requires a rare combination of imagination and practicality. If you have both, give yourself another tick on the potential entrepreneur success chart!

As an entrepreneur, you should dream big, and reach for the sky. But if you don't want to lose your balance, make sure your feet are firmly planted on the ground.

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3. You Know What Your Business Would Be

Successful entrepreneurs don't start out with a vague notion that they'd like to go into business. They start out with a specific, clearly defined passion. If you don't have that, you're not ready to start up on your own.

But if there's something you're excited by, that motivates you, that you do anyway, and you think you might be able to turn it into a business, that's a good sign. It doesn't matter if you're not sure how in every detail. Your research will find out.

To rise above the challenges and disappointments you'll face on the road to success, you need to care about your business above and beyond making money.

If you're ready to start a business, you have a clear idea of what you want to do. You may not understand all the details yet, but that knowledge will come from focused research about the practicalities and the mindset you'll need to be successful

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4. You Want to Go It Alone, but You Have a Support Network

It's called "going it alone" but if you're ready to start up your own business, you'll understand that's not a true description. You'll need the support of your family, friends, and a network of business colleagues and investors. You'll value those relationships, cultivate and nurture them along with your business. If you understand how much other people matter to your success, you've already learned a vital lesson to help you realize your business dreams.

5. You Know What and You Understand Why

Knowing what you want to do is a good first step, along with being passionate about it. But just as important is to understand why you want to run your own business. And you need to dig a little deeper than a general idea about freedom and being your own boss.

The most successful entrepreneurs have highly developed self-awareness. Understanding the real, deep motivations behind your wish to run your own business will keep you on message and inform all your business aims. Without knowing what motivates you, what you want to achieve beyond the spreadsheet balance, how can you know if you've achieved success?

Are you ready to start your own business? Take the quiz!

For each question, choose the best answer. The answer key is below.

1. If you had the chance to pursue your business idea, would you be prepared to take a cut in your income to do it?
   • Yes
   • No
2. While you may dream big, have you also started practical planning and personal development?
   • Yes
   • No
3. Do you know EXACTLY what your business would be?
   • Yes
   • No
4. Do you have a strong support network?
   • Yes
   • No
5. Do you have a very clear motivation you can sum up in a sentence and isn't money?
   • Yes
   • No

Answer Key

1. Yes
2. Yes
3. Yes
4. Yes
5. Yes

Interpreting Your Score

If you got between 0 and 1 correct answer: You scored low. But that doesn't mean you can't do it, just that you've a way to go yet before you're ready to start a business

If you got between 2 and 3 correct answers: You're putting the pieces in place, but there're a few missing before you can be sure you're ready to start a business

If you got 4 correct answers: Way to go. You're close to starting your new enterprise, but you might want to work a little on your knowledge and motivation first before you take the leap

If you got 5 correct answers: Go for it!

How Did You Do?

There's a vast gulf between entrepreneurial dreams and the practicalities of running a business. And there's a lot more needed than money to make it work. More than anything, you need to be the right person with the right idea, a clear motivation, and a passionate determination to see it through. But if you pass most of the five tests above, that successful entrepreneur of the future really could be you.