To open a bakery or not?

Is it smart to start your own business? Now or ever? Experts claim that becoming your own business owner can be a bad move. Breaking free of the chains from working for 'the man' can be liberating. Without such direction and security, taking the leap into your own business can be a bit scary and risky.

I know I've had dreams of opening my own bakery and so has my sister, my husband, and just about everyone else I know. No one likes to be under someone else's thumb. We want freedom. We want to hold our future in our own hands. The question is: Are we capable? Can we handle our own dream? My husband says that only crazy people with crazy ideas are successful, people willing to take a chance and go for it.

It seems that poor accounting skills and a bad economy will shred your business apart. This is true. I wonder how many businesses start out working in the home and when business blooms, proper expansion occurs. This expansion, however, not being a leap 30 steps ahead but only 5 (not paying for too big of a facility, not getting in over your head financially or employee-wise). I assume this is how all small businesses start? My mom basically opened shop. She bought a small store and put out an 'open' sign. She's never had to advertise. It's always been word of mouth. Perhaps it's just her chosen occupation that makes it no need for advertisement. Considering a bakery I believe there's got to be a strong foundation of clients and sales.

It's not all fun and games. When I think of owning my own bakery I think of how I will decorate it, how I will relate to the customers coming in to enjoy treats, or I imagine baking cakes and decorating them all day long. What I don't think about is the 18 hour days working towards a deadline. Dealing with weather changes and how they affect cake delivery for weddings. I don't think about constantly being dirty with flour. I don't think about unhappy customers. I don't consider the same repetitive movements and cakes/sweets I'll have to make. I also don't think about what happens if no one loves my bakery.

"Oh, everyone loves sweets! I don't need to advertise!" " People will love my bakery!" These thoughts are a dreamer's gold. Not everyone will love my baking. My bakery might need some help getting discovered in my local and regional area. It's a dreamy thought to open up a business and have everything fall into place. Crap happens though and sometimes you can't change it. No matter how good of a product you have, if people don't know about it or dont like it you're out of luck.

I think also it's hard to admit defeat. One doesn't want to admit his business is a failure. That would then lead to him being a failure. On top of pursuing your dreams you've got to keep your feet on the ground in reality and go with the flow of the economy and market.