Julia is a 30 years old administrative secretary. She always dreamt of her own bakery since she was a child, coming up with many delicious recipes. She doesn’t like the boring job she’s doing, nor she likes the long hours and the lousy pay.
Julia finally made the choice to go for her own business. She made the calculations to rent a shop, model it, buy the equipment and once licensed, open its doors. She borrowed the capital investment from her family and friends in addition to her savings.
As passionate and excited as she could be, she opened her doors. After couple of months, she found that she can’t pay her vendors… Weeks later, cash was short, and salaries weren’t paid.
That scenario is not too far from truth for many entrepreneurs. Passion drives our motives, however soon enough we find that we lack the skills to run a business. We guide by intuition, hope the market would open its arms to our products or spend lavishly on the shop decoration thinking this is what matters.
Business is business. Whether it is a multimillion-dollar factory or a bakery shop. It needs the right skills and the right business decisions to make it run. While our passion keeps the drive to learn and evolve, skills creates the priorities and help keep the business alive. There are examples of businesses that started with thousands of dollars and flourished into thriving empires, while other businesses that sank a year or two after it started despite the millions invested in it.
Planning to venture in your dream business? Keep a tight leash on your expenses. Rent; don’t buy. Outsource; don’t employ. Before opening your doors, buy the product you’re planning to produce and try to sell it online or to friends to get a taste of your potential market. Gather information about competition, potential customers, vendors. Get a job with an existing business if possible, to learn it inside out. This way you can test your passion and develop skills and learn what are your priorities.
Passion is a fire, skills are the wood that keeping it burning.
