Alternatives to Help Lower the Cost Of Starting Up

Like many entrepreneurs, I have in the past made the mistake of racking up expenses before I was actually executing my business because I thought I needed those things in order to make my business work. It takes money to make money right? Well, that old saying is really only true in it’s literal interpretation. It will cost you money to incorporate, host your website, … but there are many areas where spending has become less necessary than in the past.

Communications:
Mobile phone plans are cheaper than ever and many include long distance, data and other services. Some will even give you access to wifi hotspots. I personally have not had a home phone since 1998, long before most people gave them up for only having cell phones. After the first six months of that year I realized I never used it and was spending $50-60 a month for nothing. Ditch it if you can, but if you really need a separate line, go with a VoIP service provider like Vonage.

Cable, Fiber or DSL? Whatever you chose, you’ll need net access. If you can get fiber great but unless you are in a bandwidth intensive biz, you probably don’t need it right now. Cable is better than DSL in my opinion but if you opt for DSL, don’t let the phone company convince you that you have to have an active landline for it to work, you don’t (I used to work in Telecom and know better and now you do too). You need wires there yes, but not landline service.

Technology:
Microsoft Office is a great suite of tools but it’s not necessary. Open Office or just using Google Docs can be a great alternative and both are free. I haven’t used Open Office in a while but the only down side to using Google Docs will become obvious if you do really heavy spreadsheets with lots of drop-down lists, pivot tables and other dynamic functionality. If you don’t, and that is 99% of you, then Google or Open Office are a great way to save hundreds of dollars and not worry about loosing data if your computer crashes.

Need an extra computer, consider installing Ubuntu in stead of Windows. it’s the most user friendly Linux version ever and if the majority of use for that computer happens through a web browser, all the better, it’s fast, secure and free.

Here are a few other ideas for you:
1) Buy new technology or other assets when you need them, not in advance because you expect you’ll need them later.

2) Be prepared to trade services with people when you can but expect that some will still simply want to be paid for their work and eventually you’ll want the trade thing to all but go away. still, in the early stages it can save money and you might build a great partnership.

3) Shop around, for everything.

4) Don’t go cheap on things you really need or that are core to you doing business. Spend where you need to, not where you don’t.

Starting a business is fun but expenses can run away if you aren’t careful and that first big bill will show up before the first revenue and strip the fun out if it very quickly. Starting a business isn’t an excuse to go on a shopping spree just because you can write some or all of it off.

Where Do Ideas Come From?

It’s time to roll up our sleeves and get started! We’ve imagined life beyond the cubicle, read the books and thought about what we will do with all that free time! But there is just one problem… what are we going to do? Coming up with ideas is challenging for some and easy for others. The good thing is, anyone can find their way into the latter category. The biggest hurdle is often forgetting what we know and opening our minds up a bit. I fall into the latter category, so much so that I have new business ideas on an almost daily basis but don’t have nearly enough time to chase them all. Of course, not all ideas are good ones (in business terms) but once you start generating ideas it can be hard to turn it off.

So how do we get started? How do we come up with good ideas? I liked Timothy Ferris’ idea of “finding your muse” because we don’t want to start just any business. We want to be inspired and do something we will enjoy, something that will make us want to get out of bed in the morning, not just “whatever makes money.” In 4 Hour Work Week, Tim suggests a few places to look for inspiration, I’m including some of my personal examples for illustration:

1) Professional experience. This one is often the most obvious but our ideas can also seem the most daunting. Who out there has never had a job where they didn’t see something within their own company that couldn’t be improved upon? Not every idea will turn into a full fledged business but many will. (Examples: web development, IT Consulting, risk management, product management).

2) Groups or organizations you are involved with. What are their challenges? (Examples: DJCC, Sedona Conference, DFWRein, Vivaldi Patrons Circle).

3) Hobbies. This one is the most obvious, especially for all of the inventors out there (Examples: photography, SCUBA diving, hiking, graphic design, travel, wood working, cars, …)

4) Other interests. (i.e. things you are interested in but don’t‘ really constitute a hobby). (Examples: mountaineering, camping, wine, movies, …).

I would also add to that list to look at the challenges you face in your day to day personal life. Odds are there are others facing that challenge too who would benefit from your idea. How many child care “inventions” have been created by a parent who found a way to ease their routine and turned that idea to profit and added relief for a lot of other parents! However, don’t start inventing for child care if you have never had kids. Stick to what you know and your odds of success will be much greater.

All of these things can generate ideas and give you places to look for inspiration. Remember that often the best ideas come from finding a need or a problem that requires a solution. It’s far more rare to develop a solution (tool, product, whatever) that then successfully goes on to find a problem.

Another point to keep in mind is that ideas for a business can be in the form of products, services, intellectual property (IP) or a combination of all three. The point is that sometimes the solution to a problem, and hence the business idea, may be a tool (product) but may also be a process or a “way” of getting something done that improves efficiency, teaches, reduces cost, …

If you get creative and stop thinking of the world in terms of just hard products, a universe of ideas will open up to you. Then it’s on to figuring out how to make it all work, if it even will, but the point of this exercise is to just come up with ideas!

One final thought, don’t be afraid of competition or worry too much about originality. You want to differentiate yourself (particularly within a niche) but some of the greatest success stories in business have been from companies or individuals that improved upon something that already existed. Case in point, Microsoft’s first operating system (DOS later renamed MS-DOS) wasn’t invented by Microsoft, and we all know where that led.

Quick Update: Blogger Pamela Slim at “Escape From Cubicle Nation” posted a great entry on “Five Easy Ways to Discovery What You are Meant to Do With Your Life.” It’s an older entry but suggests some great outlets for answering that question that could also produce some great business ideas. Check it out.