The 5 Riskiest and 5 Safest Business Startup Ideas

How Much Risk Are You Willing to Take?

The first question to ask yourself when you decide to start a small business is, What business should I start? Or, better yet, What business should I not start? We asked IBISWorld, the world's largest publisher of industry research, to tell us which businesses are least likely to succeed in the U.S. economy today, and which are the most likely to succeed.

Here are five businesses you should not launch now under any circumstances, unless you have in mind some tax scheme that involves a quick trip to bankruptcy court.

Once you've seen our list of the five riskiest businesses, be sure to check out the second part of our slideshow featuring the five LOWEST-risk businesses to start.

-- Tom Stein and Tim Devaney