Starting a business is no small feat, so we don’t treat it like one.
It takes courage to take your caffeine-fueled light-bulb idea and turn it into a legitimate business. It’s exciting and scary because you’re investing all your time and energy into a concept, without the assurance it’s going to be successful.
We encourage entrepreneurs to begin with the end in mind. Because, you’re right. It is a scary journey. But with the right plan in place, it doesn’t have to be quite as anxiety-inducing as a Google search tells us it’s going to be when we’re starting out.
Here at Avalon, we help our clients get the business support they need based on where they are on the Entrepreneur’s Roadmap.
Start with a Thrive Mindset
The Entrepreneur (that’s you) will go through the following six stages on their way to becoming a thriving business.
Right now, you’re navigating your way through the red stages - Concept, Launch and Focus.
Your journey started with a little niggle in the back of your mind: “I think I could do this better.” or “I think I would like to work for myself, set my own hours and take control of my life” or “It’s crazy that this service doesn’t exist! I should do this. I will make millions!”.
Now your idea has taken on a life of its own. You’re thinking about a website, branding, tag-lines, product and service offerings, pricing, business location, and much more. The energy required in this stage is outrageous! You are fuelled by a mixture of excitement, fear of failure and caffeine.
No matter where you are on the Entrepreneurial roadmap, the Thrive stage is your ultimate goal, and we’re going to encourage you to begin with the Thrive stage in mind.
This is where a balanced life and a sale-ready business are. This is where vacations, weekends and tech-free Thursdays exist. It’s a real place and we want to help you get there.
Get There Faster by Avoiding the Common Pitfalls
Here are the top 5 early-days pitfalls we see and how you can avoid them:
1. The Tangled Personal / Business Charlie Foxtrot of a Bank Account
This is number 1 for a reason. If you do nothing else, please do Future You a favour and open a separate bank account and credit card (even just another personal credit card) for your business. Run all of your expenses and income through here and come tax time, you will want to fist bump Past You for their thoughtful consideration.
2. Trying to Do it All Yourself
Being an entrepreneur is hard work! Everyone has their talents and their enjoyments. At some point, you will want to outsource the non-core functions of your business (marketing, accounting, office space, etc.). For obvious reasons, in the early days, it will not be possible to outsource everything - you will have to suck it up and work those evenings and weekends (and that eighth day we wish they would add to the week). However, having at least one person on your side can be critical to your success. Pick your least favourite thing to do - hire someone who is good at it.
3. Getting Distracted by Opportunity
Once you make the jump, the world really does open up. There is so much opportunity out there. Staying focused on your task at hand can become difficult, but it is important. Setting goals and intentions will help steer you away from the next shiny object.
4. Ignoring Your Salary
If your business model does not include paying yourself, you are volunteering, not building a business. What do you pay yourself? What you are worth, of course! Even if you can’t afford to pay yourself in the early days, make a plan to do so.
5. Not Knowing the End Game
What does success look like to you? Writing this down somewhere and looking at it frequently can help during times of uncertainty, exhaustion and overwhelm.
Business owners deserve a better deal
We started Avalon Accounting because we thought new business owners deserved a better deal.
We also happen to believe that starting your business right shouldn’t be complicated. Our goal is to demystify some of the most common questions we get from new business owners while keeping them as actionable and succinct as possible.
As you’re making a mental note about these pitfalls, you’re probably wondering about the practical actions you need to take. Some of the questions you might be mulling over include:
- Should I incorporate my business?
- What do I need to register for?
- Do I need to charge sales tax?
- How do I pay myself?
- What can I expense?
- How do I keep track of revenue and expenses?
We cover the answers to these questions, and more, in our Starting Your Small Business guide.
It’s free to download and includes some extra stuff like action plans, book recommendations and bookkeeping templates to give you the tools to make some key decisions.
Every business deserves to skip the pitfalls and gain all the knowledge they need to succeed from the get go. So, like Yoda - we’re passing on everything we’ve learned from working with small businesses, and building Avalon.
Much to download, you still have
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