I'm not a geek but I want to start an online business

You forgot 4: find something you CAN do.

THis sounds a little like "hey, I can not even boil water, but i want to open a restaurant, but have no budget. what should I do".

Think about what you would answer to this ;)

Especially "online community" sounds like the next pizzeria - already plenty around. Do you have the business side nicely nailed down, or is it something like "hey, I have the price list of that pizza service across the road, that is enough"?

I just took a look at your blog. It sounds like you are really committed to doing something entrepreneurial. If that is the case and you don't have much experience, then you should learn all you can while taking as little risk as possible.

Successful entrepreneurs have often had 2 - 3 businesses that were failures before they create a business that is a winner. One of the reasons for this is that there is a steep learning curve.

Successful entrepreneurs are also very good at managing risk. They know they need to keep their heads above water in order to survive and make the business successful.

There are lots of great ways to learn about entrepreneurship - from formal education to hanging around places like this one. So use them. But the best way to learn about entrepreneurship is to actually do something. Start with something small that is do-able for you. Have a think about what your skills are, what resources you have access to and what you are passionate about. Pick an opportunity that you feel confident about and that you feel you have the skills to implement and progress from there. What you learn from practical experience will be the biggest benefit to you of all.

BUT remember the trick is to learn all you can without taking risks that will wipe you out so you can keep your head above water long enough to be successful!

It sounds like you might be interested in social entrepreneurship. There is a lot of great stuff around that you can check out about this. Let me know if you want some recommendations of great resources to look at.

I have some stuff on my site that may help you learn more about how to find and implement a good business opportunity too, if you want to take a look.

Good luck,

Depending on what you plan on selling, Wordpress could be your ticket. I just started a mobile detailing business (literally, just started it) and have begun to form my website on WP. I know nothing about building websites, or anything of the sort, and I have been surprised to learn as much as I have in the past two weeks on WP.

I have a long way to go, but here's my start, if you're interested: www.GooRooAuto.com

Good luck!

GooRoo

I wish to build an online directory and I have little budget as of now.

So should I: 1. Go get educated 2. Rope in an IT-savvy partner or 3. Hire someone?

1) Is the answer, since you are even considering an "online directory." When you have a more original idea, then 2) or 3) might be advised. "Go get educated," doesn't even cost any money, depending on your interests and amount of time to invest.

...I genuinely believe in an online business.

Your enthusiasm is a huge asset, so you will do very well. :)

Good day, Elisha. It's really pleasant to see someone so eager and energetic to start one's own business. However you should also remember, that building an enterpreneurship from the very beginning or a blank space is always a matter of hardships. Not financial or material resources (which can be accquired many ways), but psychological aspect of living within your dream. It's like a constant struggle against your practical side telling you that time (the most valuable resource that cannot be replenished) might be spent in void. Watching your friends and contemporaries getting promotions and building careers in already existing businesses, where they might not possess key roles but still progress steadily, in a well organised and refined structure, and trying to build a prosperous company yourself is a mater of tremendous psychological pressure and financial resources. So it's a matter of choise, a crucial choice in your life, how would you apply your devotion, time and strength, unless you regard your future business as a hobby. So I would advice you to find a golden middle and slowly develop your business ideas and concepts into something material alongside with fighting for career opportunities in some company. Or get some work experience first and make up some finance for your future startup. Still it's up for you to decide, but it would be really a pitty to see such a cheerful and optimistic girl, as you are, to come down with depresseion, betting everything on you dream and failing it. Cause the truth is like Susan said, that "successful entrepreneurs have often had 2 - 3 businesses that were failures (or even more) before they create a business that is a winner". Unless you've got an idea up your sleave that's realy a miracle (like Youtube, Twitter or ChattRouletee, etc).

Sorry for this bulk of unnecessary phylosophy, here comes some practical advice..as you're interested in psychology and socialization a good thing to research would be Social Networks (like Facebook, Myspace, some asian counterparts) and applications for them.

When building apps for such monstrous synergetic organisations of human beings ))), you should keep in mind some principles. First of all target auditory. Although networks are called "social" they cultivate the principles of sociopathy and individuality foremost. They manifest in rating, personal data, photogalleries, numbers of friends and many other virtual property a person posseses and values and has to compare with other members. Social Networks have already become not a means of communication (which is less synchronous and tends to get to asynchronysm) but a means of narcisistic selfreflection, isolationism and stratification. Still networks generate almost unprecedented amount of traffic, and new trends which are characterized by ultimate virality, not any other PR campaign can offer. So this what you should use when coming up with an idea of your app. Monetization of additional services and financial parts are really less the trouble...

Good Luck.

It doesn't sound like you have a decent idea yet.

A typical process for someone who wants to start a company is first to work as a co-founder in one, for a year or so. It gives you a chance to learn by looking.

Also, if you are in Singapore, you may want to consider applying to the Founder Institute, they have a branch there. That would be a huge accelerator if yout got accepted.

We all start at the same point, knowing nothing. And then, as time goes by, we learn more and more. There is nothing magical about entrepreneurs (actually, it's pretty unglamorous, I just wrote about this recently and people resonated with it: "No one told me what being an entrepreneur really means")

Apologies for all the links, but I'm trying to say that there is help out there. Keep asking questions. Meet people. It's amazing how much energy you can get from just basic interaction.