Getting your new business off the ground only looks easy when you study other people’s success stories.

This is a good thing and a bad thing: if you’re focusing on doing well in entrepreneurship, you should be reading lots of case studies and examples of people who were able to make their business dreams come true, and not the ones who tried and failed.

These usually can be inspirational, certainly, but sometimes challenging since your market conditions are likely a little different than theirs. And most of the “how I did it” stories don’t always include the periods of uncertainty and all the unknowns that you’re feeling.

Guess what? Even if it doesn’t say in the “recommended reading” texts for new businesses, pretty much anyone with dreams of entrepreneurship has had their share of moments of doubt, no matter what stage of growth their company was in. Company officials also may not feel successful themselves at first but often realize in hindsight they have made great progress.

Try some of these opportunities to encourage you to do your best, whether it’s buying, selling or analyzing.

• Be ready.  If you’re meeting with possible lenders, investors or legal teams, be ready to defend your dream and answer any questions that may come up. Being prepared means you’re able to look at future possibilities.
• Get to know lending options.  If your organization needs extra capital, there are plenty of options to seek it. This can include traditional loan types at traditional banks or fund types that may be from private financing options. Each lender may have different requirements in terms of request and paperwork.
• Start with SBA. Loans from the Small Business Administration can be a great starting place for companies just getting going since they’re often accompanied by other resources for start-ups.
• Provide realistic info about sales projections. This can be more appealing to prospective lenders seeing what revenue is expected. This shows you’ve done your research more than simply saying “we think we’ll do well” and hoping for the best.

Nations Capital Financing is happy to provide other business strategies.