I’m Starting a Business

I get a lot of emails from first time entrepreneurs looking to start a company. Almost every email I get sounds something like this. “I am thinking of starting a business doing X. I am really passionate about X, I want to take control of my life and be my own boss. I am looking to raise capital and I was wondering where to start.”

My Simple Advice

If you are so passionate about X stop talking and start doing. Commit your own dollars to getting your business concept off the ground and bootstrap it for as long as you can. Few investors will put money in to a company without some significant financial and/or resource commitment from the entrepreneur.

You will be hard pressed to raise capital these days without at least one of the following:

1. A proven track record as an entrepreneur.

2. A functioning business with a business model that investors can help scale with cash.

3. Some rock solid intellectual property.

Can you start your own business? Hell yeah you can! Can you raise money? You bet! But don’t expect any investor to put up money until you have some skin in the game. If you are successful in raising capital remember that business is like marriage and you have make a commitment to your backers. The notion of “I want to take control of my life and be my own boss” is all wrong. The business is the boss, at least until it gets to scale and profitability.