ESYB2 018 - A Few More Thoughts
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[00:00:00] After I made the last video, I thought, hmm, there are a couple of more points I want to make. So let's discuss a few more things. The first thing that I think a lot of people will ask is, well, how do you raise the money for this? It's not easy. In the United States, I would approximate in different cities, obviously, there are different costs and there are different situations, but let's make an approximation that it will cost between 50, 000 and 150, 000 to start and get you going for a few months until hopefully you begin to break even and your losses are not as big or you actually are broken even financially so you're not losing money anymore and you're stable.

So there are two ways to look at that amount. One way is that it's a huge amount. Another way is that, you know, it's not the end of the world. You don't need millions and a lot of middle class people, let's say in United States, and obviously every country's currency is different, but let's say in United States middle class people tend to have this amount saved in [00:01:00] their savings.

Maybe they don't want to risk it, but surely they can get this money and they should not get it from just one source. They can take out personal loans. Mind you, that's not business loans. That's just you taking money from your credit card. Then you might ask for some money from friends and family. You might have some relatively wealthy people who can contribute serious amounts.

And of course you want to dip into your savings to some degree. Those are all reasonable options. And you can get a 9 to 5 job and a part time job to boost your savings before you start this. Just don't wait for years to get that money. And when I say wait for years, I mean literally just wait and wait and wait.

Because many people just end up waiting like years and they keep talking about their business and never doing that. That's just procrastination. And at all costs, you want to avoid that. Because that's just kind of like lying to yourself and others. It's not starting. What you want to do is have a practical way to start.

So you gotta find a way to raise this money, let's say in 6 to 12 months, or you know, do [00:02:00] something else, but just don't sit on the business idea for a long time, like I've known people who are 20 years later, or 5 years later, they're like, you know, I had this business idea, I'm still working towards it, and you know what, they're totally not.

But they keep talking about it. So don't be like that. And make sure that you actually are working towards your goals. And you see there are many, many options to get to that amount. This is sort of your first test as an entrepreneur. This is only one of so many challenges you'll have to overcome. If you can't be resourceful enough to raise this money, and as you see there are many ways, then perhaps you're not ready to start your business.

Because guess what's gonna happen when you start your business? You're gonna have challenges daily that you'll have to solve. And often you'll be the only one who has to solve it. And if you don't build those resourcefulness muscles, then nothing will help. Not cash, nothing. Resourcefulness is the biggest currency.

And sometimes it's actually lucky that maybe you don't raise the 50 to 150K because it's a lot of money to lose. And some [00:03:00] entrepreneurs are just not ready. So why lose that money? Because sometimes you don't get a second chance. So, that kind of brings me to another question, is the decision to start a business always a yes?

So, like you decided to open this bookstore, for example, is the right approach to make it happen at any cost? No. At some point, it's fine to ask. Maybe you should not do this business. Maybe the challenges are too much. It's a wiser question to really consider than like a year later after thousands of dollars invested, a year invested, and then you're like, Hmm, well, maybe in hindsight I was right.

So the no option is something you want to give a strong consideration because if you say yes to this business, You'll have to say no to so many other opportunities later just because you won't be able to do it in terms of time and money and all that. And a lot of times our ego says, you had this idea, it's your idea, you told people, now do it, people are waiting on you now, [00:04:00] people are expecting great things from you, whatever.

But I would silence that inner voice because all the risk is yours here. All the work is yours, and if you don't see how you can be happy doing this, how this can be viable, it's totally fine saying no. In fact, personally, I say no to so many ideas that I kind of like, but I see, hmm, if I do this idea, I'll have to sacrifice five others, and it's not so much my favorite, and this idea is not ideal, so I'll wait and be disciplined.

And let's say I did want to start a bookstore, a restaurant, a coffee shop, and I didn't, I still have my freedom and I can still do some opportunity later. So it's not the end of the world.

