Becoming a successful entrepreneur is all about planning. Setting a clear path to success for yourself can be achieved by deciding on your goals, building a strong network around you and securing start-up capital. Our five steps to becoming a successful entrepreneur will give you all the practical to take your startup idea and create your own successful business.

5 Steps to Becoming a Successful Entrepreneur

1. Awake Your Entrepreneurial Spirit

Before becoming an entrepreneur, you’ll have to determine whether you have what it takes to run a business. Be honest and look at your core strengths and weaknesses. Focus on your knowledge and experience, your aptitude and most importantly, your personality. Starting a new business requires persistence & resilience. Can you handle hearing no? If you can’t, go here first.

2. Get inspired

Before you can get to work, you need to give yourself time to be inspired. You know what you want to do but finding the inspiration and courage to see it through can be difficult. Take some time to focus,  contemplate, reflect, and truly understand  how you can best develop yourself as an entrepreneur. Have a read of our “5 essential books for tomorrow’s entrepreneur” list.

3. Learn from others

Research how other young entrepreneurs have found success. Think about how you can incorporate their ideas, methods, or techniques into your own entrepreneurial activity. Read their books, follow them on LinkedIn and watch their TEDTalks. If possible, network with other young, successful entrepreneurs at events that you can find on LinkedIn and Facebook. Being around these people will help you grow, learn, and see what it takes to be successful.

4. Set your goals

Decide what you want to do, then go for it. Do you want to help homeless children have a better life? Do you want to be the next Bernie Ecclestone ? Whatever your goal is, identify it and own it. Do not worry so much about competition at this stage.

• Short-term goals at the start might include  “Get one new investor this quarter.” or “increase twitter followers by 5000 a month.” Try to set and meet at least three short-term goals each week and month.
• Short term goals are better expressed as sub-goals, as their achievement should lead to attaining a longer-term goal. Long-term success is composed of consistently meeting short- and medium-term goals.
• Long-term goals might take the form of a mission or vision statement for your company. For example, a long-term goal might be “Ensure everyone who lives in Bedfordshire has easy access to my magazine of store.”
• Ensure your goals are realistic, clear, and actionable.

5. Create a business plan

Your business plan will be your bible. It should be strategic and outline where you are, where you want to be, and most importantly, the goals of your business. Ensure it is robust enough to use in intense meetings and stand up to scrutiny. Use your mission and vision statements as a starting point when developing a business plan. Your finished plan must be adaptable and should be used as a guide to decide how to run the business. Remember that you will have to deliver/present to potential investors when seeking funding.