单选题 More people than ever before are embarking on their own enterprise adventure and starting their own business. Nearly 400, 000 companies were established last year, or 35 percent more than in 2002.
But official statistics also show that more businesses than ever are failing. Last year, a record 40,000 businesses were declared insolvent.
With so many businesses failing it is important if you are thinking of starting a business to plan and prepare properly. This will also increase the chances of securing finance.
"One of the key parts of starting a business is ensuring that the original idea is developed into a fully viable product or service," Judith Rutherford, the chief executive of Business Link for London, says. "Establishing whether there is a market for the product or service is the next step. This should include a thorough examination of potential competitors and customers," she says. "It may also be worth commissioning some market research."
If the research demonstrates there is a viable Business to be had, then the next step is to develop a detailed business plan. As well as details of the product and market, this should also include a budget plan and cashflow forecast. Approaching a qualified accountant can also help. A professional looking plan with credible figures will make it easier to attract finance.
But John Rendall, the head of business banking at HSBC warns against falling into the trap of creating a business plan designed solely with the objective of securing funding.
"A good business plan should demonstrate some critical thinking about your business, help you clarify what you want to achieve and how you are going to achieve it. It should also help you mark progress, set goals and be in better shape to deal with the challenges any new business is likely to face," Mr. Rendall says.
"This approach is far more likely to impress than something solely designed to justify borrowing." Mr. Rendall also advises businesses not to underestimate how much they need to borrow. "Don't be tempted to underplay the debt you require just to please your bank," he says. "A bank is just as likely to consider a larger sum if it is persuaded of the growth potential of your business."
A good business plan should also include contingency plans that outline responses to unforeseen circumstances--positive as well as negative. For example, what would be the financial impact of changed economic circumstances? What changes could be made to respond? It is always worth getting comments from friends or colleagues who can bring a more detached perspective.
It could also be worth taking the time to investigate whether your business qualifies for any grants. Grants are available from a variety of sources including the Government and its various departments and agencies, the European Union and some charitable organizations. If you are under the age of 30, it would be worth visiting the Prince's Trust website, which last year helped more than 4,300 young people start-up in business. More details on how to find grants, raise finance and improve financial management can be found on Times Online's Grant and Finance guide.

单选题 The number of the companies that were established in 2002 is about
A. 400,000. B. 40,000. C. 300,000. D. 260,000.
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】推理题。文章第一段第二句表明：去年成立的公司大约有400，000家，即比2002年多了35%。因此，2002年成立的公司数应为400，000/35%≈300，000，所以 [C]正确。[A]为去年(2003年)新成立的公司数，[D]为宣告破产的公司数，[D]的计算方法为400，000-400，000×35%＝260，000，其计算结果为比去年(2003年)减少35%的情况，所以这三项均不正确。
单选题 According to the author, a business plan should include
A. details of product and market, a budget plan and cashflow forecast.
B. a budget plan, cashflow forecast and a market investigation report.
C. a budget plan, cashflow forecast and contingency plans.
D. a research on the product and market, a budget plan, cashflow forecast and contingency plans.
【正确答案】 D
【答案解析】细节题。文章第五段第一、二句指出，一份详细的商业计划，除了包括产品和市场的细节，还应包括一份预算计划和现金周转预测；另外，文章第十段第一句又提到：一份好的商业计划还应包括应对突发事件的计划。因此，正确答案应为[D]“一份关于产品和市场的调查、一份预算计划和资金周转预测及应对突发事件的计划”。其余三个选项均不全面。
单选题 The word "contingency" (Line 1, Paragraph 9) can be best replaced by
A. disasters. B. possibilities.
C. emergencies. D. happenings.
【正确答案】 B
【答案解析】语义题。从文章第十段可知，contingency所指的应为下文提到的难以预料的各种事件(unforeseen circumstances)，包括好的与不好的。[A]disasters“灾难”，指的是不好的突发事件，没有全面概括contingency的含义，所以不能取代它；[B]possibilities“可能发生的事”，指可能发生的好的或不好的事件，暗含不可预测之意，与contingency的意思接近，所以该项是正确答案；[C]emergencies“紧急状况，突发事故”，虽也有“突发”的意思，但主要强调情况紧急，且一般暗示情况不妙，所以该项也不正确；[D]happenings“事件，事故”，没有“突发，难以预料”的含义，所以也不正确。
单选题 The reason why a good business plan is important is that it can
A. make you be prepared for your enterprise adventure.
B. persuade the bank to lend you the large sum of money you require.
C. help you get grants, raise finance and improve financial management.
D. help you make the right first step to set up your own business.
【正确答案】 A
【答案解析】推理题。通观全篇，一份好的商业计划之所以重要的原因在于它能够帮助创业者做好创业准备，因此[A]“帮助你为创业做好准备”为正确选项。[B]“说服银行将你要求的大额款项贷给你”只是一个好的商业计划的部分效果，并不能完全说明其重要性；[C]“它能帮你得到资助、筹集资金并改进财政管理”并不是一份好的计划能做到的，所以不是其重要性的原因；[D]中的“the first step”指的就是做一份好的商业计划及筹集资金，所以不能成为其重要的原因。
单选题 The purpose of the author in writing this article is to show how to
A. embark on one's own enterprise adventure and start one's own business.
B. make a good business plan.
C. make the right first steps of one's own business.
D. find grants on the Internet.
【正确答案】 C
【答案解析】主旨题。本文的主旨在于阐述如何迈好自主创业的第一步。因此，[C]“如何迈出你正确的创业第一步”，比较全面、准确地概括了文章主旨，所以该项为正确选项。[A]“如何开始自己的事业冒险和自己的生意”太过宽泛，文章只谈及创业的一个方面，并未面面俱到谈如何创业，所以该项不正确；[B]“如何制定一份好的商业计划”和[D]“如何在因特网上找到资助”都只涉及到了文章主旨的一个方面，两者结合才为文章的主旨。