When starting your own business venture, it’s important to understand what you love as a hobby or passion, needs to translate into a business venture. If you like baking, it doesn’t mean you can work hard and be happy earning your living as a baker.

Perhaps it’s a passion but you could struggle with it as a business. To focus on what you love and not consider your customers and only ‘follow your passion’, would (in my opinion) not be a good idea.

You need a business to generate a living and income and support you and perhaps your family, and therefore, you need to ensure you are satisfying customer needs. Not only creating what you believe people will want.

The mantra we hear might be ‘Build it and they will come’. I’m a much more practical person than that.

*Build what is required and what you will be paid for, as you service the needs of your client / customers.*

Focusing on what customers want will always win. Satisfy a need better than anyone else in the market or figure out what your niche is and stick to that.

Keep your hobbies separate.

Ensure you get enough time to enjoy life and your new found business as well as your family and loved ones. Set yourself up financially sound from day one by taking good advice. Learn how to record your books and records yourself if you can’t afford someone to help you out at the start.

Ensure you know what is allowable as a tax deduction and what is not (before you spend your money).

If you want to grow your business, see it for what it is and don’t focus on saving tax only. Yes, we all want to be as tax efficient as possible but focusing on keeping your income low will not be the same mind-set as an entrepreneur ‘growing their business’.

Think about your own mind-set and become aware of how you view and talk about your business.

Starting out is exciting, fun, tough work and can feel like a whirlwind of emotions. Keeping focused on a business model and don’t get caught up in it taking over your life.

For more information on Self Starter Magazine – see http://www.selfstarter.ie/

To contact Wendy – wendy@williamsmerrigan.ie