ance. Each item was time consuming but not difficult. The more difficult work was writing my business plan and marketing plan. I talked to professional colleagues and volunteers at the Small Business Administration and SCORE, and read books on marketing. The This November marks my two-year anniversary of starting my own human resources consulting business. As I look back on the years, I am amazed at what I accomplished and learned. If you are thinking about starting a business, read on!

I always dreamed about having my own business, talked to friends about it, and imagined how it might be. But it was only after two people in my life gave me a push, that I started doing instead of dreaming. First, my former boss said to me, when we were both thinking about moving on, "I never looked for a job, I always went out and created my own." Given her advice, I hired a business coach to help me map out my next career steps. My coach saw my entrepreneurial spirit and encouraged me to start a business. So I moved from dreaming to doing.

The first few months of my business I spent setting up a legal structure, registering the business name, implementing an easy accounting system, setting up a business checking account, establishing a line of credit and obtaining business insurance. Each item was time consuming but not difficult. The more difficult work was writing my business plan and marketing plan. I talked to professional colleagues and volunteers at the Small Business Administration and SCORE, and read books on marketing. The p

ut having my own business, talked to friends about it, and imagined how it might be. But it was only after two people in my life gave me a push, that I started doing instead of dreaming. First, my former boss said to me, when we were both thinking about moving on, "I never looked for a job, I always went out and created my own." Given her advice, I hired a business coach to help me map out my next career steps. My coach saw my entrepreneurial spirit and encouraged me to start a business. So I moved from dreaming to doing.

The first few months of my business I spent setting up a legal structure, registering the business name, implementing an easy accounting system, setting up a business checking account, establishing a line of credit and obtaining business insurance. Each item was time consuming but not difficult. The more difficult work was writing my business plan and marketing plan. I talked to professional colleagues and volunteers at the Small Business Administration and SCORE, and read books on marketing. The

g on, "I never looked for a job, I always went out and created my own." Given her advice, I hired a business coach to help me map out my next career steps. My coach saw my entrepreneurial spirit and encouraged me to start a business. So I moved from dreaming to doing.

The first few months of my business I spent setting up a legal structure, registering the business name, implementing an easy accounting system, setting up a business checking account, establishing a line of credit and obtaining business insurance. Each item was time consuming but not difficult. The more difficult work was writing my business plan and marketing plan. I talked to professional colleagues and volunteers at the Small Business Administration and SCORE, and read books on marketing. The

to doing.

The first few months of my business I spent setting up a legal structure, registering the business name, implementing an easy accounting system, setting up a business checking account, establishing a line of credit and obtaining business insurance. Each item was time consuming but not difficult. The more difficult work was writing my business plan and marketing plan. I talked to professional colleagues and volunteers at the Small Business Administration and SCORE, and read books on marketing. The

ance. Each item was time consuming but not difficult. The more difficult work was writing my business plan and marketing plan. I talked to professional colleagues and volunteers at the Small Business Administration and SCORE, and read books on marketing. The process was slow because I was learning along the way, but I now use both business and marketing plans as daily road maps to guide my actions. One of the easier and fun parts of the first few months – for me, was working with a designer to create a logo, business cards, stationery, brochure and Web site.

I also started networking - an activity that never ceases. There are many organizations to join. The trick is figuring out which ones to choose. I finally decided on being involved with a half a dozen organizations, which can either bring me business or help me learn more about building my business or both.

One of the activities I worked on for months was my "elevator pitch," which is answering the question, "What do you do?" so the listener understands and is interested. Now when people ask, I say, "I have a human resources consulting firm. We help organizations choose and grow talented people. And we help individuals choose and grow great careers."

I also spent a lot of time creating processes to make