I always knew I wanted to start my own business. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with working for someone else’s business. It’s just that the idea of it never
sounded all that exciting to me. Like most folks with business ownership goals, I figured I would have to work for someone else until I saved enough money to start my own. This could take several years. Luckily, I learned the benefits of working backwards.
Dreams do come true
After having a taste of success with my pencil business at 5 years old, I knew there was nothing like business ownership. Sure, the work could be hard, but the freedom was amazing. I could decide what my business did, how it was run, and how it could help people. I had the power to choose what days would be considered the weekend. And as I got older, I had the ability to secure my own future with the company because it was my company.
All of these things were extremely appealing to me and drove my passion for business ownership.
Unfortunately, starting a brand new business often means spending a ton of money. A ton of money I didn’t have and couldn’t get a loan for, thanks to student loan debt. This was extremely frustrating.
How was it possible I could obtain loans to go to school, and not to start a business? If the business didn’t go well, at least the bank could repossess my equipment. If I never got a job with my degree, the bank most certainly couldn’t take back my education. Sounds cynical I know, but I was frustrated. Out of this frustration, though, grew creativity.
I decided to work backwards.
What is working backwards?
Working backwards is exactly what it sounds like. Instead of starting at the beginning of your business goals, you start at the end, or somewhere near it. For me, this meant, instead of:
- obtaining a loan for a bakery or food truck
- securing a space for the bakery
- purchasing baking equipment and supplies
- advertising the bakery
- selling baked goods
I started selling baked goods until I could afford to reach my other goals.
This model has worked for me several times, and with several different types of businesses. It all starts with one simple step.
Visualizing your Goals (your why)
Take a minute to think about your dream business.
What did you come up with?
Is it a small restaurant or cafe? Is it a boutique? Maybe you want to own and operate a service company.
What do you want your business to look like?
Do you serve homemade dishes? Is it a decorated with handmade crafts? Does it provide an option for those concerned about the environment?
Why do you want to start this business?
Is it because there’s nothing like it in your area? Is it a niche that needs to be fulfilled there?
Chances are both are true and you are passionate about it. If you weren’t you wouldn’t be here. Let that passion drive you into making your dream a reality by working backwards.
How to work backwards to achieve your goal
Whatever you visualize your business as being, use that to fuel you. Anytime you get discouraged, hit a bump, or are told you’re crazy for trying to start a business, think of why you wanted to start it in the first place. Your why is your fuel and no one can take that away from you. It is also what will allow you the creativity to work backwards.
Sure, you may want that small cafe in the heart of town that serves the recipes your grandma taught you. And you can get there. If money or circumstances don’t permit though, think of what you can do now. Could you sell dinners from your home to raise money towards your restaurant? Could you start a website, selling your handcrafted items? Could you clean friends’ houses with organic products until you started your service business?
Chances are, the answer is yes to all of these. All you have to do is do it.
Need some help figuring out how to work backwards to achieve your goal of business ownership? I’m here to help! Simply leave a comment below or click here for one-on-one assistance.
young age, I wanted to learn how to make money, so I would not have to live like this forever. I got creative in my efforts to earn money as a kid, and this has helped me into today.
The problem wasn’t my artwork. I was continuing to sell tattoo designs to my friends and friends of friends. The problem was my website. I didn’t have the know-how or the skills to create a profitable website. To fix this, I started watching videos online, reading countless articles, and buying books on how to build a website. I was able to create a more attractive website, but wasn’t able to sell any artwork.
Towards the end of graduate school, I wanted to figure out another way to earn money besides the businesses I had with my dad. No matter what type of job you have, you always need to have a means of earning additional income. This secures you and your livelihood should unforeseen circumstances arise. You can do anything to earn an extra income, just make sure you are doing something. It took me a while to figure out something I could do, as I had very limited spare time due to my responsibilities to my other businesses.