Starting a Business

Starting/owning my own small business is (was) the one thing I wanted to do before I die, 

And now that it's happening, I feel overwhelmed and asking myself a lot of questions--mostly about ever changing taxes and tax laws. And then of course, there's the question, "will they come?" I invested $1,000s in equipment and renovations, but will I get a good return on investment? Will I get a ROI in 2 years, 5 year? Never? But that's really not what I'm writing about today. 

I am not going to say this advice will make you successful, but well...here's my advice: 

• Make a business plan. YOU will need a business plan if you need to take out a SBA loan. Even if you never plan on taking out a loan, it's still a smart idea to make a business plan. In my Starting a Business class, I wrote a full business plan, but kind of quit with that one half way through--it just wasn't feasible. It would cost a lot plus asking the county for permits and whatnot wasn't something I was really willing to do. This "new" business plan is a little different than the one I wrote in class....In short, a business plan makes you research everything (permits needed, ROI numbers, competitors, marketing etc). 

• Do NOT think you need all new equipment in order to be successful. But also invest in quality stuff and be smart about it. I bought most of my equipment and supplies on Craig's List and dug deep into clearance sales at stores. Like I needed fans for my kennel dryer. I bought a $60 utility fan for $15 at Target because it's now Fall and who buys fans in the Fall/Winter? Just because you can tax deduct stuff, please don't think you can buy a $10,000 stainless steel grooming tub for your new shop. You will most likely end up with a lot of credit card debt.

• Use LegalZoom to incorporate your business. I live in a free country, I can start my own business and unless it's a unlawful business, no government official can do anything about it. However, I live in a country with some of the most complicated taxes in the history of all nations. The IRS does a have nice small business website, but unless you have a lot of sanity...just pony up the money and pay someone to gather up the legal tax crap. 

• If you have a service based business, remember, "you only have one shot at making this experience one they will want to come back for."-Neil Cargill, manager of The Jockey Club on Mackinac Island, MI. Do things right--right from the beginning. Listen to your customers if they think you can do something better.