2020 was a normal life circuit breaker... a handbrake stop to the way we have done things our whole life and everything we always took for granted.

For the majority of us lockdown meant an unprecedented excuse to pull on the pyjama bottoms, bring out the baking recipes and literally binge-watch everything on Netflix. 

But for so many others, it presented an opportunity, maybe even a pressing need, to build something new, turn a hobby into an income, pursue an idea that had been on the back burner for years or even start a business to replace a lost job.

I've spoken to countless entrepreneurs that found their making during lockdown. While some of us played Scrabble and shopped online for toilet paper, others decided that this was their chance to start something new, big, exciting, profitable and hopefully successful!

The rise of online business has been dawning on us for some time, but paired with this year's unexpected and extraordinary need to live more of our lives through the internet, the time to start your online business is now.

Whether it's something you've only just started considering or a dream you've had for years, I wanted to share with you five things I've learned since starting my own business over three years ago.

1. Starting an online business is simple, but starting a successful online business is no easy feat The technology you need to bring an online business to life is so easy and cheap nowadays that you can be up-and-running in no time. But for that same reason, competition is fierce in almost every industry. Standing out in a crowded online market and attracting attention in a world of distraction is what will make or break your business. There's no space any more for average. If you want to be successful, step into this challenge with vision, strategy and a commitment to excellence in everything you do. 
2. Resilience and adaptability are two of the most important qualities you need Starting your own business is literally like riding a rollercoaster in the dark. You never know what you're heading into and the entire ride is full of ups, downs and sideways swings. As an entrepreneur you need to become a master at holding on and adapting to whatever gets thrown your way. Just remember that successful people are the ones left hanging on when everyone else has decided to let go.
3. Don't think that if you build it they will come So many newbies go into online entrepreneurship in love with their idea and expecting floods of sales when they hit that publish button. Opening up a physical shop means people walk by and inevitably see your business, but the internet is like a black hole. Your idea and your website is one little star in a galaxy of millions of others. Don't underestimate the effort it will take to get people to know that you exist, to remember that you exist and to choose you over your competition over and over again.  
4. You need to take action before you even know what to do and before you feel ready When you start out as an entrepreneur, you're likely to start as a one-person team. From the accounts, to the marketing, the packing and the selling - everything rests on your shoulders. There's so much to learn and so much to master, but even when you feel lost, confused and unprepared, knowledge and clarity comes from actually taking action. It's a constant challenge of doing things you don't really know how to do, accepting that it's going to be messy first time round and learning as you go along. 
5. Being the architect of your own destiny is the biggest reward of all With so many challenges, risks, problems and stress that comes with starting your business, you might be wondering if it's even worth it at all. You might be fooled into thinking that sticking with your 9-5 comfort zone is probably better anyway. But I can assure you that work takes on a different meaning when it's something you love, something you've built. While failures always become your fault, success also always becomes your own win, your own income, your own fulfillment. Unlike working for someone else, no one can take that kind of satisfaction away from you. 

So as we head into 2021, why not give yourself a chance to discover how far you could go... what you're truly capable of... the level of success you could create? Entrepreneurship is about so much more than just building a business. It's a journey of self-development and self-discovery. It's a chance to turn a simple idea that started in your head into a reality that you live every day. What could your reality look like in 2021 and beyond?