There is major push at the moment for people to become entreprenuers, business owners, and there are so many options to look at when choosing a business. Funding and training are being offered in key industries such as Tourism, Agriculture, Food Processing, Manufacturing and more. While it’s important to make sure you do your due diligence and make a good choice, you can also consider your own skills, experience and passions to help you in choosing a business. How do you decide which industry to venture into, how do you know you can even run a successful business?
Here are a few tips to help you in choosing a business
1. Play to your strengths
Choosing something you really enjoy and have a talent for can be a great way to go into business. If you’re great at growing plants, computer technology, or baking, or are passionate about fitness, you may be able to make a business out of it. Of course, it’s important to also look at the practical realities and if your concept is something that others need or would buy.
2. Be honest
Don’t exaggerate your skills, expertise or expectations. Running your own business can be a rewarding experience, but it can also be demanding, so be sure of your reasons for self-employment and what skills you need to learn to make it work.
If you love fashion, but have no experience in customer service, managing a retail store might not be for you, and if you don’t want to work weekends or early mornings then starting a café probably isn’t the best idea. It’s important to choose a business that aligns with your lifestyle expectations, as well as your personal and professional qualities. Assess your skills, identify strengths and weaknesses, and then take the necessary steps to fill any gaps. Refining your skills or investing in new ones can be worthwhile if you lack particular expertise in an important area and are keen to take a new career path.
3. Look at all the options
There are many businesses that could match your skills, so taking the time to look at all the options and analysing what you really want is important. Maybe you’re happy to work six days a week for the right income, or finding a flexible work-life balance could be more important than immediate cash-flow. Perhaps you’d prefer to work alone than manage a team of people. Every business has pros and cons so looking at all the options, assessing what your ‘deal-breakers’ are and what you can tolerate will help you decide what’s going to best fit your needs.
4. Find the right fit
Discovering the perfect business for you is about ensuring you match your personal and professional strengths, without compromising the potential profitability of your business, or your own happiness. You can’t be good at everything – but there are tasks you can outsource, or in the case of a franchise, get support with, such as marketing and accounting. The right business will fit your budget, skills, experience and overall strengths to maximise your potential, so it’s crucial to consider what’s really important to you.
5. Do your research
When you think you’ve found the industry or business that suits your needs, it’s important to do a little more research. When you’re planning to start a business, looking at the community around you can help you asses how the industry is performing overall and give you confidence in your investment. Identifying who your customers would be, your competition and learning about the industry itself can help you decide what the right opportunity is for you.
Still unsure?
Talking to family members and friends in business, or in the field you are considering, asking fact finding questions can really help. there are also organisations such as Local Enterprise Authority which are there to help you and if you register with them, they will assess you and enrol you for the training you need. Then they will help you put your business plan together and take the next steps with you.
Take advantage of all the help available such as from The Local Enterprise Authority (LEA) whose Value Proposition is “Empowering the entrepreneur to start and grow their business. Lea is there to advise, train, mentor and take you all the way.
Please check out the many more helpful articles on the Skymartbw Blog on getting started in business and options for Botswana.