Happy Tuesday everyone! I'm smiling today because we’re going back to basics. See, I have the privilege of meeting so many business owners, business-minded individuals, and entrepreneurs that it blows my mind. You’re out there creating and building very cool, thoughtful, and impactful businesses - I see you. I am in awe of you. I also want to help you.
The hardest part of starting a business isn’t coming up with the concept. Most of us already know exactly what we want to do. It’s taking the leap to decide to move forward with that idea, and then it’s all of the Other Stuff.
Today I want to help you unpack that Other Stuff - the business side, the finance side, the mental side - of starting your own business. Publishing that blog. Pursuing that modeling career. Opening that fitness studio. It’s all doable. And with my help, it’s going to happen.
Ready to jump in?
We’re going to start at Step 2.
Step 1 is figuring out your brilliant new venture. You’ve already nailed that one.
Step 2 is simple: OWN IT. Use phrases like “I AM” not “I want to.” Tell your people, share your plan with everyone who will listen. It going to make your business an inevitable instead of a one day.
Step 3: Enlist the help of people who have done it before. You can’t do it all alone and you shouldn’t have to. Consider calling a business coach to help you put together a business model, or brainstorm ways to put your plan into action. Chat with an attorney to determine if you should create an entity, or to determine if your business will need operational/legal documents. No successful business owner I know doesn’t have a mentor, business coach, attorney, or person that they’ve turned to for help. Don’t let your ego, or a one-time expense, stop you from achieving what you’re capable of.
Step 4: Make it official. Decide on a business name. Chose to create a legal entity, like an LLC or S-Corp. (If you’re struggling to decide if you need an entity, which one, and how to do it - hang tight. I’m addressing the topic next week!) Register your website domain. Reserve your social media handles.
Step 5: Decide how you’re going to manage money. If you’re going to have a separate legal entity, you MUST have a separate business bank. (We’ll talk about it in next week’s blog!) If you’re going to operate as just you, you still want to keep very accurate records of business expenses. You might be able to write off some expenses (sweet!) either way.
Step 6: Create a SYSTEM. What is your 6-month plan? 1 year? How many hours a day/week/month are you willing to devote to those goals. In those hours, what will you accomplish each day? I’m a big believer in lists and deadlines. Color coding and calendars. What is your budget for expenses (operational or otherwise) and how fast will you spend it. Being organized isn’t always sexy, and sometimes it slows us down from just GOING, but in the long run, a system will save your sanity, create repeatable processes for you (ie: make your life easier) and make sure nothing falls through the cracks.
Step 7: GO. The hardest part of starting anything new is the fear of doing something bad, or worse, that no one likes. Bluntly - get over it now. If you believe in what you’re doing, you don’t care about the people who don’t get it. Keep staying on course and you will find the people who DO get it. Create, do, advise, write. Fail. Do it again a little different. Fail less. Be liked a little bit more. Repeat forever.
I hope you found this helpful! And stay tuned for next week’s juicy topic - creating a legal entity for your business. I’ll address the benefits and burdens and help you weight the decision! And as always - if you have any questions, leave them below or feel free to shoot me an email!
Have a great week fam!
Xx, D