All businesses start as ideas. This can be for a product or a service, in my case, it was to provide legal services to individuals starting businesses and organizations that need advice on information privacy law. Starting a business is a lot of work and the reality is that most businesses fail. They can fail for a multitude of reasons, most important among these is running out of money, which translates to running out of options. Even if you have a great idea for your business there are many potential pitfalls that will cause you to hemorrhage cash.

Despite the challenges, there are plenty of rewards. There is something quite amazing about generating your own business. It’s different from being an employee and having a job. A job you can walk away from, a business is something that will follow you wherever you go. There is an incredible amount of work that goes into acquiring a new customer or client. Do not underestimate this!

I think everyone that can start a business should attempt to do so. You will develop skills that cannot be taught it any formal sense. I have taught many university students the process of incorporating a business, however, actually completing the legal formalities and accepting the legal obligations that go along with being a business owner is an entirely different matter. The skills you will learn in starting any business are highly transferable and valued in any work environment. These skills include resourcefulness, resilience, coping with setbacks, managing conflict and most importantly sales and marketing.

Even if you don’t think starting a business is for you the reality is that there is almost no sector of the economy that is trending toward permanent employment, that’s true even in universities and government, places that have been traditionally granted generous employee benefits and job security. When you start your own business, you’ll realize why this is the case. Market conditions can change quite rapidly and you’ll need to mitigate your risks.

However skilled you are, you will not be able to do everything yourself; there are simply not enough hours in the day. As important as it is to realize your potential, it equally important to recognize your limitations. Fortunately, there are people out there with the knowledge and skills that you lack. Unfortunately, you have to a) find them and b) compensate them. You don’t have to everything worked out before you start, the key is to think big, start small and deliver quickly.

I can help you with the legal aspects of starting your business. The first thing you’ll need to do is figure out how you want to structure your business, in all likelihood you’ll want to incorporate and there’s a process for that. Next, you’ll want to organize your business, this will involve among other things, structuring the relationships with your co-founders (if you have them) and customers/clients. This is typically done through co-founder agreements or sales/service terms and conditions.

Depending on the business that you’re in you may have to ensure that you’re complying with the applicable regulations. In this regard, privacy is where I have the most expertise as a teach and research on this topic and I’ve worked for the privacy commission. I can help you with your privacy policy as well as your compliance with Canadian privacy law.