Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

-Robert Frost

Starting your own business can be like having a baby — a significant life decision that might not always be rational. Nine months into your insipid nine-to-five job and you might decide to take the proverbial exit from the freeway onto the smaller, more challenging road less traveled.

But it’s not always smooth sailing. Akin to raising a baby, your business is bound to give you many sleepless nights, demanding all your attention and testing your resolve at every stage. Persevere, and you shall be rewarded.

While watching your business take its first steps towards success will fill your heart with joy, there are a few steps you must take in order to witness this. Here are a few healthy business practices every small business owner must practice:

1. Assess your product — as a businessman, one must always strive to deliver products/services of the highest quality. Before starting your business, you need to ask yourself several questions: Will my product fulfill consumers’ needs? Is there a market for the product/service I’m delivering? Is the pricing right? A thorough SWOT analysis will shed light upon the different aspects of your product and will help you identify key strengths and weaknesses and how they can be overcome.

2. Gauge the market and your competitors — the business environment can be like a warzone. You often don’t have complete control, and your fate depends on the external environment, your enemies, and your comrades. Landmines can be everywhere, so one must tread with the utmost caution, or result going kaput. Thus, a businessperson must have adequate knowledge about the market his product/service exists in and the competitors in that market. This knowledge is indispensable for a businessman. It serves as a crucial decision-making factor in charting the growth route of a business. The product/service should be strong enough to withstand blitzkrieg marketing campaigns by competitors.

3. Evaluate yourself— a successful small business owner continuously monitors the value of their business. The value of a business plays a fundamental role in making future business decisions and financial planning, especially when matters such as the sale of your business or an insurance evaluation are at hand.

4. Transparency— keep a record of all financial transactions undertaken by and for the business. In an environment where fraud and lawsuits are rampant, being transparent will add credibility to your business and create a favorable perception in the minds of the consumers. Maintain the transparency of your business like a ruby smitten by the sun, and it’ll go a long way in adding goodwill to your business, ultimately leading to a gradual increase in equity.

5. Set realistic expectations— don’t expect to win 8 Olympic golds as Michael Phelps did in 2008 in the nascent stages of your business; it’s essential to set reasonable and achievable expectations. Don’t trudge into waters deeper than you can survive in. Typically, you should give it about 12 months before starting to see a customer bring more value to your business than how much it costs you to onboard that one customer. It’s essential to take on as much as you can handle and no more. If that is not the case, you might end up compromising the quality of your product/service, which can have a detrimental effect on the credibility of your business. 

While starting a business is a path several people have chosen to head down recently, sustaining it and maintaining its viability are the biggest hurdles. The aforementioned business practices will help you take obstacles head-on and ensure a first-place finish in this ultra-marathon. 

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