I found this on Emma Harrison's web site, so I have "borrowed" it to share with you.
Emma Harrison, successful entrepreneur gives her top tips on how to start, build and grow your business.

Make sure you know what it takes…
Lots of people are passionate but they don’t do anything. Determined passion coupled with action are the building blocks of success. Having a dream is not enough – you have to deliver on it, you have to do both.

Break it down and work on it every day – step by step…
I have many dreams and I immediately think what little step I have to take every day in order to get there. The dream could be five years ahead, but you need to know what to do today. It is a journey. And for me it is never-ending.

Write a profile of who you want to be in five years…
Five years ago I wrote a profile of myself, five years into the future. I was really embarrassed at the time and hid it away in the bottom of a drawer. Now when I read it back it has all come true. I wrote that I was a highly respected female entrepreneur acting as a role model to other female entrepreneurs, able to inspire, encourage and elevate people to become successful.

Get a mentor – and know what you should be getting out of it…
Mentoring is a practical tool that effects the bottom line. Too many people think it is something intangible, something ‘huggy-feely’. I have turned people down who ask me for mentoring because actually what they are looking for is the ‘squashy love’ thing. I’m only here to help them figure out how to change the world not how to manage a session of self-discovery. That’s where people get confused. I believe in ‘pin you ears back’ training sessions.

Don’t make marketing your number one priority, make it your only priority…
There are three things that you should spend you time doing: Marketing, marketing, marketing. It is the most important thing that someone growing a business should be doing. If you are not prepared to do that, then everything else is irrelevant.

Invest in people – that’s all you have…
In the end, business is about people – it is nothing else but the people. I hate when people say ‘our greatest asset is our people’ – why what else do they have? The only thing they have is the people.

Be an entrepreneur not a business manager – allow your business to grow without you…
Develop a ‘without me’ policy. My businesses have to work without me – and guess what, when I step back they grow.

Also See - http://seriouslyhomebusiness.blogspot.com/2008/07/problems-just-waiting-for-solution.html