Many people wish that their jobs were better-connected with their dreams and passions. Whether you are interested in sports, food, music, or fashion, it can be too easy to become trapped in a job that you don’t really have a passion for. It can quickly feel like you are working to live, rather than living to work.

Taking small steps toward transforming your career can help you find your bliss in the workplace. Saeed Torbati, a Canadian business expert, explains how anyone can turn their hobby or their passion into a business.

Write a Business Plan
In order to get financing, it is necessary to have a well-thought-out business plan. A business plan details how your company will make money, how you plan to run the business and lays out your basic financial information like your expected cash flow. It needs to be focused on an actual product or service rather than being a loose conception of how you will do business.

Your business plan should cover your role within the organization as well as any additional people you may need to help the business succeed. Decide whether your business will be full-time or part-time.

Look at Your Priorities
You should sit down and decide whether you are starting this business because you have a deep desire to work in this field or whether you are simply trying to find a way to quit your old job. Starting a new business could be viewed as an “escape hatch” from your regular career, but this vein of thinking could come back to haunt you if your business does not succeed and you are left with going back to your old job.

Above all, make sure that your new business confers some benefits besides an increased cash flow. Taking the time to lay these items out will give you a more realistic idea of whether you are getting into entrepreneurship for the right reasons.

Market Research
When you are thinking about how to turn your passion into a business, you should sit down and decide what you will bring to the market. If you’re interested in food or have a great family recipe for a cooking sauce, you could turn this into a business. If you are passionate about fashion, you could become a personal stylist.

Looking into the market where your business will be located will help you decide how many people in your area might become your customers. The demographic analysis will let you know who lives there and what their income levels are like. If you’re in an area with little potential to grow, consider starting your business somewhere else.

Resist Quitting Your Day Job
When your small business is just getting off the ground, resist the temptation to quit your day job. It is best to start your new business on your own time and to keep your job until you start making money. This will mean that you have the extra income to put into your business rather than spending it on living expenses.

It is also a great idea to keep your job if you have good employer-paid health insurance since health insurance is often very expensive for self-employed individuals.

Spend Time Networking
One of the most important things you can do as an emerging entrepreneur is networking. You should look at your business and personal networks for people who can help you make your business succeed, whether it is through a monetary investment or through becoming a loyal customer. Many people are interested in their friends’ and acquaintances’ new business ventures.

Be Creative with Financing
When you are starting a small business, you will probably have to finance it yourself. You will need a significant nest egg that you can invest in the business. Make sure that you and your family will be able to make a comfortable living with or without the business.

You may find that it is hard to secure financing from a bank when you are first starting out. Banks offer personal loans, but these can interfere with your credit if anything happens to your business. It is best to reinvest your profits back into the business until it starts to make more money.

You will also want to put every possible effort into financing creatively. You may be able to find a venture capital firm, especially if you have a tech-focused business idea, or you may choose to go with an individual investor. Be careful that you are not giving your investor too much creative control over your business, nor giving away a large equity stake that will eat into your profits down the road.

Use Online Resources
When your business is new, using online resources can be a great help in finding new customers. Use social media like Facebook and Twitter to spread the word about your new venture. However, be wary of overexposing yourself or spamming these sites, especially with Twitter where negative information can spread incredibly quickly.

If you are making handcrafted products, use a site like Etsy to sell them. You can also travel to trade and craft shows but be aware of the costs that are associated with doing business in these places like gas, lodging, and rental fees.

Succeeding with Your New Business
After you have spent so much time setting up your new business, you will need to work long hours to make it succeed. If you have the passion and the drive to put into your business, you may be able to reap the benefits both financially and in terms of your own personal satisfaction.

Saeed Torbati recommends that all would-be entrepreneurs follow these steps before making any financial commitments to a new business. With the right attitude, you will have a far better chance of recouping on your investment.