CAREERS NOW 10-25-09

Start Business with No Money: Truth Or Fiction?

DEAR JOYCE: Three months out of work, I'm considering starting my own company. I've always known that most new businesses tank within a couple of years, that you should never make critical decisions too quickly after losing a job, and that financing is virtually impossible to obtain for a start-up these days. But lately I've been seeing claims that it's possible to start a business with no money or collateral. Real deal? - J.S.

Anything's possible. Not likely, but success can strike passion-driven entrepreneurs - particularly those in service businesses and online endeavors - who launch with no or little financial backing. That's the case presented by Rick Smith (ricksmith.me) and Erica Douglass (brazencareerist.com); for both articles, Google "How to Start a Business with No Money."

Freesourcing (freesourcing.org) is a notable new resource for bootstrapping entrepreneurs to check out. It's a directory of the best free, Web-based small business resources. Still in beta, the site lists 15 business areas of interest, from finance and graphic design to sales and social media tools.

Reliable and free advice is available from SCORE "Counselors to America's Small Business" (score.org), a legion of volunteer mentors affiliated with the Small Business Administration. SCORE's been helping people like you for 45 years. To pump up small businesses during the recession, the organization presents a new online toolkit each month featuring special articles, templates, podcasts and workshops at score.org/accelerate.

With 15 million Americans on the bricks, entrepreneurship is looking pretty good to many frustrated job seekers. It's more tempting than ever to buy into siren songs romanticizing the theme of "Do what you love and the money will follow." Not so fast. Most of us know people who've gone over the cliff with that fable.

So should you take a flyer? While there are ways to start working for yourself without money, there is no free lunch. Investigate. Analyze. You decide.

DEAR JOYCE: A 46-year-old male, I have a four-year degree in education and business and am in the search for a new career. I have gone on job interviews for both blue-collar and white-collar positions. Does it matter whether you wear a suit on all of the interviews? Or could I wear, for example, nice khaki pants and a tasteful shirt on an interview for a blue-collar position?

I ask because recently at a staffing company, an interviewer said: "Hoo boy, aren't you overdressed?" - R.E.

The "always wear a suit to an interview" mantra hasn't completely left the building but it's on its way out.

Do wear nice but informal clothing on blue-collar interviews, and casual business dress to white-collar interviews in industries, such as information technology, that are soft on traditionalism. A suit is still the ticket in banking and other button-down industries.

Job search secret: The criterion for interviewing dress is to look like an insider, not an outsider. You want to look like "one of them on a good day."

Research. Call the company receptionist and ask about the dress code. Stand outside the company doors and observe employees going in and out. View employees on the company Web site. And, of course, network by phone, online or Twitter to get the right look going in.

DEAR JOYCE: After three weeks, my working a job fair produced no call-backs. Should I try to call the people who I met at the booths? - J.J.

You have nothing to lose by trying to reach the company's representative. I hope you got a business card with the rep's direct line and job title. (The rep may not be a recruiter but anyone available to man the booth on fair day.)

Say that while you have several interviews scheduled, you're most interested in the rep's company and are wondering whether your resume has been routed. Then ask "Do you see a fit with an open position?" Regardless of the answer, aim to build rapport with the busy rep and ask if it's okay if you check back from time to time.

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