So - you want to be an entrepreneur? Start here.

Welcome. You're about to embark upon a journey that most will never take and of those that do, many will be lost. If you smile at fear and accept the statistics - the ones that say you are likely to fail - yet refuse to back down and instead persist, then welcome. Welcome to the world of the entrepreneur.

Let's start with a basic truth. You are alone. If you are blessed to have family, friends and associates who believe in you and will back you - then you are truly lucky. Even with that - even with love - you are alone. You'll be alone when your current co-workers don't understand what you are doing, when your friends don't understand and warn that you might fail (or worse, secretly hope you do because your ambition makes them feel bad about themselves), or your family fears you are making a misstep. You are alone - accept that, understand the reality and beauty of it. You will learn from experiences good and bad - your perception of the world, others and yourself will change on a daily basis. I've put together a brief checklist of some things you'll need to have in order before you put on your armor and take on the world. Let's start with where you likely are now.

• Do not quit your job! Not yet anyways.

This is a no-brainer right? But if you are at the point where you are ready to quit your job and do your own thing, please make sure simply switching jobs isn't the best route. Sometimes people can be so disgusted with the status quo, entrepreneurship seems like the logical step when the truth is a new employer, a bump in salary and change in company culture would be a much better option than starting your own business. Be very level-headed in your decision. I don't care how much you hate your boss, co-workers, commute, etc. A reliable source of cash coming in is invaluable as you are figuring out next steps. Beyond this - if you are ready to make the move - on to the next step.

• Cash - have enough of it.

Nothing kills a new business (or existing business) faster than a lack of cashflow. Startup capital is one thing, but if you can't pay your bills, your suppliers, your business partners and employees? It's over before it ever really started. Now - some businesses require little more than a tax id and website - which is great, but others are much more capital intensive. At the outset - figure out your business expenses for at least the first year as well as what your personal expenses are for at least 12 months - then double it. 24 months - have 24 months saved - because if you think it will take you about a year to get some business and sign up some clients - double your estimate - the truth likely lies somewhere in between. Don't buy the 3-6 month projection - that will just end up with you scrambling to find another job when the world starts beating you up for having the nerve to go out on your own. Get at close to 24 months of savings as you can, buy yourself some time and peace of mind.

• Differentiate and specialize.

What are you going to do? What will your business be? Who are your clients? What do they want from you? How will you deliver your products or services? What differentiates you? You'd better have answers for all of this. Don't try and be a generalist and capture business anywhere you can - your message will not hit hard with anyone. What's that? You're a lawyer? Great - but please don't try to convince your clients you are great at family law, corporate law, intellectual property, personal injury and real estate. You aren't, and the clients who actually believe you will be likely to be low level, unprofitable clients that want to pay D level prices for A level work. Avoid this at all costs. Specialize and develop a track record - your business rep and profits will climb year over year.

• Don't be the cheap option.

At the start - it can be very tempting to lower prices to try and get more clients. Don't fall for this trap. As mentioned above - the clients who play in these waters are more trouble than they are worth. They will absolutely hammer you on price, get you to drop it and then be unsatisfied with work, maybe even demand money back and get the work for free. Don't play these games. Do your best to understand where realistic prices in your industry are. If you are going to negotiate - better to start high and drop a bit, but don't get into the low price war - you'll lose. On the product front - never be the low cost option - you'll get into a death spiral with a competitor on the drop to zero.

• Name Selection and IP

This can get very expensive before it needs to. At a minimum - spend some time figuring out your company name. Check the USPTO for any existing trademarks and check out availability for domain names over at GoDaddy. When the business is up and running, you'll probably want to check for an Intellectual Property lawyer to help with getting your trademark squared away. That won't be cheap, so start saving. Another expense - similar and misspelled domain names. If your business takes off and has a great name, there are jerks out there that might try to confuse your website visitors with similar domains to get attention. Prevent this by investing in your own business domain portfolio. Again - not something you need to do upfront - but as you scale - absolutely.

• Legal and Accounting

Before you even think about getting started - have your legal and accounting team in place. No - it doesn't need to be a top law firm and CPA firm. Yes - they need to be competent and experienced in dealing with small businesses both on federal and state levels. Are there any state or local licenses needed? Are you better off filing paperwork to be a sole proprietor, an S-Corp, C-Corp, LLC, Partnership? All questions to sort out upfront. Check out LegalZoom and other online sites as good starting points. Spend the most you can on the best legal and accounting professionals you can find. They will save you from trouble and costs down the road. Trust me on this.

• Bank Account

Once you have your business set up, you'll have your Employer Identification Number (EIN) for federal tax purposes as well as a state tax ID for state and local taxes. Sit down with your favorite banker (get a separate business banker) and figure out what your needs are. Get your basic checkbooks in order and also figure out if you will be accepting payments through digital partners. If online, specialty processors will be in the mix.

• Marketing

Start with your website. Your website can be as complicated as you'd like or very simple. Squarespace and Wix are great starting points. I hosted my own website for over 5 years on Squarespace for less than $100 a year. You can make it work fairly inexpensively. A logo is also a good idea, great way to get a new brand out there and differentiate. Check out 99Designs for that. Business cards, marketing collateral, stationary, envelopes, etc. Vistaprint can take care of all of that.

• Social Media

Alongside your marketing will be your social media strategy. Do some research and figure out which platforms make the most sense for you and your business. If in B2B - Linkedin might be your best option, while for certain products, perhaps Instagram would be great. You can handle your own social media or outsource it. Get familiar with all of this, even if you aren't a marketer.

• IT Systems and Security

Again - much more expensive if we are talking multiple employees or offices full of computers and other devices. If you are starting off solo - you can find an MSP (Managed Service Provider) that can monitor your systems 24/7. At a start - get your email application up and running as well as any related CRM you will be using. Basic business level anti-virus and firewalls should be set up and a VPN if you want another layer. If you are in an industry such as finance or healthcare - you better make sure to have your industry standards in order, such as HIPAA, encryption, etc. For email compliance tips, check out sites like MailChimp and CampaignMonitor.

• Accept the fact that 95% of the time - being an entrepreneur will suck.

Most of the time - work can be drudgery - administrative, repetitive tasks. You should always try to focus on doing the work that makes the most impact, both financially and from a goal standpoint. If you can outsource some of it - great. But I'll tell you right now - even if you enjoy what you do - the daily grind is real, the stress is real, and you'll have it coming at you from all angles. Even on a good day, never mind the bad ones. In my world, a few deals per year make the year an absolute success - but the rest of the time? Just keep your head down and work.

• Have a short memory - win or lose.

The days where you win - they are sweet - plain and simple. You've taken on the world, and you've won. Enjoy it - savor it. Have a small celebration. And then prepare to go right back into the fight the next day. Same with the bad days. Take your hits, lick your wounds - bandage up and get back out there. The bad times won't last forever. Have a tempered approach, win or lose. A short memory on the victories and defeats - this is what makes the entrepreneur. The heart and ambition to press on, with no guarantees. At the end of the day, all you will have is the knowledge that you did your very best and that's all you can do. It's all any of us can do. Doing this over days, weeks, months and years will determine your success. Its the want of the fight, welcoming the challenge of the day and stepping up to it on your own terms, with everything you have and everything you are that makes the entrepreneur special. It may pay your bills but it isn't only about money. For your business, employees, family, community, for yourself. Welcome the challenge. Embrace it. Love it. It never ends. It. Never. Ends. Fight on. I promise I will too.