Hi, my name is Joel and I run my own business called 1st Class Websites. "There is nothing unusual about that," you may say, until you realize that I'm only 15 years old!! But really there shouldn't be anything unusual about a kid running a business. Why aren't more doing it? I'm just an ordinary kid like any other: I spend my spare time doing the things I love to do, but I've found a way to get paid for having fun. If I can do it then you can too.

What do you love doing?
How can you transform that into a business that pays?
What kind of character do you need to make it happen?
What skills do you need to learn to be the best you can be?


So what things do you love to do?
Do you like to serve people or do you have people skills? Do you like making things, and are creative and artistic? Do you like thinking of ways to make things happen more easily and solve problems? Do you like food or TV or The muppets? Do you have a special gift or character that means you find some things in life easier than others may?

Once you know what you love to do then you can get your mind thinking about ideas on how to transform that into a business that pays. There are so many ideas just floating around out there and when your mind is tuned to finding an answer to a problem they just seem to come in. It sounds a bit airy fairy, but its true...you're having a shower and suddenly you think of an amazing idea; you can be taking a walk to school when there it is; you wake in the night and you just know, somehow, what to do. Try it! Get your mind ready to find a business idea and before you know it you'll have one. But don't say to yourself, "Oh that will never work, or I haven't got time for that." If its a good idea then make it happen.

So you have an idea. Now, do you have the character to make it happen? Here comes the hardest bit. You can't learn character at school or get a certificate in determination, but you need certain attributes to run your own business. The first is being able to make decisions. You need to decide what you want, when you want it, how it will feel when you have it and then write it down on a small card. This is called your goal. Here's one of my short term goals. "By May 2009 I have 2 web designers working with me because I have so much demand for my work. It feels so exciting when the quote requests come through and I love presenting my clients with an amazing finished product that can help boost their business."

Keep you goal card in your pocket, on your bathroom mirror, on your car dashboard, etc, and read it often. Why do I say this is the hardest thing to do? cos it is. You try it!! Read your goal twice a day every day. Ask any millionaire what their goal is and they know it. Do you know yours?

Some other characteristics you need are a positive attitude; you need to believe in yourself and your product or service; you need to be able to step outside your comfort zone and try new things and new ways of doing things; you need determination to keep going whatever happens and you need to bounce back quickly from a fall or obstacle that throws you off course.

Before you launch your business there is a lot of hard work. Do you have all the skills you need to be your best or do you need to learn new things? Learning new skills, passing certain requirements (perhaps a food hygiene certificate for a food business), learning how to keep accounts, investing spare time into building your product, trying it out, and adjusting it are all needed. Then along comes the launch day and you wait for customers to come along!!!! NO you market, market, market!!!

Marketing takes up a lot of time and effort and sometimes money. Lack of marketing is the place where most businesses fall down flat and die. You may have an amazing product or service, but if you can't tell people what you have and help them to choose your product or service over someone else's then it doesn't just happen. A great Chinese proverb says, "Man on hillside with mouth open waits long time for roast duck to fly in!!!!" You need to be selling from day one. It's no good having a brilliant website or an amazing shop, if you are not selling, you wont last long.

You need to get out of your comfort zone and do things you don't normally like doing, you need to build your dreams and desires and determination, you need to keep going no matter what, and you need to keep looking at that goal. Things won't always go well. There will be bad days, but the difference between a successful business and one that falls by the way-side is that they get up quicker from falls, they brush themselves off, learn from their mistakes, and carry on. You can only fail when you never try again. My favorite saying is: "You can never fail...only learn and grow."

When I launched my business I was so excited, with great expectations. And yes, it is amazing when the first order comes through. It gives you a high that you can't get at a party!! But it is hard work too. You need to be able to communicate with clients and win them over. The competition is tough and mean. You need to see what you can give, how you can help, how you can show your client that your product will answer their problems or desires. BUT at the end of the day you are your own boss, you can choose your hours, you are free from an employer.

So if you are thinking about starting your own business I want to encourage you to have a go. NO!..... more than that: dream your dreams, fire your desire, write your goal and be determined to be a success, no matter what.

All the best.

Joel Drapper

See what I am doing here www.1stclasswebsites.com

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