I've been thinking and writing about business a bit more recently, some of that being the crisis in our economic markets, and some of it being a little more focused on business than I have been in a long time. I'm a little excited about growing SQLServerCentral as well as my other ventures, and it seems things have been going well.
Starting a business was never something I was that interested in as a kid. Heck, even as an adult I wasn't sure it was for me. I never was a part of Junior Achievement, nor did I take any of the entrepreneurial classes offered in college as my roommate did. He started a great business that has changed its focus (and name) a few times, but Broad Bay Cotton is doing well, and my former roommate is probably the most successful person from my high school.
I read lots of magazines and business publications as I was a young adult, but honestly I was scared of starting my own business and didn't have the confidence that I could make something work. However I also had one other concern that I've learned wasn't really that well based in reality: I didn't think I had any good ideas.
We all have ideas, and we all wish that we'd thought of the browser or TiVo or Facebook or any number of other ideas. The reality is that you don't need to come up with a game changing idea that will set the world on fire. You can have a successful and enjoyable business doing almost anything, even if there are people already doing it. You might not get written up in a magazine if you sell socks or ties, but if you can pay your bills, set your own hours, and work for yourself, that might be enough for most people. It is for me.
Not everyone wants to run a business, and having done it, let me tell you it can be a pain, but there are lots of people that want to and are afraid to get started. There was an interesting article in InfoWorld on how to get your own tech startup going, and I think it's worth reading for those of you that have ever had an idea that you thought might make a business.
For what it's worth, I think that owning your business can be very rewarding, more for your sense of accomplishment than from the financial side, but it's also very hard. My recommendation is that you get it going on the side, keep your day job and see if it's something you really want to do. If it is, go for it, and best of luck.
Steve Jones
The Voice of the DBA Podcasts
The podcast feeds are now available at sqlservercentral.mevio.com to get better bandwidth and maybe a little more exposure :). Comments are definitely appreciated and wanted, and you can get feeds from there.
or now on iTunes!
- Windows Media Podcast - 28.7MB WMV
- iPod Video Podcast - 26.0MB MP4
- MP3 Audio Podcast - 5.3MB
Today's podcast features music by Everyday Jones. No relation, but I stumbled on to them and really like the music. Support this great duo at www.everydayjones.com.
I really appreciate and value feedback on the podcasts. Let us know what you like, don't like, or even send in ideas for the show. If you'd like to comment, post something here. The boss will be sure to read it.
