How Do You Start a Business?

Those who want to start a business off on the right foot need to engage in some careful planning and then take some important legal steps in order to prepare to do business with the public.

The following sections cover the planning stage, the financing stage and the legal preparation stage that a business founder will ideally need to go though in order to start a business.

The Planning Stage

The first step to take when you want to start a business should be the preparation of a detailed business plan. This blueprint for your new business will cover how you will set up and run your business profitably, as well as what your startup costs are likely to be.

If you are new to starting businesses, then you can take a course on how to start a business properly, as well as some guidance on how to operate successfully to give yourself more information, strategies and confidence.

You then need to identify suitable business premises of appropriate size and zoning located where your potential customers can easily find you, and which is currently available for rental or purchase. Be sure to contact the landlord or owner to determine availability, whether you will qualify to buy or rent it, and the costs involved in securing it.

14 signs that you are likely to become a millionaire

Most everyone wants to become millionaire.  And according to Rich Habits research, being rich eliminates 67% of the problems that plague most people. So, besides being able to buy that house by the beach, snag a Rolex watch, or travel to exotic places, being rich means fewer problems in life. Fewer problems equal less stress. Less stress equals a healthier and happier life.

In our MONDAY MONEY column, we bring you the 14 signs of wealth, courtest of Business Insider. If you possess all 14, your chances for becoming rich increase substantially:
You are pursuing a dream or major purpose in life: Eighty percent of the self-made millionaires in my Rich Habits Study were pursuing some dream or major purpose in life.

You read to learn every day: You are a voracious reader. You read to learn every day. Often hours every day. Eighty-eight percent of the rich in the study read 30 minutes or more every day strictly to learn and educate themselves.

Six steps to creating a successful chama

There's strength in numbers, only if you get the planning and execution right.

Many self-help groups (or chamas) are created by never go far. While many disintegrate, some end up being empty talking shops. Kamuiru Group shares tips on how to create an effective self-help group.

1. Set economic standards

Every interested person must have a source of income that guarantees payment of monthly contributions. David Irungu, chairman of Kamuiru Self Help Group, says when you allow in people who do not have means, the chama will fail. A chama is first the contributions, before the investment.

2. Conduct a lifestyle audit

Well, would you trust your investments with people you don’t know? It is not enough to just know their names, find out where they come from, where they live, what they do for a living, and their spouse(s). All members of the group should have sufficient information about each other to avoid any surprises. This ensures that everyone has the same vision and mission and that no criminals disguise themselves to swindle members.

From Sh300 worker to millionaire businessman

Model self-help group (chama) is helping transform young men and women from poverty to success stories

Kamuiru Self Help Group members, led by David Irungu (second from left).

In 2002, a 20-year-old young man packed his bags and set out for Nairobi in search of greener pastures.

David Irungu ended up finding a job at Nairobi’s Kariokor area as waiter at an eatery for less than Ksh300 day. Years later, he owns property in Nairobi and bought the eatery he had worked for.

Irungu is one of the success stories of self-help groups, which are churning out millionaires in Kenya.

“I was a waiter here (at my now hotel) for over six years. At some point in 2010 I started a small side business of roasting meat just outside the hotel. Then in 2012 I met a friend, Nancy Wairimu, who asked me to join their chama so I can save up some money and later invest in starting my own business,” says Irungu.

Toxic Emotions: How to Get Rid of Them

by Joyce Meyer
 

We all have emotions, and they’re here to stay. I believe one of the main goals of every believer should be emotional stability. We should seek God to learn how to manage our emotions and not allow them to manage us. An excerpt from the definition I found in the dictionary states that emotions are "to excite and to move out." Think about this: You're out shopping for a specific item you're in need of. You've made a commitment to the Lord to get out of debt. You've promised Him to tithe and give offerings as He directs. You've agreed to really watch your spending and not purchase things you don't need. But while shopping, you discover that the stores are having a big sale of 50 percent off the already marked down merchandise. What do you do? You get excited. The more you look around, the more excited you get. Emotions are rising higher and higher. They begin to move out, and part of the devil's plan is for you to follow your emotions.


God wants you to use wisdom. Wisdom says wait a little while until the emotions settle down, then check to see if you really believe it's the right thing to do. The Bible says in Colossians 3:15 to be led by peace in making decisions. Don't let your emotions make your decisions. A good statement to remember is this: "Wisdom says wait; emotions say hurry."

An emotional person is defined as: "One easily affected with or stirred by emotion; one who displays emotion; one with a tendency to rely on or place too much value on emotion; one whose conduct is ruled by emotion rather than reason." Be honest with yourself in this area. If you believe that you’re not managing your emotions, begin to pray and seek God for emotional maturity.

In the past I experienced a lot of ups and downs, or what we call mood swings. This kind of behavior was hard on me, as well as everyone around me. I felt bad about myself. People who are out of control always feel unhappy with themselves. God created us to operate with a free will. We choose what we will do and what we won't do. There is a God-given desire inside the believer to do the right thing. When we allow our flesh to rule, we know we’re out of control; however, we’re created to operate with the fruit of self-control.
Self-control is a freedom, not a bondage. You’re free to use wisdom, free to obey God, and free to follow the leading of the Spirit. You’re free not to be pushed around by your feelings. You don't have to do what you feel like doing. You’re free to do what you know is wise.

13 College Dropouts Who Became Billionaires

These college dropouts are great examples of flankers who can achieve success against the odds. They prove that if you work hard then you can be successful no matter what. Even if you are from a not so rich family, even if you decide to leave college, if you have enough drive and focus you can make your dreams come true. 

Bill Gates - $56 Billion
Education: Dropped out of Harvard.
Success: Co-Founder of Microsoft, Major Philanthropist. 

Larry Ellison - $39.5 Billion
Education: Dropped out of University of Illinois Champagne-Urbana.
Success: Founder of Oracle, A Major Software Enterprise Company. 

Sheldon Adelson - $23.3 Billion
Education: Dropped out of City College Of New York.
Success: Sheldon Adelson is the Chairman & CEO of the Las Vegas Sands Corp, the parent company of Venetian Macao Limited which operates the Venetian Resort Hotel Casino and the Sands Expo & Convention Center

Lesson from a Kenyan Rabbit Farmer

For those who are employed either in the public or private sector, being fired is a constant fear you have to live with. For whatever reasons, whether of your own making or otherwise, you might be rendered jobless at any given time. 

What would be your next move if you were to lose your job? Lucy Wanjiku Ndun’gu , 36, was sacked from a low paying job because she went on a maternity leave. But that turned out to be her path to millions. 

Mwangi Muiruri(Nation) spared a moment with her and below is an excerpt of that interview. 

How did she lose her job?

She thought getting pregnant was a normal biological thing and that her employer would share her joy. Instead , she was fired with her sacking letter indicating that the Kiambu based NGO she worked for as a research assistant could not afford to pay for a ‘vacancy slot’ in its work budget.

How did she feel about losing her job?

I could not believe that a pregnancy would be a source of employment misery. I was a graduate in business management and was earning Sh16,000 with an NGO that empowered grass roots groups in Kiambu district.

What happened after she delivered?

After I delivered I had to stay at home with my baby. I asked my husband Amos Ndung’u to buy me two rabbits as pets. I wanted them to keep me busy. It’s these two pets that introduced me to the cottage industry that I have built to unimaginable levels.

How did she start the rabbit business?

My husband bought me two graded rabbits. Today I operate a daily stock of 1,500, worth Sh1.2 million. I only had 12,000 which all went to nil when I delivered. I borrowed SH 10,000 from relatives. I then joined a merry go round group with nine other members. We would contribute 1,000 per week.

Meanwhile, my two rabbits had multiplied to a stock of 200. I used them as collateral to get another Sh20,000 from a micro-finance