Beth Haselhort: Want to get out of the cube and start your own business. How do you know it’s the right choice and time for you to do so? To answer that question for us is Tim Barry successful business owner author and consultant, Tim is the founder of Palo Alto Software, which produces donation the leading business planning software. And has delivered seminars on business planning for entrepreneurs in 15 countries on four continents, we’re happy to have him with us today. Welcome to SBTV.com Tim.

Tim Berry: Thank you Beth.

Beth Haselhort: For someone who wants to get out of the cube and start their own business what do you advice?

Tim Berry: Planning, I really think that first of all if you are serious about it if you really interested in it, your going to enjoy planning. The business plan isn’t some horrible torture that you go through and if it is then relax, it’s not meant to be. You don’t have to edit, you don’t have write the thing completely. You just have to get going, start thinking about who wants what you want to sell and what are you good at, what you want to do, where would you concentrate and how you focus and as you get going you will find that initial planning stuff is like anticipating what you want for Christmas. If you’re not excited about it then keep your day job. This is got to be kind of something you’re dreaming of, got to be, and ought to be. And then battle gets you going and that is really nice and sincere advice for making that move.

Beth Haselhort: There’s one thing to be your own boss provide enough motivation?

Tim Berry: Well that’s, let’s be careful with that because one of the things I teach when I get to the seminars or when I teach at the university is the sort of popping that particular balloon because I have never seen a business owner who was successful and really getting that being your own boss and stuff. That’s a dream only, in truth your costumers is your boss. I started my own business that many years ago. Business plan consulting, every client I had was my boss and if you don’t think that you have to stand attention on mind the right hours and take criticism and deal with bosses’ when you are in your own business. Maybe you should stay on that cube.

Beth Haselhort: What usually comes first? The desire to start a business or having an idea that you think would make for a great business?

Tim Berry: You know Beth, people defer on that and smart people with a lot of expertise differ so I am going to tell you what I think with that percussion that there’s no right answer here. I worry myself when somebody say’s I want to start a business any business. I really like it when somebody says’s I’m dying to do this. I think there’s this need for that, I’ve seen it or we’re talking about the person in the cube. I love it when they’re saying, you know this company isn’t doing it right and my boss don’t believe me about that, I just want to do it right. I love it when the entrepreneur starts sort of the in love with the need, the need drives the business. People out there want this and it’s not being provided to them right. That’s my favorite and then like I said there are experts here who will give a complete different answer of sort find the right business etc, etc and then go out there, but that’s maybes and maybe it’s a matter of how things have worked for me in my life.

Beth Haselhort: Do you recommend jumping in 100% or easy into any business?

Tim Berry: Well here is one were theirs is just do as I did or do was I say I quit a good job. I had good relationships with the owners and my boss is so much sort that they ask me to wait nine months and I did and then I left so they could get things ready for me to go, when I maintain the good relationship. But I did quit and it was scary but for me I think it was the only way, now I worry as I see myself in the position of giving advice because some people that’s a bad advice and for me my God that was probably the wrong thing to do and I am just lucky that I survive that I have a family to support then we almost got for close, we were about a week from that third mortgage payment that was going to start for a closure side. So it wasn’t in right respect maybe the right way to do if that’s the way I did it and that work for me, so call this just personal and for those of you who will thinking differently don’t believe me. That’s just what I did and that’s the truth.

Beth Haselhort: Tim thanks a lot for joining us today. be sure to visit www.Timbarry.com to learn more about Tim’s books his work and to read his blog, and you can find more segments with Tim Barry in the Small Business grow serious here on SBTV.com were small business is our own business.