How to Start a Business Without Money

Okay, this is kind of a weird post for me to write—not because I don’t believe what I’m going to tell you, but because at first, you might not.

Are you ready?

Having no money is no excuse not to start a business.

Listen, I get it.  You’re thinking that making ends meet is tough enough. And even though you really, really want to start your own business there’s barely enough to spare between paychecks to afford a Diet Coke, much less fund a startup.

So I’m going to tell you my story. And yes, it’s totally true.   

I was where you are about 8 years ago. I was a wife and a mom and I wanted to stay home and my stress level was crazy high. For goodness sake, I had come out of college and started a teaching job only to find out that—and I’m not joking—I could qualify for food stamps because the income was so low.

While I had no money to spare, the two things I did have were a computer and the desire to do something about our situation. I started researching everything from stuffing envelopes at home (no, I didn’t fall for it) to all of the MLM’s out there—none of which seemed to fit me.  The one thing that caught my attention was selling things online.

But I had the same question then that you do right now—how do I sell products when I don’t have cash for inventory?

The answer was to just start small.

I mean, really small.

Turning Trash Into Cash with Wooden Blocks

Want to know what one of my products was? Wooden blocks. Where did I get them? From a piece of wood I found behind my shed. I cut it and sanded the edges and took a picture…

…which is when my neighbor saw me and promptly asked how the heck I was planning on selling trash.

Talk about a moment that could have knocked the wind out of my sails!

Right then, I could have walked away from them, thinking that he was right—nobody would buy them. I mean, who would want blocks of wood, for the love of heaven?

It would have been so easy to give up right then.   

But I didn’t.

Because I didn’t just see those back-of-the-shed blocks. I saw what could be made with them, and how they could be so cute with pictures glued on them, and how moms would make things with them and give them as Christmas gifts.

I had to believe they would sell because that was all I had.

24 hours after I posted them, I’d sold over $9,000 worth of them.

After I fulfilled orders, I used the profits to invest in my next product. And I did it again, and again, and again until I pretty much got to where I am now.  

But I started with no money.

If I were sitting right across from you, I would look into your eyes and tell you that I totally understand that this is scary. You’re going to be doing something that could change your life. I get that every penny matters to you right now.

And then I would tell you to go for it because having no money isn’t an excuse when it comes to living your dream.