Are You Ready to Work for Yourself?

The Bucks County Workforce Development Board is partnering with The Bamboo Project to help you start your own business!

If you've been dreaming of working for yourself--whether full-time or as a "side gig"-- this may be the opportunity you've been looking for!

The Speedy Startup Jumpstart

You'll start with the Speedy Startup Jumpstart, a two-day, 12-hour workshop designed to help you clarify your business idea and decide if self-employment is the right move for you.

During the workshop, you'll:

Generate and evaluate potential business ideas--there are multiple ways you can generate revenue from even a basic idea.
Identify the resources, skills, talents, etc. that you can draw on to create your business.
Lay out your proposed business model. This will help you see the major parts of your business and where you may find your best opportunities.
Define your "value proposition"--who are your target customers and how do you provide value to them?
Conduct customer interviews and research to gather initial information on the validity/viability of your idea, BEFORE you invest more time and resources.
Determine if self-employment/business ownership is the right move for you.

Even if you ultimately decide that a business isn't right for you at this time, you will leave the workshop with valuable information and resources to use for the future.

You will also be better positioned to apply for jobs, as you will have a better handle on your skills and talents and how to articulate your value proposition to future employers.

Dates & Location for Speedy Startup Jumpstart

We will be running two Speedy Startup Jumpstart sessions. All sessions will be held at the Bucks County CareerLink, 1260 Veteran Hwy, Bristol, PA 19007. Each daily workshop will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Participants must be able to attend BOTH dates for the session they plan to attend.

Session 1-- March 22 & April 5, 2017
Session 2-- April 27 & May 11, 2017

Click here to register

Speedy Startup 8-Week Coaching Program

Graduates of the 12-hour Jumpstart will then be eligible to move on to participate in the Speedy Startup 8-week coaching program. We will meet Tuesdays, 9:30-12 noon, from May 2-July 5, 2017 at the Bucks County CareerLink

Through these weekly 2.5 hour group coaching meetings and access to an online classroom of resources and activities, you will be able to take your business from initial idea to implementation. You will:

Flesh out your business idea, including clarifying your target customers and pricing, and further refining the value proposition for your business.
Develop your startup budget.
Learn ways to "bootstrap" your business and minimize your startup costs.
Develop the marketing tools you need for your business, including a website, social media channels, etc.
Learn about resources in Bucks County to help you with starting up your business.
Get connected to SCORE business counselors who can help you with specific aspects of your business, from marketing to financials and everything in between.
Begin testing your business idea, reaching out to REAL customers and working on getting your first sales.

The Speedy Startup program is not about writing up a business plan. It's all about ACTION--getting your idea into the world, minimizing startup costs and maximizing your revenue. The only way to know if your business model is going to work is by testing it in the real world. That's what we'll be helping you do in this process.

Who Is Eligible to Participate?

To participate the Speedy Startup, you must be:

18 years or older

A resident of Bucks County, PA