Site of the Month for October 2011 relates to Business Directory. Round Business provides information & resource on business, economics, investment, transportation & logistics, business brokers, computers & internet, government & trade, manufacturing, travel, translation services.

There is no substitute for working in the business. Even if you work for a very short period of time in an entry-level capacity you are going to get a much better grasp of how that business works than you would through research or reading.

For example, I decided to start a newspaper while I was in college. Instead of waiting several years to work my way through each position on a newspaper staff, I worked for five days as a proofreader. Proofreading a newspaper is not much different or more fun than proofing a term paper, but it placed me in the middle of a working newspaper office. It allowed me the time to observe the more interesting and important work that everyone else was doing. I was able to start up my newspaper with a working knowledge base, as well as the help of some very motivated, but equally inexperienced friends.

An alternative approach, if you are buying a business, is to have the seller work with you for a short period of time to show you how things are run. Be sure to write any such understanding into the purchase and sales agreement, including holding back part of the payment until you have learned how to run the business.

You can also contact the trade association connected with your industry and see if it offers any seminars or has information packets about getting started in that particular business.