To Start or Not to Start

I just had a great conversation with a friend who is considering starting a business. Starting takes guts. Starting means stepping into the unknown and taking a risk. It also means taking initiative to make new friends. A lot of them. And providing something that adds value to their lives. So much value that they keep coming back to pay for your service. A key to starting well is having a coach. Someone who has been there and done that. A warm body is ideal but ink and paper is also valuable because you can't underline and highlight a warm body. And you can't pick their brain at 3am when you're anxiously seeking wisdom on what to do next.

Having trouble starting? Always dreaming?
I like Pastor Steven's post about about always dreaming but never starting.

Here are a few good coaches you can learn from any hour of the day. You'll want them in your corner:

1. Next Generation Leader: The heart of this book and your business should be character out of which flows courage, competence, clarity and coach-ability. A must read for any potential leader.
2. The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: There is so much leadership goodness in this book you'll refer back to it for years.
3. EntreLeadership: I am halfway done with this new gem from Dave Ramsey. Practical wisdom from a guy who built a national brand from a card table at home.
4. Good to Great: You'll be surprised at what qualities in a leader can cause a business to go from just being good to becoming great and sustaining greatness for the long haul.
5. Quitter: How do you make the leap from being an employee to running your own business without dragging you and your family through poverty in the process? Acuff has the experience and wisdom to get you through.
6. Guerrilla Marketing: Need to get the word out about you and your company? Get this book, do what it says and repeat.
7. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: A classic book on personal leadership that will define all your daily habits. Knowing how to define your habits will light a fire in you to align them to leverage the years you have left in life.