How to Transform Your Passion into a Successful Business

Starting your own business is like jumping on an emotional rollercoaster with the highest of highs and lowest of lows -- all the while, wondering if the ride will come to a screeching halt. Anyone can start a business but it’s infinitely harder to grow and sustain it. When a company faces challenges and falls on hard times (and it always does), it’s your passion and commitment that ultimately get the business through to the other side. If you don’t have a true passion for your business, everyone can sense it: your customers, team, advisors and investors.
That's why focusing on your mission is of the utmost importance. This will enable you to make faster decisions and help you manage through the rollercoaster ride.
Here are three steps to help transform your passion into a successful business:
Do you know enough? If not, start asking. You have a passion and want to start a business! Do you know enough about the industry? With industry background and know-how, you’ll be ahead of the curve and can hit the ground running -- producing products, building a customer base and forging your company vision.
If you have a great idea, but aren’t familiar enough with the field to get started, use your network, speak with people who’ve started businesses in your industry to help you get up to speed quickly. This is like building an informal advisory board of people who’ve gone through a journey similar to the one you’re embarking upon.
When I started NatureBox with my college buddy, Ken Chen, food was a passion of ours, but we honestly didn’t know much about running a food business. We began networking and discussing our idea with seasoned industry innovators to glean insights and learn strategies, tips and tricks for successfully running a food company. Our big breakthrough came when we attended a food tradeshow and met a few suppliers who were willing to work with us. Until then, we didn’t know how to find manufacturing partners.
Jump in. There’s really no better way to start than diving in head-first. In the beginning, you may not have your exact plan mapped out, and you’ll likely make significant changes to your model. But the benefit of starting a business around a passion is that you know why you’re doing it and can more easily overcome barriers that come up along the way. It’s this deep-rooted drive and enthusiasm that will keep you motivated and engaged with the product you’re selling.
Ken and I held other full-time jobs when we built the first NatureBox website. We used product photos taken on our cell phones. We were testing whether there was a market for people who wanted nutritious snacks delivered to their door and immediately saw opportunity -- more than 100 people signed up in a weekend. Now we had to decide if we were going to send our first orders or simply refund the customers, writing this off as a successful first-run test. This is where taking the plunge, is so important. There really is no better time than now to just go for it.
Surround yourself with others who share your vision. It’s no coincidence that everyone at NatureBox has an interesting story about how food shaped their lives -- whether it’s a personal weight loss journey like myself, food experience from a previous professional career, or a background growing up in an agricultural environment. We hire based on these shared experiences because they help shape the business.
Because you can expect long work hours and hard days in the beginning, personal drive and shared similar values with your colleagues will see you through this time. This enthusiasm translates to a positive customer experience. And that's what will build your business.
Turning your passion into a successful business not only allows you to be profitable while doing something you love, it helps set you up for lasting success. Most importantly, passion is central to making decisions that are in the long-term interest of the customer and the company, which will help you establish sustainability and longevity for your brand.

Want to Be an Entrepreneur? Here Are 3 Tips on Getting Started

  
Editor's Note: College Treps is a weekly column that puts the spotlight on college and graduate school-based entrepreneurs, as they tackle the tough task of starting up and going to school. Follow their daily struggles and this column on Twitter with the hashtag #CollegeTreps.

As a student at the University of San Diego, I have been learning about the fundamentals of business in class. While useful, it wasn't until I started going door-to-door selling mobile apps for my real estate tech startup Rivolix that I learned the real meaning of the word entrepreneurship. Synonyms for the word should be schlep, bottom feeder and hustler, because that is exactly what you are until you make it.

Yet, going around hawking my goods helped me gain valuable experience. I was able to gain a deep understanding of the problems my customers were facing, which led me to create mobile solutions that better addressed their needs. This insight can't be gained in school or through a business plan: The validity of your idea lies in the execution.

Think you have what it takes to be an entrepreneur? Here are three tips on getting started:

Related: 3 Steps to Deciding if Entrepreneurship Is Right For You

1. Get out there and sell door-to-door. Yes, I did just use the word door-to-door. While people are able to hide behind their computer screen and emails, meeting face-to-face with potential customers can help make you a stronger businessperson. It separates the haves and have nots, because when you get down to it, going door-to-door is an awful experience.

People don’t want to talk to you, and sometimes, they can be rude. Yet, if you persevere and don’t get discouraged, you will quickly learn what customers want.

Plus, going door-to-door also teaches you to be creative in gaining people’s attention. Call it bootcamp for your elevator pitch, because if you can get a customer to buy off a walk-in there is a good chance your product is fulfilling an unmet and in-demand need.

2. Start hustling. Entrepreneurship is a hustle, especially for those starting out. You are broke, you have done nothing and people don't take you seriously. You kind of have to hustle in order to survive and succeed.

Related: As a Student Entrepreneur, Expect Crunch Time All the Time

It also teaches you how to leave your ego at the door. People will be turned off from buying your products if you have a massive ego on all the time. There is a time and a place for that, but when meeting with potential customers be humble and work hard. People will respond positively to it.

What has helped me succeed in the hustle is creating a story around my business. People are more receptive to storytelling and engagement than a boring product brochure.

3. Do not rely on one stream of income. While you may want to dive into your new venture and go full force, I don't recommend it. Relying solely on income from your startup, can cause your company to die before it even gets off the ground. When you first launch, you are making almost no money and the little amount of revenue you are generating should be invested back into the startup, not put in your pocket.

Also, if you think an investor is going to save you, think again. Most startups are bootstrapped, and you will go crazy spending all your time looking for these magical investors.

As an aspiring entrepreneur, I believe you need about five different ways of making money. Sounds crazy but going down this route can help you hedge the risk of going completely broke. If one of the ventures takes off, even better.

Plus, it allows you to focus your attention on your passions rather than a boring day job. Developing a diverse skillset makes you that much more valuable to your company. For example, I was forced to learn Photoshop to save my startup money, and now that skillset is invaluable.

Another perk of not relying on one income channel is your network connections are much broader. You get to meet people of different backgrounds, which in the end, it all comes down to who you know anyway.

How to Transform Your Passion into a Successful Business

Starting your own business is like jumping on an emotional rollercoaster with the highest of highs and lowest of lows -- all the while, wondering if the ride will come to a screeching halt. Anyone can start a business but it’s infinitely harder to grow and sustain it. When a company faces challenges and falls on hard times (and it always does), it’s your passion and commitment that ultimately get the business through to the other side. If you don’t have a true passion for your business, everyone can sense it: your customers, team, advisors and investors.
That's why focusing on your mission is of the utmost importance. This will enable you to make faster decisions and help you manage through the rollercoaster ride.
Here are three steps to help transform your passion into a successful business:
Do you know enough? If not, start asking. You have a passion and want to start a business! Do you know enough about the industry? With industry background and know-how, you’ll be ahead of the curve and can hit the ground running -- producing products, building a customer base and forging your company vision.
If you have a great idea, but aren’t familiar enough with the field to get started, use your network, speak with people who’ve started businesses in your industry to help you get up to speed quickly. This is like building an informal advisory board of people who’ve gone through a journey similar to the one you’re embarking upon.
When I started NatureBox with my college buddy, Ken Chen, food was a passion of ours, but we honestly didn’t know much about running a food business. We began networking and discussing our idea with seasoned industry innovators to glean insights and learn strategies, tips and tricks for successfully running a food company. Our big breakthrough came when we attended a food tradeshow and met a few suppliers who were willing to work with us. Until then, we didn’t know how to find manufacturing partners.
Jump in. There’s really no better way to start than diving in head-first. In the beginning, you may not have your exact plan mapped out, and you’ll likely make significant changes to your model. But the benefit of starting a business around a passion is that you know why you’re doing it and can more easily overcome barriers that come up along the way. It’s this deep-rooted drive and enthusiasm that will keep you motivated and engaged with the product you’re selling.
Ken and I held other full-time jobs when we built the first NatureBox website. We used product photos taken on our cell phones. We were testing whether there was a market for people who wanted nutritious snacks delivered to their door and immediately saw opportunity -- more than 100 people signed up in a weekend. Now we had to decide if we were going to send our first orders or simply refund the customers, writing this off as a successful first-run test. This is where taking the plunge, is so important. There really is no better time than now to just go for it.
Surround yourself with others who share your vision. It’s no coincidence that everyone at NatureBox has an interesting story about how food shaped their lives -- whether it’s a personal weight loss journey like myself, food experience from a previous professional career, or a background growing up in an agricultural environment. We hire based on these shared experiences because they help shape the business.
Because you can expect long work hours and hard days in the beginning, personal drive and shared similar values with your colleagues will see you through this time. This enthusiasm translates to a positive customer experience. And that's what will build your business.
Turning your passion into a successful business not only allows you to be profitable while doing something you love, it helps set you up for lasting success. Most importantly, passion is central to making decisions that are in the long-term interest of the customer and the company, which will help you establish sustainability and longevity for your brand.

4 Start-Up Accounting Tips for the Young Trep

Unless you're an accountant, the word "accounting" probably strikes fear in your heart -- or a little bit of nervousness, at least. For young entrepreneurs, the feeling is probably amplified. After all, poor bookkeeping out of the gate not only can set a project back in the short term, it can really come back to bite you over the long haul. Even young entrepreneurs get audited, you know.
That said, it is possible to avoid the ire of the IRS. Here are a four accounting tips to start your business by:

1. Start off on the right foot. In the same way that you go through your email every morning, or in the same way that you do an inventory review each week, make your business accounting a habit. Set a recurring alarm on your calendar: "Review books!" The frequency is up to you, but you should carve out some accounting time at least once a month, if not more.
    
2. Learn the lingo. The cumbersome terminology of accounting is sometimes the biggest hurdle. Chart of accounts? General ledger? Cash vs. accrual? Accounting lingo isn't natural -- and ignoring what's what won't help you. So take some time to understand the basics. The U.S. Small Business Administration's Small Business Development Centers are a good place to start, as are accountancy groups like the American Institute of CPA's and the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants.
    
3. Find software that fits you. Find the accounting software that's right for you. Don't simply opt for what your friends use. If you're always at a desk, a desktop solution, like QuickBooks Desktop might make sense. If you're like most entrepreneurs and on the go 24/7, something mobile like Xero may make more sense. If you're running your business from your iPad, go with a cloud-based accounting software package like Easy Books or Kashoo, which both offer iPad apps.
    
4. Value good advice. Chances are, if you spend enough time trying to figure out an accounting issue, you could. But the reality is, you've got a business to run. And considering that you'll need to file taxes quarterly -- not just annually -- there should be a certain degree of urgency involved. For help, look into local resources such as entrepreneur-focused groups for advice. (In Vancouver, where I'm based, we have resources like the British Columbia Innovation Council and the Vancouver Entrepreneur Meetup. Scour your local community for co-working groups as they’ll usually have a schedule of talks and classes specifically for entrepreneurs. WeWork Labs in New York is a great example.) Also, ask former bosses and fellow entrepreneurs to see who they use. Usually, there's great value in an accountant or bookkeeper who specializes in small business. If nothing more, they'll be a voice of comfort if you receive some alarmingly confusing IRS mail.

In the end, accounting isn't really that scary. If you start off right, it can actually be fun. After all, that's where you're going to see your fortunes grow