But don’t go off half-cocked. Before you quit your day job, here are five steps you should take to ensure you’re ready to go out on your own.

1. Establish goals.

Ask yourself: Do you want to start a lifestyle business or a growth business? What does success mean to you?

In a lifestyle business, your goal is to have your own, steady stream of income. You may plan to have a few employees eventually to help out, but you don’t envision building multiple locations, offering an ever-expanding line of products or growing your business into a national powerhouse.

Knowing your goals is key to setting expectations and establishing revenue targets. In a lifestyle business, the goals are more modest, such as equalling or bettering your income from your current job. A growth business requires constant reinvestment and prioritizing its expansion, often at the expense of your personal income — at least at first.

2. Think through your business.

What is your product or service, and who are the potential customers? How will you attract these customers? Who will be your competitors? If you can’t answer these questions, your risk of failing to launch will be high.



3. Have an early client base.

If you’re starting a business full-time, your salary equals your client’s willingness to pay.

Knowing whom your potential clients are is good; already having customers is even better. Whether it’s profitable moonlighting work that is now ready to supplant your day job or a growth business that has secured an initial client, starting out with a ready revenue stream will greatly increase your chances of success. You’ll already demonstrate a product-market fit, and you’ll have users who are willing to vouch for you to potential clients.



4. Talk to your loved ones.

Here’s the thing about starting a business: You can’t do it by yourself.

Before you take the plunge, you need to communicate your ambitions and goals to your family, friends and loved ones. Part of your success — probably a big part — will depend on their support. You’ll be working long hours, dealing with stress and uncertainty and tackling difficult challenges. You’re going to need the backing of those around you.



5. Adopt an all-or-nothing mentality.

If you’re going to succeed starting your own business, you’ll have to break out of your corporate-employee mindset. I came to NerdWallet because I was looking for the opportunity to do more than my job at an investment bank allowed. Some people saw my move to a young startup as a risky one, but for me the risk was more than offset by the opportunities I got — in market research, product creation and business development — that allowed me to contribute on so many fronts to our ongoing success.

http://www.native9ja.com/5-steps-you-must-take-before-becoming-an-entrepreneur/