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Making money is easy. Find what people want, get it, sell it to them. Do that for many people, scale up and you become rich.

Reflect on your skills and how they might fit into your unique niche market, creating your personal brand. Can you improve on your competitors, or eliminate a weakness? Your idea is your starting point but by itself is worth nothing. Does it solve a problem that enough people experience to be a viable business with a solid foundation?

Then speed to market is key before your competitors come up with a similar idea, launch it and become market leaders. Rather than wasting time on an elaborate business plan, I recommend a Lean Canvas style viability check based on filling in a single page chart. Identify an avatar and their problem, why you are special, your product features, routes to market, best guess of costs and revenue streams, metrics, and why you can’t be easily copied. Don’t outsource this process, it will deepen your understanding of your market, customers, opportunities and risks. It will hone your focus on clearly articulated goals.

Sales are everything. You are in business when you have a robust, sales based cash flow. Early success will build your confidence and passion for your business, you will put more energy into it creating a virtuous circle. And remember to reward yourself for achieving objectives.

Take time to look around for new developments and risks, stay flexible. The ability to adapt rapidly in a fast changing market is the greatest key to survival. There are plenty of examples in history. of what happens to a company if they don’t.

The amount of choice available means that your product and brand must stand out from the crowd. No matter how much value you add by solving real problems it is not enough to grow your business rapidly. Your best sales people are your happiest customers, providing them with a great service means they will tell everyone about you. Word of mouth is the best form of marketing, and it’s free.

The more competitive the market the more you may have to shrink your world to be the best in it. Target your customers, you are unique and your story will resonate with someone.  You can be the best in your world, as long as you define your world wisely.

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