Want to Start a New Business This Year? Here’s Your Checklist

Melissa Zimmermann VA
Dec 29, 2025
3 min read

If you have been quietly thinking about starting a business for a while now, this is your sign to stop circling the idea and start moving it forward. You do not need everything figured out. You do not need a perfect plan. You just need a clear starting point.

This checklist is for the woman who keeps saying, “One day,” and is ready to turn that into “This year.”

Save this. Print it. Come back to it when the doubt creeps in.

Step 1: Name the Idea Out Loud

Write down what you actually want to build. Not the watered-down version, not the practical version, the real one you keep thinking about. If you cannot name it, you cannot grow it.

Step 2: Clarify Who You Want to Help

You do not need a massive audience. You need one type of human you understand deeply. Who are they? What are they struggling with? What do they actually need help with?

Step 3: Decide What You Are Offering First

You do not need ten services. Pick one simple offer you can confidently deliver. A service, a product, a workshop, a package. Keep it small on purpose.

Step 4: Check the Money Side Early

How much do you need this business to make to feel “worth it”? Monthly, not someday. You do not need exact numbers yet, but you do need a general target to guide your decisions.

Step 5: Set a Soft Launch Date

Not a perfect launch. A soft one. Pick a realistic date to publicly say, “This is real now.” Deadlines create momentum.

Step 6: Create the Bare Minimum Online Presence

You do not need a full website on day one. You need one place people can find you. A simple landing page, Instagram profile, or basic website is enough to begin.

Step 7: Tell Five Safe People

Do not post it to the internet yet. Tell five people you trust. Say the idea out loud. Let it take up space outside your head.

Step 8: Make the First Move Before You Feel Ready

Send the message. Buy the domain. Set up the account. Draft the offer. Action builds confidence, not the other way around.

Step 9: Expect Fear and Do It Anyway

Fear does not mean you are doing it wrong. It means you are stretching. Both can exist at the same time.

Step 10: Get Support Early

You do not have to build this alone. Support can look like a mentor, a VA, a coach, systems, or community. The sooner you stop trying to do everything yourself, the steadier your growth will be.

Starting a business is not about having everything mapped out. It is about choosing to move forward even when the path is still a little foggy. You will learn as you go. You will adjust as you grow. And that is exactly how it is supposed to work.

If this is your year to finally begin, I am cheering you on.

Ready to Take the First Step Without Overthinking It?

If this checklist stirred something in you but you still feel a little foggy on what you want to build or how to shape it, I created a free tool just for this stage.

Download the Rediscover & Rebuild Workbook for Purposeful Business Ideas

This free printable will help you:

Reconnect with who you are now, not who you used to be
Clarify what lights you up and what you want to build
Identify your strengths and natural skills
Turn scattered ideas into a starting direction
Take your very first step with confidence

No email required. No pressure. Just a quiet place to think and dream on paper.

You do not need the whole roadmap yet. You just need your next honest step.

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