As nurses we are completely in our comfort zone when assessing new patients admitted to our unit. However, assessing new business ideas for nurse entrepreneurs and aspiring entrepreneurs isn’t something many of us are comfortable with.

You may think the most important question for a new business idea is projected financial metrics. Instead, these 8 questions below and your answers will help qualify and confirm your decision in moving forward or rerouting your venture.

1. What are the industry and market trends? Healthcare is in a state of disruption. That is a trend that has only accelerated in the post-pandemic environment. Does the business idea exist considering the rapid legislative, technologic and socioeconomic changes? As a result, does the business idea even have more potential?
2. What is the likely longevity potential of this business? Somewhat along the lines of trends, it’s important to consider how long you believe this business product, or service will be in demand. Does it only solve a temporary problem? How long will you retain your customer?
3. How sticky is this idea? Stickiness is a requirement for long-term success. It is very difficult to be successful with a one-time purchase. It is typically easier to retain a happy customer and have them purchase additional products than to acquire a new lead and convert them to a new customer. Your ongoing success and profitability require your customer to continue to engage with your product or platform.
4. Do I have a network and connections in the healthcare industry and target market and if I don’t, how will I get in front of them? It is essential to get in front of the right target market. So, this is where your network and connections provide a major advantage for those that have them. Healthcare industry related connections from where you used to work, a relative, a colleague you could work with that has a direct line to your audience can be the secret weapon you need for a successful launch. The National Nurses in Business Association has been the secret weapon for many nurse business owners with networking resources and connections being effective in business launch success.
5. Are people already paying for a lesser value lesser cost subpar product solution allowing you opportunities to insert better and affordable solutions? If you are innovating and improving on currently available products, that’s good news. If there aren’t worse competitors, maybe the business isn’t as needed as you thought.
6. Do the operations (systems) of the business idea have automated processes that require a minimum spend to achieve higher sales and profit? Daily operations are usually one of those afterthoughts. Many entrepreneurs wished they had thought about systems and scalability questions earlier. As someone who has built businesses in the past with daily operations being rather rough, thinking about businesses built for scalability, automation, low-maintenance, and profitability are questions to ask before you launch.
7. If I move forward with this decision and if this business idea doesn’t succeed what are the assets for me to come away with? Did I augment my education and expertise? Did I acquire a new skill set I can use in a subsequent venture? Nurses starting a new venture should be aware that things may not turn out how they would like. Answering these questions emphasizes how nurse entrepreneurs can determine whether the risk is worth taking.
8. How much do I like this product, service, or program? There are definite things to like about a new business idea. You would probably like being your own boss, being rewarded for your efforts, having no financial restrictions and having time and location freedom. Do you like the business idea enough to weather the storms, overcome roadblocks and deal with long ordinary days?

As business owners, we want to be productive and moving forward more than we want to be analytical and self-assessing. But by digging deep and examining your answers to these questions you could eliminate potential problems with a business idea. It means you have the courage to ask and answer the tough questions ultimately making better decisions for your entrepreneurial venture success.

Michelle Podlesni RN, CEO, USN Veteran, serial entrepreneur and management consultant. Founder of Unconventional Nurse® and the president of NNBA Nurses in Business, the pioneer organization dedicated to the entrepreneurial nurse. To learn more on how nurses become entrepreneurs and how nurses succeed in business go to https://nursesbusiness.com/product/nurse-membership/ and subscribe to NNBA News free entrepreneur tips, articles and opportunities.