Entrepreneurship used to be a gut feel game. But  schools like University of Asia and the Pacific, Ateneo ME program, MINT College and Business short course provider, Innove have put a science behind the entrepreneurial process. And because of this, it is easier to put your big dreams to reality.

Create a simple business plan.

No matter how small your business is you need to know who your market is, what they want, and where they can be found so that you can package your product based on their desires. The moment you put your own opinion, and not your customer’s opinion about your product, you are putting your business at risk.

Validating gut feel.

If you have an opinion about your product be sure to have it validated. You can ask 30 of your friends to give their opinion about the quality of your product; what they like and what they do not like about. Your job is to align your product to what they want and fix the weakness of your product.

Setting the business for investments.

Dream big but do not let it remain a dream. You have to create a system in your organization. Create and document your processes in sourcing, production, and selling. When you have it documented, it is easy to approach people to invest and join your business.

Proper cost management.

The weakness of many small entrepreneurs is that they mingle their personal money and their business money. Both should be separated and put in two different accounts. The business money should be used to grow the business. The personal money should be used for the family.

Grooming talents.

Your business won’t grow when you keep doing everything. Stop micro managing and hire someone to help you. Your role is to find people who can help you grow your business, people who can lend you money to leverage your business and people with network who can help you achieve your goals.

Looking for trends.

Siomai, Takoyaki and other food carts may still be making money but not for long. It has been there for years. It is so easy to do and everyone is already doing it. Do a little research and look for trends or others products that has great potential. Remember, the first one in the market gets the biggest chunk of the pie.

Grow your assets.

Put your money back in the business. It can be for business growth of your current business or for a new business. the more assets you have the more valuable your business becomes.

To be able to grow your business you must continue to develop your  management skills. The management skills must always be practical and applicable to your business. Know what is important in your business and manage those areas accordingly. When you manage your business correctly, you are ensuring that even if you are a small fish, no shark can eat you.

Article by Jeff Cua