Is it Realistic for Me to be Able to Start a Business?

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I've been thinking a lot about my future education/career plans a lot in the past few weeks (in fact, to the point of obsession), and one thing that's really attracted me is founding (specifically tech) startups or small business. However, I still have a long way to go in terms of social skills (I only was diagnosed 2 years ago); I still have no friends or other contacts outside my family and it's been that way for years, I still struggle with presenting in front of others, I still have a "socializing battery" that quickly runs out and can cause meltdowns if I'm stressed enough, etc. I really want to change this and I'm trying to work on social/emotional intelligence, but it's probably something I'll be working on for the rest of my life, and though I know socializing is essential to any kind of interaction in the world, and I genuinely crave connection, I really feel like socializing is a chore. My dad started his own business(es) from an early age, and though he's no brilliant socializer, he's still pretty good at interacting with others. I could probably use some advice from him. So is there any kind of hope for me in terms of being an entrepreneur/business owner, or should I stick to a career path that doesn't depend so much on social skills?

What is your skillset?  Have you earned any certificates, degrees, or licenses?  What is your business plan?

I should have clarified that I'm not interested in starting a business right now. I'm only thinking about it as an option some time in the future when I have a better background and social skills. My only marketable skills right now would be editing, proofreading, and tutoring up to high school subjects, but I'm hoping to add coding onto that.

The trick for me, in my business, was to learn a “patter” or script for each situation. In my case, it includes a lot of listening. Can you discern patterns? If you can identify a pattern, and learn the script, you can manage the talking interactions. Or at least I can.

80% of new businesses fail within the first couple of years.

That’s the baseline stat. I’d go with what Fred DeLuca said about testing the main idea as quickly and as cheaply as possibly. In tech, a product can be too much ahead of the market. I think the saying is, “The leading edge is the bleeding edge.”

Job-wise, I think the field is flooded. I tried to get into programming in the early 2000s after spending a year learning C++, was not successful. I know this older fellow who was a retired NASA contractor and went back to school and got either a CS or CIS degree, but was not able to get a job.

So, if you get rolling, there’ll be plenty of good job applicants!

Please try to treat them somewhat better than average. For example, don’t jack them around on their schedules, nothing fancy.

On social skills, the coin of the realm seems to be, to slightly under-try.

So, the zen of it, how do you under-try when it’s something you very much want to achieve? Or asked another way, how to you trick yourself into relaxing?

I’ve had some success with the skills:

Letting a medium mistake on my part remain just a medium mistake,

If someone needs space, just go ahead and give them space. (There’ll be plenty of time later for casually mulling over, did I make a mistake or are they overly particular, or in a bad frame of mind, etc)

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And like your dad and his social skills in his businesses, I find goal-oriented, straightforward social interaction a lot easier than, for example, getting a snack and making small talk at a party (but not too small and random, so that I find tricky).

I finally started my own "business" two years ago. I'm back to working for others. But it was a good experience to be out there, doing my thing. I learned more about my field and expanded my skill set.

I never incorporated or anything. If you have the know-how and you can manage others, you would do well as an entrepreneur. Running a business requires managing others, marketing, and staying updated on what's happening in your field.

You might want to partner with someone else whom you trust that could be the "outside person", if you have the knowledge to be the "inside guy".

Good luck and always believe that you are important and capable. You are!

Whatever you decide to do get professional legal/other advice and never run out of cash. Most business fail not because they run out of profit but because they run out of cashflow.

I would speak to accountants and corporate lawyers and ideally experts in the field you decide. While I don't consider it a full business I have a few houses I let. Straightforward tasks at first glance and up surprisingly complicated and they eill trip you up. At first I stumbled badly on financial legislation in relation to property law. I had one heck of a tax bill to pay off after I realised my mistake and had to go skulking off to the tax man with many fist fulls of cash before he came after me for even more.

Basically get advice first before jumping head first into something.