Handbook to help launch your business

For all the ragging we do about governments in Canada, we have to admit that they do have their place. On the whole, the BC government and parts of the federal government have done an excellent job in putting useful business resources onto the Internet.

One of the main federal gateway websites is Strategis: www.strategis.gc.ca. Another is the Western Economic Diversification Canada (WEDC) website: www.wd.gc.ca/default_e.asp.

There's a lot to criticize about WEDC: government shouldn't be in the business of trying to pick winners; government shouldn't take tax dollars from waitresses to spend on experimental businesses; and so on.

But in this case WEDC has prepared something useful: a guide that gathers into one resource information on launching your own business, called Starting your business: A Guide to Resources for B.C. Women. You can find the Guide through the Women's Enterprise Society website: www.wes.bc.ca. It's free and can be viewed and downloaded in PDF.

I guess it's easier to get government funding if you cast your project as being aimed at women entrepreneurs rather than enterpreneurs generally or even -- gasp! -- for men alone. But we'll admit that, if the stereotypical view of men, directions and roadmaps has any truth to it, it's more likely that women will actually read the thing.

If you're a woman, of course, you'll feel at home with the guide. But men shouldn't be shy about looking at it, either. Anyone, male or female, who starts a business needs whatever help they can find. The guide is 26 pages long. It is aimed at new entrepreneurs, those people setting up in business for the first time. But with the variety of checklists, points to consider, lists of resources, publications and government agencies, more experienced entrepreneurs will find the guide worthwhile.

We commend the guide to you in the start-up phase. And when you're ready to incorporate, register your business name, or do some other legal transaction, please give us a call.