Deciding to start your own business represents a big change in your thinking.  That’s the first step.  The second step, which is the bigger challenge,  is taking the action.  Before you do that I want you to think about this. 

No amount of money spent on education, systems, equipment and personnel will enable you to successfully create your own business, let alone run it profitably, unless you truly build the business around you.  Small business growth is about growing you, the owner.

Building the business around you, your strengths and your passions is the first puzzle piece to successfully running your own business.

That’s right.  You must build your business around who you are.  If you don’t you won’t enjoy it.  If you don’t enjoy it you will, more likely than not, fail.  The path to failure is paved with good intentions spent on trying to build a business around the founder’s weaknesses and other people’s well intentioned perceptions of how you should do it. 

The key is take all the advice and education you are receiving and tailor it around you and what works for you. 

Step back before you start your small business and make an honest assessment of your strengths and weaknesses.  For your weaknesses figure out how you are going to cover for them.  The successful entrepreneur has figured this out in advance.  He does not spend a great deal of lost time and energy later on trying to fill the holes.   

Everyone can do things they don’t like for a while.  Some of this is unavoidable.  Invest your time in the beginning to acknowledge your gifts and talents.  Figure out how to cover the things you will not do as readily. 

To cut the first puzzle piece successfully you must honor “who” you are and in the process create a job for yourself that you like.  Create a job that you want to go to every day.  

After all, isn’t that why most of you become self-employed.  You want something different.  You want something better.   And, you want the control to make it happen.   Starting your own business is all about you.  And, that is good.