In 1998 I published the first edition of 48 Days to Creative Income (content now in No More Mondays). In that little 3-ring binder product I addressed the idea of needing a lot of money to start a business. I showed the figures from INC magazine that 34% of all new businesses needed less than $5000 to launch. 26% needed no capital at all. 9% needed $5000-$10,000 to start. Yeah you say, that was 16 years ago – if only I had started my own business back then.
Well, this is your lucky day! I’m reading in this month’s issue of INC magazine (September 2014) about the latest figures on the same issue. Here is the amount of capital this year’s 500 fastest growing companies needed to launch their businesses – and of course, some are brand new.
- Less than $5000 49%
- $5000 – $10,000 10%
- $10,000 – $49,999 15%
- $50,000 – $100,000 12%
- More than $100,000 14%
Fewer than 4% of these businesses got money from venture or angel funding. Very few got bank loans – most started with what they had and bootstrapped their businesses.
In that first 49% category, many launched their businesses with no money at all – just an idea and a plan of action.
The only business where I borrowed money to get in ended up being the costliest mistake I’ve ever made. I borrowed $40,000 and ended up $430,000 in debt and out of that business. In January of this year I launched a new business category here – the 48 Days Mastermind. I put $1000 in an account to cover incidentals and opened for business. 30 days later I took my $1000 back out and that little business is on track to add $175,000 in revenue this year. The 48Days.net community is full of people who have started with what they had, taken specific action and are now reaping the rewards. Many have adopted or been stirred by 48 Low or No Cost Business Ideas to find their own profitable business.
What business idea do you have ready to launch?
“Empty pockets never held anyone back. Only empty heads and empty hearts can do that.” – Norman Vincent Peale