You have a great idea, a unique product, or a long-term dream. Your friends or family insist if you sold it they’d buy it. Or you’ve seen it work in other places and you’re eager to monetize the concept close to home. (Also possibly you hate your boss and never want to attend another mandatory office happy hour or smell your co-worker’s lunch again. Just guessing). 

How do you decide it’s the perfect time to become a business owner? And more importantly, how do you know you won’t fail?

Please don’t wad up your business plan and throw it at me when I answer that there’s no such thing as the perfect time and that there are, so very unfortunately, no guarantees that you will succeed.

But wait! 

Even for the extraordinarily risk averse (raising both my hands) there’s plenty to consider to help you decide when and if it’s time to hit the starting line. And a few more considerations for how you can set yourself up for success. 

So the better answer to “how do I know it’s the right time to start my business?” or “am I actually ready to become a business owner?” lies within the responses to these three questions:

1. Do you have a clear idea?

2. Do you have a solid plan?

3. Do you have the resources to execute it? 

What differentiates an “idea,” which obviously you have from a “clear idea?” A good way to know is if you can explain it in an elevator pitch. An elevator pitch is a clear, persuasive idea that you can convey to others in the time that it takes to complete an elevator ride - usually less than a minute. In other words, when you bring it up with family and friends, are there areas that feel vague or undefined? Or do you have a concrete vision, ideally combined with a purpose? If the answer is more the latter than the former, you get a gold readiness check mark for Question 1. 

Equally as important as the clarity of your idea is your plan to execute it. This is where most aspiring business owners will create a business plan. It’s not only necessary if you plan to seek funding but a guidebook for how you plan to start and run your business. Key components include goals, market research, financials, operational planning, performance benchmarking and risk management. Completing a well-thought-out business plan is one way to hedge against failure because it identifies potential risks and details contingency plans. Once your business plan is in place you’re ready to consider question number three, which is how you will fund it. 

Gulp. Money? How much of your own are you comfortable investing? Or - uh - how do you get your hands on someone else’s because - well - your big dreams and your bank balance aren’t vibing. How to find funding is beyond the scope of this guide but, needless to say, if you’re going to be looking at loans, grants, or possibly investment (angel, venture capital, etc) you will definitely need that business plan we just talked about spit-shined and polished. 

If everything outlined in the answers to these questions aligns, it's a good moment to move forward.

“But how do I know I won’t fail?” Well. Again. I’m so very sorry. You don’t. Because as prepared as you are, there are always unforeseen obstacles or factors out of your control that can affect your success. (Anyone who operated a business in 2020 might have a story or two for you). 

But this is where not only that pesky business plan I keep harping on, along with a solid marketing plan can ease your anxiety around how to position yourself for success. 

And finally, as trite as it sounds, when your plans are as strategically sound as they’re ever going to be (and somehow your funding is in place), you have to believe in what you’ve got to offer and make the jump. 

I’ve done it three times - never perfectly ready but always prepared. Neither of my brick-and-mortars were as evolved as they later became when I first opened my doors, but time was of the essence and it was time to hit go.  

I just rolled out my official consulting website and my punch list for getting it perfectly buttoned up and SEO-ready remains long.

But at some point it’s important not to let perfection be the enemy of progress or you’ll truly never make the leap. Personally I like to follow an 80% rule when deciding whether or not it’s time. I go in 80% set, with 10% left to perfect, and another 10% to discover along the way. 

To quote a meme I recently shared on my Instagram, attributed to Abel Morales, “When it feels scary to jump that’s exactly when you jump. Otherwise you end up staying in the same place your whole life.” 

The only way to get started is to get started. You can officially mark “research what it takes” off your checklist. You’re on your way!