4 steps to starting your own business

Before you ditch your job to become your own boss, remember this: Entrepreneurship is time consuming, stressful and draining - and that's before you even launch. Take these steps first; then you can walk out the door.

Work two jobs
Work two jobs
Get as much of your new business as you can set up while you're still collecting a regular paycheck. You want to exit your job with a business plan in hand - you can pick up the basics at sba.gov or by reading gobignetwork.com, where entrepreneurs discuss business plans (check the Getting Started forum). Or you can hire an adviser for $2,500 or more. To refine your pitch, meet with investors, even if you don't need their money right away. If you're launching a business in an entirely new field, consider taking a part-time job in that industry first.
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Most stock quote data provided by BATS. Market indices are shown in real time, except for the DJIA, which is delayed by two minutes. All times are ET. Disclaimer. Morningstar: © 2018 Morningstar, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Factset: FactSet Research Systems Inc. 2018. All rights reserved. Chicago Mercantile Association: Certain market data is the property of Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc. and its licensors. All rights reserved. Dow Jones: The Dow Jones branded indices are proprietary to and are calculated, distributed and marketed by DJI Opco, a subsidiary of S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC and have been licensed for use to S&P Opco, LLC and CNN. Standard & Poor's and S&P are registered trademarks of Standard & Poor's Financial Services LLC and Dow Jones is a registered trademark of Dow Jones Trademark Holdings LLC. All content of the Dow Jones branded indices © S&P Dow Jones Indices LLC 2018 and/or its affiliates.