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A: You are very fortunate, my
friend, for both obvious and not-so-obvious reasons.
Having enough money to start or buy almost any business
you want is many an entrepreneur's dream. The money hunt is one of the
most annoying, frustrating, scary aspects of starting a small business.
So yes, having this handled is a great boon.
Less obviously, that you are even in a position to start
a business is almost equally as special. There are few times in life
when the stars align themselves so that the opportunity to create a
business of one's choosing avails itself. Usually, either the family or
money or an existing career or fear or something gets in the way.
That you can do whatever you want is indeed fairly rare.
Here are the keys to making this another successful venture:
Consider your lifestyle: When
the time comes that you can do whatever you want (often this applies to
retirees whose kids are out of the house or people whose nest-egg is
otherwise well-established), the first thing to think about is unrelated
to business, namely, what kind of life do you want to lead?
If travel and vacation time are important to you at this
stage of life, stop. A business, even a "dream business," will require a
substantial investment of time and money if it is to be successful.
Corporate folks who start their own businesses are
usually fairly shocked at the various hats an entrepreneur must not only
wear, but become proficient at. The days of secretaries, sales
departments, marketing divisions and R&D will be long gone. All of which
is to say, if you are not prepared to devote a lot of time to your new
business, again, stop. I don't care how much money you have; it won't be
fun.
Learn about the business: Once
you have established that you are ready to undertake the responsibility
and commitment involved with entrepreneurship, you need to dive in and
learn about the industry you want to get into.
Sure, trade shows, books and magazines, and the Internet
can teach you a lot, but for my money, nothing beats taking a job, if
only for a short while, in the industry and meeting with people who are
doing what you want to do.
Want to buy a winery? Then go work in a winery for a few
months.
Learn about the "everything else":
There are two parts to any business — the part you love (making, selling
and talking about wine) and the "everything else": sales, marketing,
insurance, taxes, leases, hiring and firing, and so on. Unless you are
proficient at the everything else, you won't have much time getting to
do the stuff you love to do.
Even so, consider the money: Of
course it is nice to not have to worry about money, but the point of
owning a business is to make a profit. How are you going to do that?
Even billionaire Paul Allen, the world's sixth richest man, put his
beloved Portland Trail Blazers up for sale because the team was losing
so much money.
So you need a business plan, something that analyzes what
your business will be, how it will be different and unique, and how you
will beat the competition and make a buck.
Once you have these steps in place, you can safely get
started in your dream business by doing what any other entrepreneur
does: Jumping in, financing the venture, leasing space, hiring staff,
and having a Grand Opening party.
Good luck!
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