Section 1

Lesson 1: The Requirements of Entrepreneurship

You are considering starting your own small business. You have many questions and concerns...

Owning a small business requires money, dedication, sacrifice and time commitment. Do you have the aptitude for doing this? How do you find out? In the course you are able to take an aptitude test. We will discuss your results and other pertinent topics in this section.


Lesson 2: Start up, Franchise, or Purchase a Business

There are a variety of ways you can go into business. You can start from the ground up, buy a franchise, or buy an existing business. Whatever path you take. you will be confronted with many issues. We will cover all the aspects and the pros and cons of the various ways you can set up your new venture and be an entrepreneur.


Section 2

Lesson 3: The Business Plan

Have you ever heard the phrase "Those that fail to plan, plan to fail"? Starting a small business requires a well thought out business plan. A solid business plan is absolutely necessary to obtain capital from investors or financing entities. We will show you how to develop a business plan that will serve as the cornerstone of your new venture.


Lesson 4: Obtaining Financing and Organizing your Business

It is vital that you have start up capital and a reliable credit line. Many small business failures result from initial under capitalization and/or lack of working capital. All small businesses need access to cash, particularly when economic conditions deteriorate.

How you set up your small business can have legal and tax implications. You need to evaluate the various forms of organizations - corporation, sub chapter S corporation, partnership, or sole proprietorship. We will cover the many sources of funding and forms of business organization that you need to know about as a small business owner to increase your chance for being a successul entrepreneur.


Section 3

Lesson 5: The Location for your Business

How are you going to house your small business? Brick and mortar? Home based? Whatever the case, you will have many issues to deal with. Brick and mortar has issues such as insurance coverage, lease contracts and site location review. If you are going into the retail business, remember the three "L's"-location, location, location". A home based business has different issues such as tax treatment and visibility challenges. We will cover all these subjects in this lesson.


Lesson 6: Great Customer Service

When starting out, it is very important that you take care of the customer - you need to build a base quickly. You need service policies, pricing and a staff to acquire customers and keep them satisfied.

You have to implement policies and objectives to ensure that you and your employees are on the same page. Lee Iacocca, former chairman of Chrysler, states that to be successful "It's about getting good people and setting the right priorities". This lesson is very important for you, as an entrepreneur to grow your small business and make money.


Section 4

Lesson 7: Keeping Track of your Revenues and Expenses

You need cash to pay all your bills and pay yourself. You need to keep track of your cash flow to achieve this objective. You will need an accounting system that works for you. There are several software packages that are ideal for small business. We will cover these subjects during this lesson.


Lesson 8: Tracking and Interpreting the Relevant Financial Data

It is important that you track relevant data from your accounting system and know how to interpret it. If this is not done properly you may miss opportunities to make money. Many small business owners pay everyone but themselves because they don't manage their cash flow. This can be frustrating and it makes many entrepreneurs feel disillusioned. We will cover all the management reports generated by accounting systems and what they mean to you. This will provide the information you need so you can decide when and how much you can pay yourself.


Course Schedule and Enrollment

This course has been designed so that you can work at your own pace, but for you to get the most benefit the four sections should be completed in eight weeks or less. You can go to the enrollment page to sign up.