Consultants coach clients in everything from management and human resources to image, media and the best ways to implement computers/technology. Not only do consultants possess expertise in specific areas, they also must be able to impart knowledge and generate value for their clients.

If you already possess a specific skill (trust us, you'll find one if you think hard enough), all you need is guts, capital and some paperwork to start your own business.

When people talk about starting new businesses, they sometimes cite the rate of failure—as if budding entrepreneurs must be crazy to take the risk.

If you're calculating the cost of doing business, don't forget the advantages. Find out more about tax benefits for small businesses.

When friends and family heard former investment banker Candace Nelson had lost her job and was selling cupcakes she made from her kitchen, they thought she had gone over the edge. But when the flour settled, it turned out this founder of Sprinkles Cupcakes was just following her passion.

You've lost your job or just grown weary wondering when the ax might fall. Maybe you need to supplement your family's income. Or maybe you're just tired of making money for someone else. What do you do?

Heidi Krupp helps perfect your elevator pitch.

Answers to your entrepreneurial questions from John Assaraf

Entrepreneurial tough guy Guy Kawasaki's tips for entrepreneurs.

Award-winning filmmaker Ken Burns likes a challenge. He showed us history is really interesting. What's next?

In this Web exclusive, John Assaraf shares six key action items for entrepreneurial success.

Scoring in business wasn't a given for Magic Johnson, so he followed the winning formula he used in basketball: He worked at it.

Boston Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs built the family business into a multilayered, multibillion-dollar powerhouse. How did he do it?

Cordia Harrington started from scratch as a serial entrepreneur before find dough--lots of it--in buns.

If you never take time to assess where you are versus where you really want to be, you could be missing out.

These entrepreneurs say its never too late to start a business.

Looking to reinvent your business? Try reinventing your most valuable asset, your employees.

What should be on your bookshelf when working on your business.

In this web extra, entrepreneur Mitchell York shares tips for reinventing your business-self.

In co-founding the social networking site Ning, Gina Bianchini sought to build a product she'd use herself. Now, she's at it again with a new venture.