How to Start Your Own Business

There is no better time to start your own business than now. If you have that product or service which you know you can sell, you can start doing so right now at this moment.Do not wait for things to happen. Do not wait for your situation to get better. Do not listen to what the people say around you. If you think about the obstacles you will face, then it will cripple you.Just start moving.You need to have that determination. You need to have that drive.People call it “guts”. If you have guts to succeed, you won’t be discouraged. That is even if you fail at first.Your goal is to succeed, to make money and to live a better life. In order to get there, you must start the journey. Maybe, you’re thinking that you don’t have a capital. But even that can be arranged. The most important thing is you have that will to make money.

Start your own business and start it now. You can learn from the story of Gustavus Swift. He was a young man with difficulty in walking. He lived in small village. Swift did not have capital but he got a lot of guts in him.The other young men in his village think of ways to make money. Swift did not waste time and started working. He knows how to dress meat. He prepared one good calf and dressed it the best way he can. Swift walked for miles to sell his quality meat.He did not mind all the work. Swift thought of it as an adventure. Later on, he came to Chicago and started the Swift meat packing business. Swift remains a leading processed meat brand today.You may have plenty of business ideas in your head. But in order to start, you just need a good one. Choose one business idea that you know something about. That was how Mrs. Snead started with the tomato juice business.

It was at the time of the Depression. The Snead family was struggling to survive in Evanston,Illinois. Mr. Snead just lost his job. The two sons needed to go to college.One day, a friend sent them a box of freshly-picked tomatoes. Mrs. Snead decided to make tomato juice from them. She went out to the neighbours to share some bottles.Mrs. Snead’s tomato juice tasted really good. The neighbours liked it very much. Mrs. Snead thought she could produce more. She shared her idea to her husband and two sons. The Sneads called their product “Morning Glory” Tomato Juice.Morning Glory was a bit more expensive than the tomato juice sold in the grocery. But the people don’t mind. It was homemade and delicious.Morning Glory is squeezed from quality fresh tomatoes.

Soon, the Sneads had to rent a plant along the railroad. They had to produce more tomato juice for their increasing number of customers. They supplied for hotels and railroad companies. Morning Glory expanded to other food products as well. All these came from Mrs. Snead’s idea in her kitchen.Why start with a $1000? It is a reasonable amount which will give you focus and motivation. Most people fail because they lack a target in business. Setting up the amount will give you a clear objective as you start.Otto Schnering was very determined to start his own business. He was only 21 years old. He bought a candy making machine for $100. Otto saw that many succeed in the candy business.

He made his first batch of candies. However, they did not sell. Otto made the common mistake that businessmen make. If you create the product that you like, it would not sell. But if you create the product that the market likes, then you will make money.Otto created candies which tasted perfect for him. But he didn’t think of the demand from the customers.Fortunately, Otto figured this out quickly. There are just three kinds of best-selling candies. People can’t get enough of them. They are candies with chocolate, peanut and caramel.It took three years for Otto to come up with the perfect recipe of candy bar. He combined the three best-sellers in one. That is the story of Baby Ruth. It has chocolate, peanuts and caramel for only five cents per bar. Otto Schnering chose the name “Baby Ruth” because it’s easy to remember and pronounce. He got his $1000 and more.

Mrs. MacDougall was a widow living in New York City. She has three young children to raise all by herself. She turned to the only work she knows outside of her household duties. Mrs. MacDougall took over her husband’s coffee-blending business.She only had a small capital.Other coffee businessmen predicted that she’ll only last for 6 months. But Mrs. MacDougall proved them all wrong. She mapped around  75 miles around New York and personally marketer her business. She supplied for hospitals, clubs and sanatoriums. Within only 2 years, Mrs. MacDougall has earned $20,000.

With her good reputation, Mrs. MacDougall was able to open her own coffee shop located at the Grand Central Terminal. She added some snacks to her menu. In the following years, Mrs. MacDougall opened six other coffee shops in the city.The Depression hit when Mrs. MacDougall was 65 years old. But she did not lose hope. Mrs. MacDougall got back up and opened 3 new restaurants. Other women may have been discouraged by the challenges she had faced but not Mrs. MacDougall. She’s got a lot of guts and will to succeed.

Starting a Roadside Business.

Perhaps you live near a busy road. You can make money by selling to the passing vehicles and tourists. Common products sold at the roadside are fruits, vegetables, eggs, poultry, hamburgers, hotdogs, barbecues, cold drinks and souvenirs.Aside from these, you can sell products ideal for the road’s location. It might be the case that the road leads to a beach, a baseball stadium, a golf course, a mountain or a forest. Ella Gaston, a 77-year-old woman lived near the Ozark fishing country. A lot of fishermen drive by her house along the highway. Mrs. Gaston was widowed. She is always sick. Mrs. Gaston is in dire need for a source of income. One day, she thought that maybe she could sell fish baits at the roadside.Mrs. Gaston went to a creek and collected the baits herself. She filled her buckets, boxes, pails and kettles with worms.

Her friend helped her in building the roadside stand. She also got a huge sign saying “Fish Baits for Sale”. Mrs. Gaston’s idea worked. The cars stopped at her stand and the fishermen bought her worms. Eventually, she had to hire a few boys to dig for her.Mrs. Gaston priced her worms at 10 cents per dozen. There are days when she sells up to 1,000 dozen of worms. Mrs. Gaston realized then that she has sold at least one million worms! She was able to pay her debts and support herself. Because of her interesting business, Mrs. Gaston regained her health.What drivers need in any road though is spare tires.

As he was driving along the road from Chicago to Michigan, James Mowry’s front tire blew out. He replaced his flat tire and threw the old one to the weeds.In Michigan, James looked for second-hand tires. He found one for $5 but the tire wasn’t that different with the one he just threw away. James thought that this is a great opportunity for business.He decided to start a tire service station which would offer second-hand and low-priced tires.James rented a roadside stand near a gasoline station. He bought 50 rebuilt tires all in good condition.Then, he set up the road signs. “Tires $2.25 and up—300 feet away” the signs read. In front of his stand, he put up the largest sign “Home of Jimmy’s Guaranteed Tires—$2.25 and up”. In just 2 days, James had sold all 50 tires. He made the profit of $52.

Promoting a Small Business.

The main ingredient of a business’ success is good will with the customers. But every once in a while, promotions and advertisements are needed to bring in more income. People love showmanship. If you find the right promos and ads for your business, people will flock in to buy your products.John Harding opened his own restaurant in Chicago. But it didn’t sell at first because there are a lot of other restaurants in town. People tell him that he’s foolish for starting another restaurant. They thought that Harding will run it for a while and just break even.But he proved them all wrong. Harding got an idea which won the appetites of the general public. His business grew and he opened six more restaurants. Of course, Harding knows that he must offer good food. What made his restaurant sell more is his effective advertising.

He bought a small advertisement in the local newspaper. Harding thought of a humorous copy and a cartoon illustration to come with it. He also set up his window display to match with the newspaper ad.Harding’s first advertisement featured corned beef and cabbage. He became known as the “Corned Beef King.” He printed more pictures of his mouth-watering dishes and meals which match the season.One of his winning ads was “Ham Happiness”.Harding got an illustration of a laughing pig sitting in a glass of champagne. The copy read “Ham Happiness! At Harding’s, they don’t simply slice off a piece of ham and place it between two slices of bread. Oh no! The carver dips the slices of perfectly baked sugar-cured ham into champagne sauce before making up the sandwich. The price is still 15c.”

Harding’s restaurants are always crowded because of his ads in the morning papers. It costs him $75 every day. But Harding doesn’t mind. More and more people come in to indulge in his delectable meals.Like Harding, Howard Stevens of Detroit, Michigan also invested on advertising. He rented a vacant house along the highway and turned it into an inn. Many cars travel that highway. But still, the inn would not sell.Howard realized that to attract people in he needs more than a few chairs, tables and cases of beer. He thought of some gimmicks. First, Howard improved the furnishings of his place. He had some carpenters to set-up the dance floor. He also found some cheap but modern-looking tables.A semi-circular bar was placed with long panelled mirrors hanging behind. Howard also invested on fryers, roasters and grills which let him serve 9 chickens or 4 pork loins at a time.

Finally, Howard put up colourful signs along the highway. He set the 17 painted signs equally apart. Each of them features a different kind of Howard’s tasty grilled meat sandwich. The price is written on each sign which is only 15 cents. It also tells the distance from that point to Howard’s Inn.At opening night, Howard became very surprised. Customers kept coming from 6-9 in the evening. Around 119 cars stopped at his inn. Howard and his wife served them well but by 9:30, they were already out of stock.The couple spent the next day filling out their supply. They roasted chickens, beef cuts and pork loins. By night, the inn was crowded once again. Many people stayed to enjoy the dance floor.Howard saw the travellers’ need for a place to eat and rest in the country. He offered delicious but cheap food. On average, each person spends 40 cents for a good meal. Howard made so much profit by setting up the dance floor and the highway signs. His inn not only offered good food but also good times as well.

Selling Your Services.

If you want to get started in the service business, you have to first ask yourself. What is it that you like to do? What do you do best? Do you have a certain skill or specialty?It is necessary for you to be a specialist. In other words, you have to narrow your field. You need to find out your specific niche. In that way, you can improve your skill and master it. You can also eliminate competition. It applies not only in the service business but to other careers as well. To be a successful doctor, you need to specialize on something. If people know that you’re an expert, they will naturally come to you. Customers are willing to pay a higher price for an expert advice or service. If you’re the only neurologist in town, then you will make more income.

Figure out your niche and be good at it. More importantly, always give good value to your customers. If you offer quality service, people will be willing to pay more. You can ask for a higher price on your premium offers. Here are stories of entrepreneurs which you can learn a lot from.Have you heard of the service called rug washing? Edward Anderson made his first $1000 by washing people’s rugs or carpets. Edward lost his job as a department store manager. That’s why he got started on this unique business.A carpet-washing machine was used in the department store that he worked for. Edward called the manufacturer and arranged an easy instalment plan. He went out to ask neighbours if they want to avail of his service. He offered 1.50 cents per rug.One morning, Edward was able to clean 7 rugs. He did so quickly without removing the rugs from the living room. He got lucky on his first orders. But by afternoon, the housewives that Edward talked to rejected him.

He went home and listed the numbers of hotels, apartments and offices in town. Edward called and he was able to secure $30 worth of service. That wasn’t enough though because his due date for the machine was getting near.Edward thought that if the managers don’t want their rugs cleaned that day, maybe they may want to the next week. So he called again and got more orders. He earned $93 in one hotel and $107 in an office building. Eventually, Edward was able to pay for the machine and earn his profit.There was once a dressmaker in Chicago who overheard a stout woman complaining to a shopkeeper. The stout woman was upset that she couldn’t find clothes to fit her. The dress maker approached the woman politely and introduced herself.The stout woman came to visit the dressmaker in her shop. It turns out she has a sister and a few friends who also have the same body type. They all became the dressmaker’s customers.

She took the sizes of her first customers. Aside from dresses, she also offered to make their lingerie. The dressmaker suggested that the women plan their clothes for the season. She began to look on magazines and department stores to get more inspiration.The dressmaker bought sample fabrics for her customers to see. She had a brochure of the latest styles and trends. Her customers trusted her judgement and good taste. She got many recommendations from them.Later on, the dressmaker found another market for her expertise. Tall women also find it difficult to buy clothes from the stores. She offered them alterations for longer skirts and longer sleeves. The stores can’t provide for women with unique body types. The dressmaker made lots of profit from her specialty.

There was also one woman in Florida who’s got a unique specialty. She catches shrimps and sells them for fisherman to use as bait. Her name is Sadie Miller.Sadie went broke when the real estate bubble burst. She looked for ways to get back up. That’s how she got into the business of “shrimping”.At first, Sadie hired a guy to run her shrimp dock. But he took a vacation and never came back. Sadie committed herself to do the challenging task.Sadie would wear rubber boots and overalls along with her helpers to catch the elusive shrimps. These creatures move their habitat every day so they have to be hunted. It doesn’t matter if the shrimps are large or small. They just need to be caught alive.Sadie makes more money in the winter because the shrimps are harder to find. She set her shrimps for $1 per 100 pieces.She hired more helpers for the busy season.

Like Sadie, James Bradley also got back up from financial crisis. James is from a small town in Wisconsin. His company went bankrupt and he lost his job. James did a few jobs in the neighbourhood but none of them was permanent.One day, James was walking around the house thinking of what he’ll do next. He glanced upon his garage and saw the chassis of his old truck. Perhaps, if he could fix the engine, he could do some trucking jobs.James went to the junk yard for the truck’s body. He fixed his truck and painted it. James and his wife kept their eyes and ears open for any opportunity. James’ first job was for a neighbour who’s moving to Milwaukee.Large trucking companies won’t bother for moving household items and other odd jobs. But James Bradley gladly took them all. Eventually, he was able to buy other trucks and handled all trucking jobs to Milwaukee. He also got hauling contracts for several companies.

Like James Bradley, John Bancroft was also unemployed. He was a college athlete but John found it difficult to get a job he wanted. So he started the “Springfield Boys’ Club”. John offered the service of teaching and coaching boys at sports.He divided the club into two. One is for boys 8 years and younger. The other group is for boys 9 to 14 years old. John would meet them on alternate days after school.The charge for each boy is $5 monthly. There are 25 boys for each group. John makes over $1000 yearly. From this amount, he pays for his assistant and their rental of a hotel swimming pool.John prepares the boys’ activities all year round. According to the season, he trains the boys in baseball, football, boxing, gymnastics, swimming, hiking and rowing. On rainy days, John would teach them how to make kites, wagons and toy airplanes. Sometimes, he holds swimming events or boxing contests so the parents can attend.

One of the oddest jobs may be taking care of lots in the cemetery. One day, Arthur Ruggles was driving from Kansas to a nearby town. He passed by a run-down cemetery. He saw this as an opportunity for business.Arthur talked to the owner and the man admitted that the cemetery needed more attention. He needs someone to clean the driveways, remove the tall grasses, plant some seeds and level the soil. The cemetery attendant cannot handle it all.However, the owner told Arthur that he cannot afford to pay for the services. But Arthur was not discouraged easily. He said that he can accept cemetery lots as payment. The owner agreed immediately and closed the deal.Arthur is going to be paid $2000 worth of cemetery lots in exchange for his services. He started to work and hired two gardeners to help him. His smarter move was to hire a salesman to market the cemetery lots for him.Before the work is done, the salesman has already sold the lots. Arthur gave him the commission of $500. He also paid for the gardeners and the expenses for materials. All in all, Arthur made $1000 profit from the deal. The amazing thing is he got the same deal in other cemeteries out of town.Arthur Ruggles began to earn several thousand dollars yearly.

Conclusion.

What happens next when you’ve earned your first $1000? Be wise in using your money. You can invest on stocks or bonds. But as the saying goes, “Do not put all your eggs in one basket.” When most people buy, sell your stocks. When most people sell, that’s the time for you to buy.You’ve learned how to start your own business. The best time to do so is now. As you learned from the stories, successful entrepreneurs just have a lot of guts. It doesn’t matter if you’re young, if you’re widowed, if you’re divorced or if you’re unemployed. You can start your business and earn money. What matters is you get yourself up and work.You’ve learned about selling as a business. The common image of a sales person is one who loves to talk and go to parties. But even if you’re not like that, you can be successful. You just have to be persistent and full of purpose.