How to Really Start a Business (or Why You Don’t Need Money to Make Money)
創業之道——賺錢無需花錢
Everyone has excuses about why they can’t (actually won’t) earn more money. A common excuse is, “I need money to make money”.
對于為什么不能（實際上是不去）掙更多錢，每個人都有自己的理由。其中最常見的要數：“想創業掙錢，我得先有足夠的錢”。
You and I know that’s a myth (you do know that’s a myth, right?), but most people take it as a truism.
你我都知曉這個理由并不是真的（你不會不知道吧？），但大多數人卻把它當作真理。
A lot of people think they need tens of thousands of dollars to get in on a franchise, or put cash down for a rental property, or buy into some silly multilevel marketing scheme.
許多人認為他們需要一大筆資金去獲得特許經營權，或是支付租金，亦或是引入荒誕的多層級營銷方案。
The fact is, there are plenty of ways to make money without the need for a pile of cash — as Chris Guillebeau’s recent book, The $100 Startup, covers. The first step is to realize that there are always multiple solutions to any problem, whether it’s making more money, building your retirement nest egg/strongbox, or bartering for broccoli.
但實際上，有很多方法既可以賺錢，又無需大把原始資金，就像克里斯·古里博的新書《100美元起家》所描述的那樣。第一步是要意識到凡事總有多種解決之道，無論是賺更多的錢、為日后養老儲備資金、還是與人交換西蘭花。
Must-have tools for creating a business on the cheap are:
白手起家必備秘籍：
? A bootstrapping mindset: How can you get or do something for free or extremely low cost? Again, creative brainstorming and flexible thinking will help you figure out how to accomplish a task on a shoestring. Check out some more specific bootstrapping principles to get you started.
? 步步為營：怎樣才能白手起家呢？創造性思維、靈活應變的能力都可以讓你以極少的錢完成任務。再多找些具體的步步為營法則看看，讓自己順利起步吧。（注：Bootstrapping來自于20世紀初期美國流傳的一句“提著鞋帶把自己舉起來”的諺語，其本質就是一種步步為營、循序漸進的思想，指的是創業者在資源有限的條件下，發掘機會，創建新事業并實現價值。）
? Small steps and a willingness to experiment: This is the iterative, lean startup approach, where you try something small & fast, learn from it, and improve. What? You haven’t heard of the lean startup approach? Well, start reading up on it. It’ll save you from wasting time and money, and reduce startup frustration and misery.
? 腳踏實地，勇于嘗試：這一環節，創業者所要做的就是重復的精益創業。在此期間，創業者可以做各種小而快的嘗試，從中獲取經驗和教訓，提升自己的實力。什么？你竟然沒聽說過“精益創業”？好吧，那么先好好鉆研一番吧。你的時間和金錢將不再被浪費，起步的挫折與痛苦將會減輕。（注：lean startup以一個遠景假設為出發點，通過快速、低成本的驗證方式，驗證產品與市場的契合度，不斷迭代并及時調整方向。）
? Market validation: Again, from the lean startup/customer development paradigm, make sure that you’re offering something that people want and will pay for. What what? You haven’t heard of customer development either? Not a problem. There’s great info out there to get you started.
? 市場調研：同樣地，從精益創業/發展客戶范式入手，確保你所提供的產品是有需求的，客戶是愿意付錢買的。什么什么？你也沒聽說過發展客戶？關于這方面的信息可是有很多呢，你可以了解后再開始創業。
With all that said, you’ll also need to recognize your barriers to actually starting down the road of entrepreneurship. Here’s a list of the top 4 excuses people give for not making more money:
除了上述所說，你還需要認識一些創業路上的“障礙物”。以下便是其中四種最常見的不愿賺錢的借口：
No time
一無時間
No money
二無資金
No expertise
三無專業技能
No ideas
四無想法
When you reflect on why you haven’t started exploring how to earn more money, probably every one of your barriers (excuses!) falls into one of the above categories. You might say to yourself:
當你沉思自己為何還沒開始探索掙錢的方法時，沒準你的理由（借口！）就是上述四種里的一種。你也許會自言自語道：
? “Starting a business is too complicated.” Nope. That’s the “no expertise” excuse.
? “創業太復雜了。” 其實不然。說實話，這個理由真是太不專業了。
? “But I work insane hours, have eleventeen kids, and a 4-hour commute.” Granted, you might have limitations on your time, but you’ll always make time for the things that are most important. And 20-30 minutes a day is something you can carve out–especially if it’ll change your life.
? “我每天要瘋狂地工作，上下班就要花四個小時，還有群十幾歲的孩子要看管。” 的確，時間或許很有限，但你總能為最重要的那些事留出時間。我想，一天20-30分鐘你還是可以抽出來的，尤其是當它可能改變你的生活之時。
? “But I don’t have $10 grand to fund a business.” OK, go back to the top of the article and re-read it. Done? OK. Repeat after me: “I can start a business for under $100.” Say it again. And again. Know that there are many ways to do any task. Sometimes the first thing that comes to mind is some high-falutin’, expensive way. Dig deeper. Focus on exactly what the outcome is, and brainstorm all the crazy ways you could get to it. I guarantee you’ll find ways to get it done on the cheap.
? “可我連10美元都沒有，如何創業？”好吧，如果是這個問題，那么請你回到文章的開頭，重新閱讀一遍吧。看完了？好的，跟我念，“100美元之內，我照樣可以創業”，多說幾遍。要知道，條條大路通羅馬，雖然有時候腦子里總是會先想到一些不切實際又昂貴的方法。繼續鉆研下去，將焦點集中于產出，頭腦風暴一下你所能想到的各種瘋狂辦法。我向你保證，你一定會找到白手起家的妙招的。
? “But I don’t have any ideas for a business.” Try this: train yourself to look for problems. That’s right — look for problems throughout the day, every day. Jot them down in a notebook. Remember that every problem is an opportunity. Successful, sustainable businesses solve problems. Don’t want to cook dinner? Go to a restaurant. Problem solved. Hate to iron your clothes? Take them to a dry cleaner. Problem solved. Want to find & stay in touch with friends? Join Facebook. Problem solved. (You get the idea.)
? “但是我還缺少創業的想法”。不妨多練習練習發現問題——每天的每時每刻，試著去發現問題，然后記錄下來。你一定要認識到，任何一個問題都有可能變成機會。那些成功且持久的事業都是為人解決問題的。不想做飯？那去餐館，問題解決了；不想熨衣服？送去干洗店，問題解決了；想和朋友保持聯系？注冊臉譜網，問題解決了。（你明白了吧？）
It’ll take hard work, but the payoff is worth it
雖然創業很艱辛，但是回報很豐厚，值了！
Starting and building a successful business takes hard work. But since you’re reading this, you and I both know you have an urge for something better. You daydream at work about quitting your job. You curse your commute and wish you could ditch your day job. You feel stuck at a job you hate.
成功的事業在開始建立的過程中，不下苦功夫是肯定不行的。但是鑒于你都已經閱讀到此，你那份憧憬著更美好事物的急切心情也已經顯而易見。也許你在工作時會想象自己離職的畫面，你咒罵著每天往返耗時之久，渴望有朝一日能擺脫這種生活。這份討厭的工作讓你不知所措。
While starting a business may not solve all your problems, it can give you a completely new worldview that’s empowering and full of possibilities. It took me a long time to get past my mental barriers and excuses before I started my own business, but when I began taking action, I started seeing things change. A few years down the road, I earn much more, have more financial security, more flexibility, and have no reason to complain about work. It’s been an amazing turnaround.
也許創業并不能解決你所有的問題，但是它會帶給你全新的世界觀，使你更有主見，也帶給你無限可能。就我而言，在創業之前，光破除心理的藩籬就耗費了我大量時間。但是當我決定付諸行動之時，我驚覺很多事情在發生改變。數年之后，我賺了不少錢，經濟上有了更多的保障，處事也更加靈活多變，對工作的抱怨自然也就煙消云散了。難道說這個轉變還不能稱得上神奇嗎？
And while I’ve learned a thing or two about how to do things on the cheap since I started my business, I was still able to start my business inexpensively–and so can you. Now though, you have the advantage of tons more free and low-cost tools for starting your business. The most important things in your toolbox are a bootstrapping mindset, a focus on experimentation, and providing value.
創業之時，我還學會了一些白手起家的小竅門。即便是現在，讓我白手起家闖出一番天地，也未嘗不可，那么你也一樣。雖然現在出現了更多免費或廉價的工具，讓你握有優勢，但對于創業來說，最重要的還是步步為營的理念、對反復試驗的注重、以及提供有價值之物。