Questions

Is it possible to start a business with no money and no experience? How?

8answers

Absolutely, now more than never!

If you take aside the psychological factors (motivation, strong desire, etc.), business success in general is dependent on 2 key variables : money and time (*not* experience).

You cannot start a business with no money and no time.
But if you have either of the two, you can make it happen.

As per how, with all the dogmatism of brevity I would say:

The easiest is to create a service that you can learn and deliver yourself (zero cost, only requires time to learn the required skill - could be writing content, teaching a language, coding apps, walking the dog, etc). Check out craigslist for about a thousand more ideas.

Even for a product, you can ask your first customers to pay for it in advance (to cover development costs) so you get the funds to pay tech peoples to create it.

Either way, there are 3 skills you must master if you want to have success :
- get good at asking questions to find where people's problem are (the seed of any business is in resolving a problem, so you got to stop talking and listen!)
- get good at asking them what their ideal solution would look like (you would think that people already looked for a solution if they already know what it looks like, but this would be over-estimating human behavior - you will find many were not even *aware* they had a problem before you started asking)
- get good at hustling to put this solution together for them and then sell it!

One word of caution : the real challenge in starting a business is in finding a profitable niche that can sustain you over the long term doing work that you love.

To achieve this, you must approach it the same way a child learns how to walk. By falling down, and trying back again.

If you want a fantastic example of what this kind of hustle can create, look no further than Clarity's founder Dan Martell (check out the 'About Me' page on his website for a great example of the "entrepreneurs' journey")

To get the proper mindset, I also suggest a total immersion in the entrepreneurial world : listen to podcasts (free), read blogs (also free), and invite entrepreneurs for lunch to pick their brains (ok, that one is 20$).


Answered 10 years ago

The short answer is yes.

The how is a little more challenging, it depends on what you are trying to do and what you are trying to accomplish.

Post a few details of what you are thinking about and we may be able to help.


Answered 10 years ago

It really has to do with the kind of business you want to pursue. I've seen people start businesses wholesaling real estate with no cash or credit. But at some point, you'll need lead generation to really get going and a budget for marketing is a good idea, even if it's small. Free marketing can also be done but it takes longer unless you do joint ventures and that sort of thing.
I've tried all the programs out there when I first started in online business, but some money was needed for advertising and marketing.
You can definitely do something in business without experience. You'll learn along the way, make mistakes, and do better. Most of all, you can consider teaching others how to avoid the mistakes you made and what to do instead, via a program or product and make money that way as well. Learn. Apply. Teach,


Answered 10 years ago

Yes. If you take a look at the fortune 500 list, there are some that have inherited their wealth. But the majority are self-made entrepreneurs. And no one is born with knowledge and experience of a business. If you were fortunate enough to be passed down a family business, then you might learn it at an early age. But most self-made people have to learn it when they start the business. Or they find some way to leverage their existing experience into a related business.

At the same time, if you have no money and no experience, it's going to be much much harder for you to get your business started than someone that has those things. You will have to work much harder, learn faster, work later, be smarter, have a better plan, and invest much more of your time in making it work. It's vital to have a realistic plan before you start. So I recommend that you really take the time to do your homework before starting your venture. Good luck!


Answered 10 years ago

Definitely.. You probably can start focusing on services that you're passionate about. Negotiation is the key skills.

All the best to you.


Answered 10 years ago

The easiest way to do that is to become trusted by wealthy people. Wealthy people often pay well for services that nearly anyone could do. However, the wealthy don't hire off of Craigslist -- rather, they tend to use personal referrals.

A business you start by providing a service could ultimately scale when you hire other service providers, provide a software solution to scheduling service providers, or find a way to turn a service into a product.


Answered 10 years ago

Innovation always comes from outside. I'll never forget listening to the founders of paypal say that if they know what they were getting into, they never would have started.

If you can find twenty people who need the same thing, you have a business.


Answered 10 years ago

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