Great first 10 tips. I started my business part time while working as a brand manager. Today's world is the optimal time for young people to start their business - especially part time. Might want to check out a podcast I did with Ian Leopold. He gives great advice for entrepreneurs.

I think these are great tips for someone like me who is interested in starting up a business.
What I do have a problem with is #3. Not everyone has easy access to like-minded people (I'm in this situation). I get what you are saying about putting yourself out there and meeting people for your team. And I definitely agree with you that entrepreneurship is not a one-man show. But in the meantime, I don't think that waiting around for a "dream team" should stop you from starting something.

Anyway, loved the post. Thanks for sharing it!

@ Jun: I'm realizing all of this now, which is why I am getting involved and gaining some footing in the blogosphere. Before I even knew what Brazen Careerist was (and I was vaguely familiar with using social media as a tool), I had very little guidance and support since it was somewhat difficult to meet up with people who actually want to do more than settling for the status quo. However I will be the first to admit that I did not look or try hard enough at the time. I fully take responsibility for where I am now. I am actually grateful that people like you take the time out of your day to put advice up like this and then respond back to my comments.

When I wrote my comment, I was mostly speaking for people who don't know too much about utilizing the blogosphere, online communities, and the like in order to connect with like-minded individuals and build teams. Right now I am in the process of working with another person on a business idea. It's a relatively new idea, so we haven't accomplished a lot yet. I guess technically I am part of a team now. My point is this person didn't know what Brazen Careerist is, doesn't know how to use a blog to promote themselves, or any of those social media resources, knowledge that people in this community take for granted. If she didn't know all of that, then there are tons more people like that out there. I'm relatively new to utilizing social media myself.

As for the blog post describing my company I will definitely take up that suggestion. I'm learning more and more every day just by being here, interacting with you guys, and building relationships. Again I cannot stress enough, I'm thankful for your time and advice. Your message clicks for me now.

Jun-

These are great tips; thanks for sharing them.

I've spent some of the last two weeks working out a business idea. This idea woke me up in the middle of the night and forced me to write it down (step 1 complete). I had initial hesitancy to talk about it -- for fear of the idea getting stolen -- so thank you for helping me realize the needlessness of that fear.

I think there is a big leap to starting to design the team. I think my brain and heart are wondering if I'm really going to pursue this idea and what that would mean for my relationships, my family, my day-to-day, etc. These tips are really helpful in sorting all that out.

I'm going to butt in on your recommendation to Valerie and hope that I can take you up on the offer to "get the word out" about my idea as well, if/when I take that step. It would be wonderful to use your expertise and resources to help get this ball rolling.

All the best-
Andrew

@Andrew - Feel free to reach out to me at anytime. Would love to hear your idea so that I can attempt to poke holes in it and destroy it. I hope you have a strong will and heart, because I can be very honest with my advice, which is exactly what every entrepreneur needs.

@Jason - Sounds like an interesting idea. Keep me in the loop!

Jun - Thank you so much for writing this! I've been going back and forth on whether or not I want to start my own company and with articles like this, I feel empowered. You're awesome!

I like the 10(not so) easy steps approach because the world of start ups can seem so big and scary, but really Bill, Steve, Mark and all the other billionares(though some just theoretically...) were just nerds with ideas, time to develop them, and confidence that they were fundable(profitable...that seems to be another thing entirely...). Thanks for an easy "you can do it!" Cheerleader guide.

@Sarah - This isn't a "cheerleader" guide. This is a concrete, actionable-step guide that will help any potential entrepreneur take that first step to launching her first company.

Cheerleaders stand on the sidelines and cheer for a team to win. Winning and losing has nothing to do with the cheerleaders. Instead of focusing on the game and competition, a business man once thought, "How can I entertain the fans so that more come to the game, spend more money, and stay for longer."

If I was to categorize my guide using a sports analogy, my guide would be the coach or the team leader. This guide does not cheer and say, "You can do it, hoorah!" This guide brings out the chalk board and draws up a play so that the team can win. If the team executes the plan to perfection, then the team has a great chance of winning the game.

This guide is NOT about encouragement, nor is it about giving people motivation. It is a realization that in order to win, you have to run laps, do pushups, and practice day in and day out to be the best.

These are great tips. I would also recommend searching for an available URL, researching the competetion, checking the business name with the US Patent & Trademark Office for availability, and forming a business entity (sole proprietorship, LLC, or Corp).