I run a successful small company. You can dm me any questions you have.

Here's a few tips.

• The only thing that matters is customers. Not your product, not your ideas. How do you get customers? Once you have that figured out then everything else falls into place. The first question I ask any business or startup is: How do you get customers? Even for something like a grocery store or gas station this is still a valid question, because you'll get more customers with a better location. Most success stories are stories of nepotism or networking.
• On a related point there are many businesses that spend up to 60% of their income on advertising. You need to roll that into your prices. Biggest mistake new businesses make is charging too little.
• Similar to the last point everything is more expensive than you expect. Your concept of money needs to change. A wagie thinks $10,000 is lots of money. A businessman spends that without a second thought.
• When doing quotes and estimates do your best to think of how long something will take if things go well. Double it and that should be if things go wrong. Double it again and that's what it'll actually take.
• If you've never run a business before try to turn a hobby into a business. If you're a musician, try teaching music for money. Your first business will fail. Having it be something that's also a hobby can soften the blow.
• The way to avoid your first business failing is to know an industry inside and out. If you've been manager of a business for 10 years you'll probably be able to set up a competing business without trouble. You'll need to spend a few years working at a high level and thinking in terms of starting your own similar business for this to work. How long have you been in the trucking industry? How do they get their customers? What are the problems that send companies out of business? Can you somehow get an edge?

I own my own business and have been duccessful for a decade. There are three questions that you need to ask yourself:

What is needed? What is my competition? Why would people choose me?

What is needed? Look at what's missing in your target area or industry. Is there no market and that's why it isn't there or is it simply untapped? There may be a good reason it doesn't exist.

What is my competition? Can I compete? Is the market saturated or is there space? What are my competitors doing currently?

Why would people choose me? Can I do it better, or cheaper, or provide a better value? Why would they pick me over something else?

These are important. You can be the cheapest plumber, but if you aren't good you won't have repeat business. If there are 40 other plumbers who have been in business 20 years you won't have a customer base to build from.

You have to find a need, that needs filling, that you can fill competitively.

Work towards your strengths. Don't be a painter if you are fucking colorblind. Don't be a tree service if you are scared of heights. Don't be a butcher if you can't stand the sight of blood.

You can read Bruce Williams "In Business For Yourself," a bit outdated but great advice.

I’m buying land and going to start farming. Feed the family, sell the extra. Lots of market research involved.

Depends on where you live. Right now in my state any moving business or related business will stay busy. Anyone with remodel or construction skills the s,ame. Any state undergoing growth has a shortage of labor right now. Food delivery is big here as well

has great advice on customers. One thing I'd like to ad is that one of the reasons you hate your job is that you can't fire your employer without losing 100% of your income. Being able to fire customers is the best feeling in the world. It will keep you working for them and taking their money because you know you can fire them if needs be.

Been stuck here for years lol. "What can I do/produce for myself that has a chance of success." One of the more successful ventures I've seen in my town is independently owned and operated coffee houses, drive through specifically. They are making money hand over fist. Also gambling is pretty big in my state now too. I can't even go to a gas station without seeing a slotbox tucked away in a corner.

Another successful thing I saw was someone buying an old, but still functional, gas station lot and creating an independent little gas station. Sure your not going to make much on the gas but the markup you get selling things inside the store is immense. Not to mention you could throw in a few slot boxes lol, if its legal in your state.

Another thing that always gets customers is food. There is quite a few independently operated food trucks locally that make a killing serving good food. You could work out deals with the owners of high traffic parking lots to sling your hash. Also maybe find a parking place next to an industrial district in your town as well.

Law care and landscaping are always in demand. If you have skills as a contractor or can hire people who know what they're doing they are in demand like you wouldn't believe. Carpet/upholstery cleaning has a decent profit margin as well, although the cost of startup with a good van/truckmount combo has increased. I'd say 25k investment and you could get started on that tomorrow. When I cleaned carpets it was steady work, even in a small town.

Lastly, maybe do some networking and meet and greet among your local business owners. I'm sure they will have tremendous amounts of knowledge about what works and what doesn't. I imagine they all have something they wish was "better". Maybe you could make a business helping businesses with these logistical.

I've often thought about all of these things. I'm currently just a dirty equities speculator atm but its keeping me alive. If I ever see excess profits, it most definitively will be in some sort of business venture.

Oh, and if you absolutely cannot thing of anything, buy land and real estate.

A lot of suggestions here to become a self-employed worker. You would still be trading your time for money and time is scarce. Find a product that you can sell so you can scale your bussines infinitely.

Business is about meeting a need. Do you need a computer? I sell computers. If you are in the business of selling computers, you want to focus your efforts on the people who need to buy them. That is your market place, and exactly nobody else.

What need is it that people have, that you think you can meet? This you need to know. Will they pay you for that? They will if they think they really need it, even if they actually do not. Actually is not actually so important, so much as the perception of actually in the customer's mind, which is the critical factor.

When it comes to meeting that need, is that something you can actually do? Do you know it with 100% certainty in your mind that yes, you can deliver as promised? Selling something, anything really, is a lot easier to do if you believe in it yourself. Of course you can deliver, for that is why you are in the business. That is what you do.

I build, repair, and sell computers. I know all about it. That is what I do. Of course I can deliver. We do it every day.

I am exactly the right person you need to be talking to.

So you need a computer? Tell me more about what you want your computer to do for you, and I can help you to pick out the right kind of computer to meet your needs. I am an expert.

This is the real test. In the private sector you have to deliver. If you can do that, reliably and consistently, word gets around, and people will rely upon you.

So you have to keep your word. Be careful how you give it.

If you can do a trade, there is a high demand for that. You can even broker other tradesmen out.