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Start up Killers-Highlights and Comments

admin — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 01:47:36 +0000

I recently read an article from Young Entrepreneur titled Start up Killers: Avoid being a statistic. I thought it highlighted some very valuable information. As a business consultant, I help out many start ups, mostly one man shows and as I was reading the article I felt it touched on some very important issues that start ups face or have the portential of facing. See highlights from the article and my comments below:

According to a recent study by SBA, a mere 44% of new business start ups can expect to still be doing business just four years later

Problem: Starting a business affects your family, It affects the budget, the amount of time you spend them and they have to make some sacrificies.

Solution: Keep them involved -Listen to their concerns and their advice

My Comment: Great advice! If you are going to however involve the family in business operations and major decisions, or if you are going in a partnership with a family member, remember to have a partnership agreement. It could be a legal document or a letter of understanding that outlines duties of each involved party and expectations in addition to any sort of compensation. This can avoid major problems in the future.

Problem: Isolation:E ntrepreneurs, by nature, are independent people. We love the idea of being “self-made.” Be careful not to isolate yourself though.

Solution: Network, Network, Network.

My Comment: Networking is key for any business! What most business owners focus on when it comes to networking is concentrating on events that can help bring business. While this is important, business owners need to focus on networking events that can help them meet competitors, mentors, other start ups and potential business partnerships.

Problem: Productivity destroyers: There will always be something out there to distract you.

Solution: Make and stick to a schedule

My Comment: For tips on how to be productive while working from home, refer to my post Working from home- The good, the bad the lessons learnt

Problem: Plate overload-A startup entrepreneur has a lot on his/her plate no matter what. But one thing that will take the wind out of your sails and kill your startup before it ever really gets off the ground is becoming overwhelmed with all you have to do.

Solution: Delegate the veggies. Whatever you do, don’t let an overflowing plate kill your business.

My Comments: As a business consultant, one of the most deadly things that I see in a failing business is when the entrepreneur tries to be superman/superwoman and wants to do everything and anything. Delegating, automation and outsourcing tasks is how you can protect yourself.

Problem: If you’re expecting to make a killing right off the bat, just know that is not typical.

Solution: Plan ahead, save, and spend wisely.

My Comment: Work on those financial projections, figure out your bottom line, your break even point and project with both best case scenarios and worst case scenarios. In the projections, leave cushioning for unforeseen expenses. For a list of free local resources that can help you with your financial projections and business planning click here.

Link to the original article from YoungEntrepreneur titled Startup Killers: Avoid becoming a statistic – http://www.youngentrepreneur.com/blog/startup-killers-avoid-becoming-a-statistic/

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Working from home the good, the bad and the lessons learnt

Working from home the good, the bad and the lessons learnt

admin — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 02:26:18 +0000

“You are so lucky, I wish I could work from home” I remember hearing several of my friends telling me that once I announced to the world I am quitting a job I love to pursue my business full time and fall in love once again. Though the idea of not commuting for hours seemed attractive I had my reservations about working from home. I am sharing the good the bad and the lessons learnt from working from home.

The good:

1. No commute: rush hour traffic, spending my life of I 495 and the toll road bye bye

2. Saving money on gas: I can’t believe this but I actually don’t have to get the tank full every week-what a concept.

3. Dress Code-casual: No more wearing the power suit spending half an hour infront of the mirror and wearing painful heels. Ouch!

4. Networking here I come: I can actually go to networking events refreshed and since I have more flexibility I can go to the breakfasts, power lunches and evening networking events.

The bad:

1. The wall and me: One of the things that have been the greatest challenge is my brain storming sessions, over the past few months my wall and I have had several brainstorming sessions, arguments and discussions. There is a plus side to this-I always win the argument.

2. Distractions: There will always be a neighbor’s kid that’s crying too loud or a trash truck begging you for attention when all you want is some peace and quiet

3. The kitchen calls: whether it’s the dishes in the sink or the junk food you’ve hidden, somehow they all have a voice and call out to you while you work

4. we are open 24/7: one of the worst things about working from home is that you forget to close shop. You tend to work during the day, during dinner, while entertaining guests and sometimes in your sleep.

The Lessons Learnt:

Lesson 1: Wake up on time

Lesson 2: Get out of the PJs and into work clothes

Lesson 3: Hide the cookies

Lesson 4: Stick to a routine

Lesson 5: Choose a room that you use for work only

Lesson 6: close the door when you work and let everyone else in the house know a closed door means a closed door

Lesson 7: Learn to close business

Lesson 8: Learn to take breaks, if you work non-stop you will get unproductive

Lesson 9: Do not take any personal calls while working on business, unless they’re important

Lesson 10: Have a good support system – friends, family, mentors, other business owners, a good lawyer, a good accountant and anyone and everyone who can offer value to you and your business. Keep them close!

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Start up Killers-Highlights and Comments

10 ways to use google docs for small businesses

admin — Mon, 30 Nov 2009 21:56:44 +0000

We are on our way to celebrate our two year business launch anniversary. As I reflect over the last two years, I started thinking about the different tools that we used that helped our business be a success. I quickly realized that we could not have been where we are without the help of Google Docs. Below are some of the ways we and other small businesses use Google Docs

1. Create word processing documents, we used it to write proposals and develop website manuals.

2. Share documents with other people on the same project, this was helpful when people involved on a project were not in the same physical location.

3. Created a document that could be edited by multiple people simultaneously for collaboration purposes. This was very important for us when we were trying to meet a deadline.

4. Divide documents into different folders/labels/projects-always nice to be organized!

5. Share folders with selected people, helpful to make sure there is a consistent way of sorting and organizing documents. You could have folders project based or sorted in what works for your organization.

6. Create forms to collect information from clients- For projects that required specific information, we would create simple forms and use them to gather the information we wanted. Made us look professional and helped us gather the information we needed.

7. Create forms for feedback after completion of projects-Always nice to get feed back in a professional way.

8. Email form or embed form in blog or website for quick responses-love this option!

9. Create presentations with Google presentation tools. Helpful if you don’t have MS Powerpoint.

10. Create spreadsheets using Google Spreadsheets-helped us with managing time spent on each project and amount of money owed by each client!

These are some of the ways we used google docs to help with our business. Do you have any stories to share? Tell us under comments or tweet them to me at @bizincubation !

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