2016: A New Year for Opportunity
Well, folks, it’s going to be a new year soon, but will there be a new you? Time to cue the healthy lifestyle resolutions, organizational goals, and fancy gym memberships because 2016 is going to be full of accomplishments! However, here at theCO we might have slightly different resolutions in mind. We want to see those business ideas and dreams you’ve had since childhood come to life this year! Santa gave you all the tools necessary to get them started, so all you need is time, right? News flash—the time is now! Some call us the North Pole of Entrepreneurship; others just call us theCO.
Believe it or not, a new year is a great time to start a business for a number of reasons:
- CROWDFUNDING is more popular than ever. Every entrepreneur reaches that moment where the lack of money seems to be the one thing in their way of bringing their idea to fruition. 2015 was a great year for crowdfunding platforms, which help people raise money needed to support their new businesses ideas, such as KickStarter or IndieGoGo. Now that more people are familiar with the platforms, 2016 will be packed with great ideas funded by people who have extra cash in their wallets. Time to make sure they fund your business!
- CLOUD-BASED TECHNOLOGY makes working remotely on a new business much faster, easier, and cheaper. It seems like every week a new business is launched that is aimed at helping entrepreneurs complete the tasks that slow them down. Here at theCO our favorites are DropBox, Slack, and Asana, all of which help us improve communication, organization, and (most importantly) secure data storage. Don’t waste anymore time, and be sure to give them a try.
- ACCESS TO MENTORS & RESOURCES will help your business stay out of situations that can break your holiday spirit quicker than you can say, “Bah humbug.” As the theCO turns another year older, our network of professionals grows wiser and larger, too. Collaboration meetups, conference rooms, and an entrepreneur community unlike any other make theCO the perfect environment to meet with a mentor or expert in their field. So don’t be afraid to take the time to ask questions and learn a thing or two.
If you haven’t already noticed, I’ve mentioned “time” quite a bit in this article. As the world around us moves faster, time becomes more valuable. The truth is that every year presents advantages of starting a business over the last. Stop waiting for the perfect time to begin because the perfect time is now. So take advantage of the knowledge you gained in 2015, use the resources available to you here at theCO, and dominate the business world of 2016.
Happy Holidays from all of us at theCO and enjoy the New Year!
Written by Joseph Smith.