With the 2010’s now behind us, many are taking the time to reflect on what the last decade brought them and what they expect the next decade to look like. It’s safe to say that for most, acquiring or continuing success in various aspects of their lives tops the list. As budding entrepreneurs, aspirations and goals for the next decade have been heavy on our minds.
We are happy to say that we ended off the decade with news that we had successfully acquired a space for our business and are eager to share the next phase of our project with the public. As exciting as this all is, it definitely took us some time to figure out what avenue of entrepreneurship we wanted to venture into before we could even get to this milestone. We knew each other well before we became business partners. One of the things we had in common was that we both saw ourselves doing more than just what we were doing in our 9-5 careers. Entrepreneurship of some form and getting into business together was something we talked about many times but of course nothing happens before its time. Finally, we were both in a position to put in the work to not only start a business but start one that was successful and had room for growth and longevity. As we brain stormed ideas we kept coming back to the question of what makes a business successful? Many of the ideas we had initially were great but weren’t necessarily the right fit. They either didn’t provide us with the autonomy we were looking for as business owners, the upfront costs weren’t realistic for a startup or the opportunity for growth wasn’t foreseeable.
We took our time do our research and discussed what type of service we wanted to provide, how much time and money we were willing to invest and most importantly what we were expecting to get out of this venture both short term and long term. Since we both were interested in real estate we moved towards the idea of acquiring a space but taking it to the next level. This is when we came upon the idea to open a co-working space. Not only would we be starting a business ourselves, but we would also be providing a place for small business owners and entrepreneurs like ourselves, the space they need to come up with ideas and put them into motion. With the growth of small business ownership being what it is in Ontario, partnered with the high cost of rent both commercial and residential, we have the opportunity to provide people with an affordable place to carryout this business needs. A business with the purpose of serving and supporting other businesses. This is when we realized there wasn’t just one answer to our question. Instead there are multiple answers. What makes a good business is drive. It’s one thing to have an idea, it’s another thing to actually put those ideas down on paper and put them into motion.
Time, and a whole lot of it. Before we even knew what we wanted to do we committed the time to figuring it out. Once we made a final decision and got the ball rolling, we knew that we would both need to invest a significant amount of time in order to this happen.
You need to surround yourself with likeminded people. Whether starting a business on your own or with a partner there are multiple players involved along the way in the forefront and background that contribute to your success. The level of success greatly depends on everyone sharing the same goals and vision for the business.
Finally, whatever business you start needs to be desirable, something that people want and need. We weren’t the first to come up with the idea of a co-working space and we definitely won’t be the last. Because of this it is even more essential that we set ourselves apart from our competition and this goes for any business. Take the time…see there’s that word again, to study and analyze your competition; what are they offering and how can you top it. So far, we are right on track with where we expect to be and forward to moving into the development phase of our business and the Grand opening and sharing our journey. As you get a head start on the year and the decade keep in mind that
“All good thoughts and ideas mean nothing without action”- Gandhi