|
|
Small Business Navigator Inc - Start a Business Coach
|
||
|
Nov 11, 2010
Business Startup Advice
"Guiding Small Business Owners"
By: John Whiteley Sound Business Startup Advice is sometimes hard to come by. Navigating your business in the right direction is vital for success. Who do you talk to about your business ideas? Who can you trust? What questions do you ask? How much money do I really need to make this venture fly? How much bookkeeping is enough? What are the tax costs and filing requirements? These are just a few of the questions many first time business entrepreneurs should have asked. How can a budding business person know all the questions to ask? The simple answer is that she or he does not have the experience or knowledge to ask all the right questions. Therefore, without the right connections and advisors, important areas are overlooked and consequently create loss of revenue and/or unnecessary costs down the road. Most of us are enthusiastic about getting the business up and running and sometimes bypass the sources of important information for any business operation. In my public practice experience I have discovered that many new business owners believed they had enough knowledge to make a business successful without getting adequate professional advice and/or training before embarking on the voyage. All they saw was the tip of the iceberg. I observed that for the most part, the successful entrepreneurs made the investment to talk to competent business consultants to learn the ropes in the business world. They were pragmatic enough to realize they could not possibly know everything and that very possibly they did not know enough about important topics. The right attitude is extremely important to being successful. One of the barriers that small business owners face is the fear of asking a dumb question. In fact, I’m sure we all have that fear to a certain extent. I watched a movie not long ago, titled, “The Reader” with quality actors who portrayed the story of a Nazi female guard during the Second World War. She was found guilty of signing an execution warrant for many of the Jews in the concentration camps. Many of the other suspects pointed to her as the guilty person; she spent 20 years in prison for a crime she did not commit because she was too ashamed to disclose to the court and world that she could not read or write. Fear can be very crippling. Make sure that you appoint professional advisors that are highly recommended, experienced and most important, advisers with whom you are comfortable communicating so that you never feel that it is a dumb question but that it is only information gathering. Be patient and acquire as much business information as possible which is relevant to your type of business. You should be able to track down professional accountants, lawyers and consultants who possess specialized knowledge of your industry, Review the tax issues, bookkeeping, cash flow planning, payroll topics, licensing requirements, marketing, plant or warehouse setup, leasing, financing, etc. A good consultant should have a checklist on the important topics for you. Of course you need to budget your costs in this areas and the extent of your purchased consultation should be practical according to the size of the venture. You will never know everything about business and people, but you can start your new business better prepared to be a success. Source: http://www.smallbusinessnavigator.com | ||
|
Copyright 2008. All Rights Reserved.
Home Advertise on this Site Privacy Contact Us About Site Map Links