Financing your Business Your reason for being in business is the single most important factor in determining what type of finance is suitable for your business. You may be in business to provide for your family, to be your own boss, because you cannot find another job, to realise wealth or for some other reason. Your reason will have an impact on your attitude to risk and to giving up some control of your business. When you have considered the fundamentals listed below use the flowchart at the end of this section to decide whether your business is entrepreneurial, in which case venture capital may be appropriate, or whether your business is proprietorial, in which case venture capital is unlikely to be appropriate.
All businesses change and develop throughout their lives.
It is not a smooth process but a series of steps, associated each time with crucial management decisions. Before rushing into raising funds, consider whether you actually want the business to take the next step up. Remember that business growth will require changes in areas such as management skills. Always obtain impartial advice before taking a decision to embark on major expansion. In the latter case, it is likely that, at each step, the business will require a capital injection and that the type of finance needed will be different.