Last weekend, I came across a Korean drama trending on Netflix’s top 10 list in Canada – ‘Start-Up.’ This series piqued my interest because it keyed in on most questions asked when starting a business. One of these questions entrepreneurs ask is, ‘how to know when you are ready to start a business?’

How do you know when you’re ready to start? I will answer this question with another question. How did you know it was time to move to Canada? There is never a straightforward answer except that you had it in you to do it. You knew it was time for a change; you had the vision to move forward with that change, you planned for it, worked hard for it. And you did it.

As an Immigrant, it becomes second nature to be resilient to succeed in whatever we set our minds to achieve. With an end-goal in mind, we strive for change and growth. As entrepreneurs, we are passionate about making a difference. We strive to transform people’s lives; we help solve problems.

Yet, to arrive at this point, there are key factors we must address. Without them, you might as well be building a sandcastle. You have a business idea based on a hunch that it will work. But if you want to launch and grow a successful business, you need to be one with your ‘Why.’

YOU MUST KNOW YOUR WHY

The need to make a change is where you should start to build on ‘why’ you want to solve a problem. Knowing why you want to create a business helps you stand out as the best option available in the market.

Your passion for your why becomes transferrable. You get to express your passion from the planning stage to marketing and delivery. Your best customer gets you and knows why you are in business.

As a result, they recommend you to other people with similar interests or problems. In the words of Simon Sinek, “People don’t buy what you do; they buy why you do it.” So pick up a journal today, and dig deep to connect with why you want to start a business.

DRIVEN TO MAKE A CHANGE

An idea may come to you like an epiphany, and you may not give it a second thought. Over time, it comes to mind, and you begin to see a clear picture when you jot down this idea on paper. You spend sleepless nights thinking about it and how it could work as a successful business.

You feel this constant urge pushing you one day at a time to start your business. But, you are not sure of where to start or if you are ready to have one.

A little warning, though; waiting too long to act on your idea might cost you more than you think. Someone else may start the same business before you do – that’s not a problem. Or, the problem you intend to solve may become insignificant or a thing of the past.

It’s good to work on a plan when starting a business. However, spending endless time trying to figure out if you are ready could cost more harm than good. As Henry Ford says, ‘Failure is the opportunity to begin again, only more intelligently.’ It’s okay to fall but learn from mistakes as you grow.

Make out time to start working on your idea. With endless resources online, you could start one day at a time. And with help from a business coach, you could grow your idea from where you are to where you want to be and more. One day at a time, you start making a difference. The key is to start doing something every day that will get you closer to that goal.

Back to my question – ‘How did you know it was time to move to Canada?’ You decided to act. Right? You may have postponed the idea a couple of years. But somehow, you knew it was the right time to make that change and start anew. The same goes for knowing when you are ready to start a business. There is no wrong or right answer to knowing when to start a business.

If you have the drive to make a change, impact other people’s lives and have a clear ‘why’, you are a small step away from launching that business sooner than you think.