Women Entrepreneurs Are On The Rise

Women entrepreneurs lead one in five startups around the globe. The ratio of female founders to male soared 30% over the last year and a half, reports Gust, the Manhattan-based global platform for early-stage investing, which collects data on more than 200,000 companies, angel investors and venture capitalists. In the U.S. the percentage is slightly higher than one in five (22.8%). Led byBelgium, France; and Spain, even sclerotic Europe is producing women-run companies, now 16% of the total but a 45% jump in the overall ratio during the last 18 months. What’s behind the surge? Largely technology across multiple industries, says Gust. It lowers costs and barriers to entrepreneurial entry–and, with the help of remote tools like the cloud and Skype, helps women reconcile the pulls of family and career. from: http://www.forbes.com/sites/tompost/2013/03/27/around-the-world-women-entrepreneurs-are-on-the-rise/

10 Reasons You Should Work For Yourself

Imagine a life in which you can live on your own terms, have the freedom to choose how you spend your time and the projects on which you work. With enough planning, patience and determination, this situation can be yours. Check out these 10 reasons you should get started today:from the article "Why You Should Be Your Own Boss: 10 Reasons You Should Work For Yourself"

1. The flexibility to work anywhere
2. Do work that you enjoy
3. You have the opportunity to create jobs
4. Choose how much money you earn
5. You don’t have to answer to anyone
6. You will become more resilient
7. You will develop self-discipline
8. You can live a more meaningful life
9. You will develop business sense
10. You will leave a legacy behind

Read the full article here:
http://elitedaily.com/money/entrepreneurship/why-you-should-be-your-own-boss-10-reasons-you-should-work-for-yourself/

Entrepreneurs Explain Why They Started Their Businesses

Check out the blog post "Entrepreneurs Explain Why They Started Their Businesses" on Hearpreneuer and see some reasons why people started their own businesses including a response from My Accessory Business President Megan Andrus:

Starting with Excitement & Passion

I started my own business because I was designing advertising and doing marketing for a variety of other businesses and was helping them to become successful, so I figured, why not start a business involving something I’m excited and passionate about- jewelry and accessories- and make it successful for myself. I realized that there was a need in the market for all-inclusive accessory sales kits. No one else was selling anything like this online. The way I figured this out was because I myself was looking for this type of sales kit and couldn’t find what I wanted, so I created it.

See the article here: http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2013/10/24/start-business/

Questions to ask yourself before starting a business

Before you start any type of business, you should ask yourself these questions in order to prepare for the work ahead. Don't get discouraged by the number of questions and if you don't have the answer to them right away. Just asking yourself these questions is the first step to getting started. You can figure out the answers along the way and find new answers as you go. This list of questions comes from sba.gov a good source for advice on starting a small business. 

1. Why am I starting a business?
2. What kind of business do I want?
3. Who is my ideal customer?
4. What products or services will my business provide?
5. Am I prepared to spend the time and money needed to get my business started?
6. What differentiates my business idea and the products or services I will provide from others in the market?
7. Where will my business be located?
8. How many employees will I need?
9. What types of suppliers do I need?
10. How much money do I need to get started?
11. Will I need to get a loan?
12. How soon will it take before my products or services are available?
13. How long do I have until I start making a profit?
14. Who is my competition?
15. How will I price my product compared to my competition?
16. How will I set up the legal structure of my business?
17. What taxes do I need to pay?
18. What kind of insurance do I need?
19. How will I manage my business?
20. How will I advertise my business?