Starting your own business is tough and scary. Sure, you get to be your own boss and set your own timetable but it also takes away your predictable income as well as your weekends and most of your “you time”.

It takes courage, drive, commitment, hard work… and constant development to start your own business.

So where do you start? What do you need to succeed? What should you do when things go south? What will keep you going?

Hopefully these ten Ted Talks and podcasts will inspire and motivate you to start your own business, and also power you through on difficult, dark days when you feel like giving up.

1. Do what you love (No excuses!)

The number one rule when it comes to starting a business? You need to love what you do. It’s only when you’re genuinely passionate about your business that you’re willing to dedicate all the time, energy, and resources necessary to make your business successful.

So if you’re facing self-doubt and need a little nudge to turn your passion into a business, Gary’s energy and enthusiasm are bound to encourage you to get started doing what you love.

2. This is the side hustle revolution

We love this Ted Talk by Nicaila Matthews Okome. Why? Because she tells the story of people who want to start a side hustle not because they hate their job but because they want to find joy and happiness by turning their passions and interests into a side-hustle.

“We’re always being taught that we’re supposed to know what we want to do when we grow up. But when you’re multipassionate, you want to dip and dabble in those different things. It doesn’t mean that you’re not committed to your job, it just means that you have other outlets that bring you joy,” says Nicaila and we couldn’t agree more.

3. How I became an entrepreneur at 66

It’s not easy to decide to become an entrepreneur when you’re in your 20s and have all the courage in the world. Now imagine deciding to become an entrepreneur at 66, when the risks are greater.

If there’s one thing you should get out of this Ted Talk it’s that there’s no age limit to learning new things, getting out of comfort zone and doing something meaningful in your life.

4. The fastest startup ever created (probably)

James Alexander’s mission is to help more people become entrepreneurs. He is the Co-founder of Galileo Ventures, a seed fund dedicated to supporting the next generation of entrepreneurs, and INCUBATE, Australia’s largest student accelerator program based at The University of Sydney.

In this interactive TED Talk, James and his audience create, build and launch a brand-new start-up live on stage that already generates $8,000 in pre-order interest in just ten minutes.

5. Entrepreneur on Fire podcast

If you want to be inspired and learn from others who have successfully turned their passions into sustainable businesses, that’s exactly what you’ll get from the Entrepreneur on Fire podcast.

You’ll hear online business success stories from figures like Seth Godin and Tim Ferris but also from people like Kim, a vegan yoga teacher turned competitive bodybuilder who built a multi million dollar fitness empire in 18 months, from her kitchen table, whilst home-schooling her four young kids.

6. Mixergy podcast

Mixergy is the podcast where start-up and business founders tell their stories and share their knowledge and advice on how to start a business, how to deal with failure, how to overcome it or use it as an opportunity to move forward.

Here’s just an example of an interview with entrepreneur Daniel Scott. In this episode, he shares his story of how he launched an online course platform that turned out to be a disaster. It rocked his world but then led to a breakthrough.

7. The Smart Passive Income podcast

The Smart Passive Income podcast has been featured in both iTunes and The New York Times. It’s also constantly being featured as one of the best podcasts for getting inspiration on how to build an online passive income business.

You can start by listening to this episode where a husband and wife team tell the story of how they started a simple blog and turned it into a diverse business empire.

8. ‘She Did It Her Way’ podcast

Amanda Boleyn is a freelancer turned successful full-time business owner. Her podcast “She Did It Her Way” started out as a hobby which she worked hard to turn into was is now a full-time successful business.

Her podcast includes lots of inspiring interviews with a diverse group of female entrepreneurs from all sorts of industries and niches. The great thing about it is that the guests share not only their stories but also actionable advice on how to turn your passion into an online business.

9.  Side Hustle Nation podcast

Looking to start a side business while holding down on a 9-5 job? Not sure what type of business to start or if your idea would work?

Make sure to listen to the Side Hustle Nation podcast where the host, Nick Loper, talks with his guests about new business ideas and side hustle opportunities you can try in your spare time.

10. The StartUp podcast

Want to find out what it’s like to start and run a business? Then you need to listen to the StartUP podcast.

Alex Blumberg, the host of this podcast, interviews lots of entrepreneurs as they start their journey. You can start with these two episodes where Alex interviews one entrepreneur who’s trying to produce the perfect cup of coffee and another one who founded a chocolate company but is struggling to balance entrepreneurship with parenthood.

Wrapping up

Starting a business is tough and scary. But it’s also rewarding and a fantastic opportunity to turn your passion into a business.

Now, if the thought of quitting your 9-5 job and going all in is just too scary, there are other options too. You can always start small, with a side hustle that’ll give you the chance to try out being your own boss and see if you have what it takes to become a full-time business owner.

And don’t forget, when you’re ready to start a new business 123 Reg has everything you need to build your own website.