The Company that I run my business with has recently being advertising in several industry portals. Below is part of the article that was running - this one is an excerpt from an article published August 2nd 2011, and originated from the American branch of FM. I found it instructive and thought that others would too.

While the reasons for starting a business vary from person to person, one of the primary motivations of entrepreneurs is to escape the uncertainty that comes from working for someone else. Start-up business owners often cite the desire for independence and comfort in what they are doing for taking that great leap forward.

However, for many aspiring business owners, there are things holding them back. Perhaps the most significant is the fear of the unknown, with the lack of practical resources like capital and skills presenting additional challenges. Starting a business takes major investments of time and money, and there is no sure pay-off waiting at the end.

It is important to realize that most new business owners face these hurdles, and many manage to overcome them. How do they do it? It all comes down to determination and commitment, paired with the right infrastructure in place to help encourage success.

Build a business structure

Many people who have successfully launched their own businesses started from learning the basics of acquiring and retaining customers from someone else. They may have read about it, talked to fellow business owners or just figured things out as they went along. The bottom line is that they learned by experience, something we call learning "in action."

One of the best ways to grow the skills needed is to start working with an infrastructure that has proven success in similar applications. This gives an opportunity to grow the business, while using a model that has been proven. By focusing less on operational issues, an entrepreneur can concentrate the energy on taking a product to consumers, marketing the company and retaining clients.

Choose a mentor

A great way to start is to work with a company that uses a network marketing model to sell their products.
Network marketing involves the use of a mobile sales force to market and distribute products, as well as to recruit additional distributors. The great thing for entrepreneurs is that it allows them to receive commissions not only from the items they sell, but from the sales of the distributors they have recruited. This gives the company larger profits and greater brand recognition, while providing salespeople a great deal of flexibility in how they find success.

New entrepreneurs should be careful of which company they join. They may feel tempted to go with the most well-known company, but keep in mind that there is an elevated level of competition between distributors within these networks. As an alternative, it is often better to work with a company that is fairly new, even though it has been validated in the marketplace. Joining this type of organization gives the ability to more quickly establish and grow your customer base.