Questions Every Entrepreneur Should Ask Themselves Before Starting a Business

Being an entrepreneur isn’t easy. 

There’s always room to learn because starting a business is one thing, but being successful is another. Whether you’re just beginning to think about starting a business or if you’ve already launched a business or side hustle, it’s vital to ask yourself some essential questions. 

Those could include high-level questions in the planning phase to the more granular, detail-oriented questions. What will your company look like? How would it function? How could you grow it? In every case, you’ll find that you’re much better equipped to forge ahead and create a profitable and prosperous business if you are prepared. 

Do you have a business idea ready to go? From one entrepreneur to another, the most important work you’ll do is in the planning and strategy phase. 

So, let’s look at the top questions entrepreneurs face when creating the framework for a successful business. Also, sidenote, I consider doctors who run their own practices entrepreneurs.

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Fundamental Entrepreneur Questions

There are some pretty staggering and scary statistics out there. Depending on where you look, about 20% of businesses will fail within the first year, and around half in the first five years. And that doesn’t mean those businesses that make it are profitable; they’re surviving. 

But you can help yourself grow a thriving business by doing a little upfront work in the planning phase. I know this from experience, having been lucky enough to run several successful businesses, including Curbside Real Estate, Passive Income MD, Ascent Equity Group, among others. 

So, what are some essential questions that will help you set yourself up for success? Let’s go over them.

What is my why? What problem am I solving?

I put this one first because it’s perhaps the biggest question. Understanding your purpose and motivation fuels long-term commitment. Knowing the why helps a company thrive. Research shows that purpose-driven businesses are more likely to attract loyal customers and employees. 

Why is long-term commitment important? In the beginning, it can be hard to follow through. And inevitably, there will be rough times that require you to keep going when the going gets tough. When you hit a snag, it can be difficult to keep that enthusiastic energy you had in the idea phase. It’s a ton of fun to create, but then overcoming challenges is, let’s say, less fun. 

Maybe issues arise with employees. Maybe nobody’s buying your product. You’re going to have to rely on your why—your purpose, mission, and the issue you are solving—to motivate you to push through the tough times. 

How will I measure success beyond profits? 

Success encompasses more than financial goals. What does success from this business mean to you? What are your goals? And are your goals for growth too conservative or too aggressive?

If your business supplies meals to children in need, perhaps success means measuring (and increasing) the amount of meals delivered—a quantifiable way to show that you are making an impact on the community. Measuring success this way can also help you keep your why in the forefront of your mind. 

Or, maybe success can be measured by the serviceable area. Perhaps your company’s product or service is only available to your local town, but your measurement of success includes broadening its reach to the county, state, or entire nation.   

What is my risk tolerance and mitigation strategy? 

All businesses come with risk, and every decision made comes with risk. There are many ways to assess risk. And whether you know it or not, you’re assessing risk on a regular basis. 

When you decide to get into your car and drive, the only thing separating you from potential disaster is a little yellow line painted on the ground. You’re trusting that not only will you stay on the correct side of that line, but the other person will, too. 

What are the major risk points for yourself, your business, and the market it inhabits? If you can foresee some of these things, contingency plans become much easier and more natural to create. For example, AI is said to pose a risk to several industries—coders, designers, writers, etc. If AI poses a risk to some element of your business, do you have a contingency plan in place to mitigate that? These are the types of things you need to consider and plan for. 

How will I build and nurture a team? 

For many entrepreneurs, especially early on, they are the business—the lone employee. It kind of starts with a lot of hustle and grit, and then the business expands. And if you want it to scale, you’ll need to leverage the work and expertise of others. 

Research suggests that diverse teams outperform homogeneous teams by 35%. Where are you going to find those employees? How will you manage your employees? As an entrepreneur, you’ll have to grow beyond a business owner and into a manager. So ask yourself now if that’s something you want to do. 

How will I market my business? 

Who are your competitors, and what can you learn from them? What does the marketplace look like? You might find a “red ocean” market, where too many similar businesses are fighting for a small customer base. That will make things difficult on you. Knowing this kind of information will guide you as you approach sending your product or service to market. 

Keep in mind that you don’t need to be the best in your market. Pepsi does okay, for example. But there needs to be enough market share available to keep your company alive. 

Do I have the right resources and relationships? 

Put an asterisk next to this one—it’s incredibly important. When I mean relationships, I’m talking about mentors, community coaches, and advisors. If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the years, it’s that I can’t do things on my own. It would take too much time. 

But how can you shorten that learning period? Being part of like-minded communities cannot be understated. Here at Passive Income MD, one I’d recommend is the Leverage and Growth Accelerator Community. Groups like these help you build your network and support your growth. 

What is my exit plan? 

When we became doctors, we probably expected to just become a physician and do that as long as we possibly could. That’s fair. But it’s a bit different when you’re running a business. With a business, it’s good to have the end in mind. How long do you want to run this business? Is its purpose to generate cash flow for a specific amount of time? Do you want to grow it as quickly as possible and sell it? 
Always have an exit plan. That includes tracking the variables that might contribute to when and how you might need to implement an exit strategy. Knowing the end before you begin will help you figure out the directions and decisions you’ll take now and in the early stages.

Where Do You Start?

The questions we just covered are big-picture questions. But big and awesome journeys start with small steps. Start today and use smaller-scope questions to start actualizing what you’d like to create with a business or as an entrepreneur. 

I can’t emphasize enough how important it is to be in touch with answering entrepreneurial questions daily. You’ve probably heard that almost all successful entrepreneurs have daily routines they stick to, and undoubtedly that includes reflections on how to shape the success of their businesses. 

What does that routine look like for you? Maybe you start each morning with a jog and a smoothie or, like me, a cold plunge before setting some daily goals. Whatever it is, integrate these daily questions into your routine to start qualifying your action through brainstorming:

• What do I want to accomplish today?
• What are my motivations for the day?
• What legacy do I want to leave?
• How can I make today better than yesterday?
• What could hold me back today? 
• What can I learn from today?
• What did I achieve today?
• Are my goals different from this morning? 

Consider this list a bit of a “choose your own adventure.” Not all of them will resonate with you, but mixing them up every now and then can keep your engagement fresh.

Set Yourself Up for Success

Remember, the best thing you can do as an entrepreneur is to plan and educate yourself as much as possible. That will save yourself the energy, money, and trouble that comes with making the wrong decision. Will wrong decisions happen? Sure. But mitigate them by putting your best foot forward. Small steps first before the big steps. Taking just the few hours needed to go through these questions will save you countless hours on the backend. 

That type of success-based entrepreneurship is within reach here at Passive Income MD. We offer insight and advice from a whole community of physician entrepreneurs who have built or are building their own businesses. Earlier, I mentioned the Leverage and Growth Accelerator Community, but that also includes the Leverage and Growth Accelerator Summit, a truly awesome and inspiring event dedicated to sharing experiences, insight, and growth. 

We also offer another in-person event of like-minded physician entrepreneurs. Join us for PIMDCON 2024 in September. It is an unparalleled opportunity to join hundreds of physicians just like you, interested in real estate investing and their entrepreneurial dreams. 

We’re here to support you in your pursuit of your entrepreneurial goals as you grow a successful and thriving business. Thanks for being with us today and, as you continue your journey, keep at it! You’ve got this! We’ll be rooting for you along the way, and we hope to see you soon.

Peter Kim, MD is the founder of Passive Income MD, the creator of Passive Real Estate Academy, and offers weekly education through his Monday podcast, the Passive Income MD Podcast. Join our community at the Passive Income Doc Facebook Group.

Further Reading