Business Start-up, where to begin. Beyond dreaming of being your own boss.

You have a great idea. You know you want to be your own boss. But how do you turn your idea into a reality? The difference between an idea and a real live business is simple; knowing what to do next, then doing it.

Every business is different so there are no ‘Must have/must do’ rules for what you need to do to get your idea off the ground. However, below is a Check List of items that are pretty common and the bare minimum of what you will probably need to get your idea out of your head and into the business arena. This listing is by no means complete, but can be used as a starting point to more carefully determine if you have the most basic tools to get started.

Section 1: Defining your business type, structure and organizing yourself as a legal entity

Business Plan
A Business Plan separates the dreamers from the do’ers. A Business Plan is by far the most valuable step you can take to becoming your own boss and is the most overlooked. By completing a business plan first you can determine if moving forward with your business idea is the best path for you. This can save you time, effort and money in the long run. A clear and concise Business plan will also define the answers to many of the questions that will follow on this Checklist. Your Business Plan should include a Sales and Marketing Plan. Though your strategies may change over time, if you do not complete this section you will have no way to measure your businesses growth or success. There are a number of resources for Business Plans, a quick internet search will yield a slew of results.

Company Type
Sole Proprietor, Corporation, LLC, Partnership, etc. each of these types has it's own advantages and disadvantages. If you have completed your Business Plan you will more than likely already have determined your business type. The IRS.gov website is one resource to help you determine the type of business entity to establish.

Company Name

Mailing Address vs. Published Address
Your Mailing Address may may be different then your published address, for example; if you are a home based business you may want to purchase a P.O. Box to use for online advertising.

Phone Number, Fax Number, Email Address

Business Checking Account, Business PayPal Account

Business License

Section 2: Hardware, Software, Forms, and other administrative needs

Phone & Phone Service Provider
If you are a small home based business looking to keep a tight budget you may want to consider a service like MagicJack. I have personally tried their service and it worked well. As of this writing they are advertising their service for $19.95 per year (domestic calls).

Computer

Internet Access

Copier, Printer, Scanner

Word Processing Software (i.e. MSWord, Works)

Contact and Calendar Management

Accounting (i.e. Bookkeeper, QuickBooks)

Monthly Profit & Loss Statement (as important as your Business Plan)

Invoices (many office supply stores have pre-printed Invoices)

Price List

Section 3: Marketing Collateral (bare minimum)

Logo
If you are having someone design your logo you will need it in Vector, JPEG and TIFF format.

Tag Line
Tag line, Mission statement or brief descriptive sentence about your company.

Business Cards

Letterhead

Labels or Envelopes

Online Presence
Not every business needs a website but every business should have an online presence, i.e. FaceBook, Blogger, Twitter, MerchantCircle all offer free business pages.

Simple Tear Sheet, Leave Behind or Tri-Fold Brochure
It should have a minimum on it of: who you are, what you do, where you do it and how to contact you.

If you have compiled and completed all of the above items, Congratulations! You have probably had to add a few more items to the list of things to do, but you are on your way to turning your dream into a reality.