Do you wish to supplement your current income as a student by starting a business from your college days? Are you a techie looking to get your idea out there and build the next Google, Facebook or YouTube?
This article takes you through how to start and run a successful business model from your college days regardless of your industry. There are basic principles to starting a business, and even when you're starting one in college, there are things you need to understand better for your business to thrive.
Why Should You Start a Business in College?
Starting a business in college is one of the best ways for students to supplement their meagre income or in some other cases, build multi-billion-dollar companies along the way. If you envision a future that's similar to that of innovative minds like Zuckerberg and numerous other entrepreneurs, then you should start as early as you can.
A recent survey in Silicon Valley showed that a sizeable majority of new tech companies are founded from college dorm rooms and garages, and they usually go on to become titans in their different niches.
Here are some things to know about starting a business in college;
Get your Business Idea Out There
This is the most crucial part of starting a business in college. As a young person, it is very reasonable to get harangued with a myriad of business ideas that you may be interested in pursuing. It is essential to focus on that one that shows the most potential and get it out there.
You need to bring your idea to life through physical conception and putting pieces of the puzzle together till they make sense. Get a couple of trusted friends together and sound your idea out to them, gauge their reaction and ask for their input. Information flies around; these trusted friends may be the reason why your business idea thrives.
Come Up with a Solid Business Plan
Whether you're starting your business from a dorm room or garage, you need a solid business plan to drive you through the challenges of running a successful business in college.
Your business plan gives you a chance to simulate how your business idea would perform in the real world and ample time to perfect your business model. A solid business plan will help you plan for upcoming fiscal years, predict future changes and proffer solutions to them ahead of time.
A solid business plan also helps you to attract the right investors and receive the needed funding your business requires to experience immense growth.
Be Prepared to Experience Failure
Starting a new business can be overwhelming, and doing it while you’re in college can be even more demanding as you have to combine it with academic work. In this case, you should be prepared to experience failure while starting your business in college.
A recent study has shown that only one out of seven business ideas survive and thrive, which is why entrepreneurs are usually encouraged to invest in multiple business ideas if they desire to be successful.
When starting, you should take failure as a form of learning and strive to do better until your business becomes a success.
Use your Network to Influence your Business’ Performance
Another crucial thing to learn about starting a business in college is the role of your network of friends. As a new business venture, one of the beneficial things you need to take advantage of is "word of mouth". On-campus, the importance of word of mouth cannot be over-emphasized.
Your circle of friends are inevitably your first customer base, no matter the product or service you offer (Although you should go for a product or service that there is already a demand for). From your close circle, begin to spread it to every other person connected to your network, and before you know it, you'll have started the next potential unicorn. Starting a business in college boils down to the question of “Health or Wealth”? Why not both?
Starting a business while in college is a brilliant but complicated idea, and you can lose yourself in it if not done appropriately. Out of the vast number of companies that start in college, very few make it to mainstream success without one part of their life suffering the consequences of the time spent on building a business that thrives. Since you’ve decided to go ahead with getting started with your idea and push it to fruition, this desk converter helps to make your job much easier. It features a quick-release, removable keyboard tray and simple, stepless height adjustment that help you focus more on whatever task you have at hand. You can work more comfortable both on your computer and on files with this powerful desk converter.
You must have a plan for your future and the business. Decide whether you're building a product or service that outlasts your college studentship or one that ends with your studentship. This decision should be factored into your business plan and other considerations.
Start that business today; go for your dreams without hesitation!