Take a second.

• Author: Stum, Jamie Huish
• Position: Planning Guide

Take a second, lean back and imagine owning your own company. It means no one tells you when to be in the office, no one steals your promotion and that great idea you've been holding onto will finally see the light of day. Look closely. Can you see yourself there?

Bill Gates could. So could Steve Jobs. And with a couple of great ideas and a few resources, you can be an entrepreneur too. There are more than 26 million small businesses in the United States, according to estimates by the SBA Office of Advocacy, and roughly 550,000 new businesses are started each month, according to the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.

Of course, owning a small business will rarely get you to the golf course by noon, especially during the startup days and years. Many small business owners say they work an average of 52 hours a week, according to the Gallup Small Business Index. Starting a business and keeping it alive requires hard work, perseverance and thick skin. But this is America, after all, and 62 percent of entrepreneurs in the U.S. claim "innate drive" as the number one motivator in starting their business, according to the Northeastern University's School of Technological Entrepreneurship. It's become our way of life and Utah Business is proud to present another resource to help any would-be entrepreneur succeed.

While many small business owners are already equipped with the idea and the excitement, it's the know-how that needs to be reinforced. Utah is an extremely entrepreneur-friendly state; more than 236,000 small businesses call Utah home...