If you are thinking about starting a new business, but do not have the money to do so, then you need to investigate government grants.
Small business start ups sometimes require a lot of money, sometimes not.
Either way, government grants could easily be the best source for initial financing.
What is so special about grants is, unlike loans, you do not have to pay them back.
Not having the burden of a monthly loan payment helps tremendously in the first year of a business' life.
Of course, you could sell equity in your need business to fund it, but then if everything goes the way you hope, and you sell the business in a few years, you are going to be giving away a substantial amount of money to your original investors.
Wouldn't you rather keep it all for yourself? Besides, not everyone comes from a family where members have the sort of money you might need and the entrepreneurial understanding to let you have some of it.
Where can you get government grants? Well, from local, state, or federal governments, as well as from private organizations.
You can use grants from both to start your business.
As I said, the great thing about grants is they do not have to be paid back.
The problem with grants is a) finding them, and b) getting them.
There are usually a tremendous number of forms to fill out and hoops to jump through to get a grant.
There is also a lot of competition for these grants.
Everyone else wants free money, too! Having said that, if you are the kind of person who is going to let a few forms stop you, then you might not be entrepreneur material, anyway.
Problem solving is the hallmark of entrepreneurship! Either you figure how to address problems, or your competition does.
You are actually in luck! There are a lot of resources out there that can help you.
The Foundation Center and Grants.
gov are two.
The Foundation Center is a well-respected, private organization that disseminates information about grants.
Take a look at their website! They also have a lot of great online courses and other resources on their website that might help you.
Just Google "The Foundation Center.
" Grants.
gov lists federal grants, thousands of them.
You can browse their site and get a real feel for what is out there.
Do not worry if you do not find what you are looking for at first.
Finding the right grant is a real needle in a haystack experience.
It can be done, though.
For more information, read Part II of this article.