You’ve decided that it’s time to strike out on your own and go into business for yourself. Congratulations, it isn’t an easy decision to make. You’ve likely dealt with some apprehension from your friends and family when it comes to supporting your decision. Success is attainable, but not without smart decision-making and a lot of perseverance. It isn’t always going to be easy, and you might even think about throwing in the towel a few times before you truly “make it” in the business world.
To help you get from start-up to start-ed, here are a few things you need to avoid:
Not making realistic goals
Pump the brakes on your world dominance type of ambitions before you get carried away. Right now, the focus is on realistic and measurable goals that will make up the foundation of your continued success. Know what kind of workflow you’d like to work toward and reverse-engineer the steps required until you’re at the stage you’re at now, which is probably close to the first or second step. From there, work your way step by step toward those soft, attainable goals. You’ll increase your chances of your business living to fight another day. The good feeling of initial success is a good starting point for your loftier goals.
Taking out too small or too big of a loan
If you do decide to secure a small business loan, make sure it falls within the Goldilocks range where everything will be just right. Securing a loan has never been easier in today’s era. With banks relaxing their criteria and private lenders everywhere with their own set of rules, it isn’t out of the question to get an easy loan from Dealstruck or other non-bank creditors. The issue is that when your loan is too small, you’ll run out of money before you can secure all of the necessary supplies. This makes the risk of being short-staffed or your inventory too small very real. When your loan is too big, it will be more challenging to make your payments. You’ll have to deal with the burden of the loan for longer, and all of that extra money won’t really be doing you much of any good. Take out as much as you think you’ll need after careful planning, plus a little extra as a cushion.
Not learning how to delegate
As the person at the top of the organizational pyramid, it’s your responsibility to check every facet of your business as well as make executive-level decisions that are for the best of the company. If you’re too busy handling phone calls or even re-training staff on hard to use equipment, that means you aren’t handling your more pressing responsibilities. Delegate these tasks to subordinates so you can keep your mind free. You’d be surprised how many glaring errors you can miss if you’re too close to the problem to see them.
Another mistake some small businesses make is not incorporating soon enough. Incorporating is very important for a number of business goals, such as taxation, as well as your ability to hire, and the like. A good place to start thinking about incorporating would be to go with a service that helps you. If you’re in Canada, you might consider an outfit like Ownr. There are other similar businesses south of the border, such as LegalZoom that can handle this sort of work as well.
Conclusion
It’s daunting to begin a small business. There’s no arguing that fact. Luckily, many people have tried before you, and for every single one that has succeeded, there’s probably at least ten that failed. There’s just as much to learn from failure as there is from success. These tips are very general. It’s recommended that you follow up this article by seeking out information on how businesses in your specific industry rise and fall. See what sunk others before they could realize it, and you’ll be ahead of the game when it happens to you.
Image source: Pexels.
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