There are many things that you need to know when it comes to starting a business. If you are new to the business world, the chances are that you didn’t know that you should probably have a mentor in the industry in which you hoped to work. You also probably didn’t know that you have to avoid burning out as much as possible. Being in a business and leading a business are two very different things, but if you want to be able to lead your own business, then you have some things to learn.
From asking your solicitor the right legal questions to help you get on the right footing, to ensuring that you are hiring the right people, your business dreams can become a reality. We have eight things that you need to know about a business listed for you below to help you to make the best decisions about how you move forward.
- It’s okay to experiment. The very first thing that you need to know about being a business leader, is that you’re not going to get it 100% right all of the time. In fact, you’re more likely to get it 90% right, with around 10% of experimentation and learning. You want to be able to apply your ideas and feel confident that they’re not always going to pay off. There are going to be things that you do in your business that are a complete experiment, and the best way to ensure that you get it right, it’s just to try and keep trying. This way you can put more time and energy into what is working, and not what isn’t working.
- It’s okay to hand off tasks. You are not weak for asking for help, and you are not weak for outsourcing pieces of your business to others. There will be things that you don’t know how to do, and the worst thing you could do is pretend that you know. When you start a business, handing off tasks is going to be one of the best ways that you can improve things.
- People will lie to you. Everybody is going to tell you they want to help, and everybody’s going to tell you that they are there for you when you need them. When you’re knee-deep in business, the one thing you line is that people are there for you when you can afford them. People don’t work for free – so take all offers of help with a pinch of salt. Not all of them will be genuine, and that can get under your skin. Learn to brush this off, and you’ll be a stronger business leader for it.
- The numbers will not lie. Contrary to the above point, the numbers that you have coming through your business are not going to lie to you. When you start a business, you have to keep up with your finances and your analytics. The numbers here are going to tell you whether you are doing well and whether you are failing, and if you are failing, this is a big problem. Keep an eye on the numbers and you are going to be on top of everything.
- Money isn’t everything – but it does help. The whole point of your business is to generate a profit. More than that, however, you’re going to be generating a service or a product for people who really need it. Money can help to open doors for you in the business world, but it’s also not going to be everything out there. Your customers are everything, your staff is everything, and the more you put your attention on those things, the more money you will make. Look at the bigger picture, it’s not always just about a bottom line.
- Everything can be negotiated. One of the legal questions you want to ask your solicitor is what can be negotiated and what cannot. Knowing what your goals are, and which supplies you deal with, almost everything that you do can be negotiated down to be cheaper for you. Don’t undercut things that you need to cost extra money though, because it can make you look cheap.
- Looking good doesn’t always matter. I’ll caveat this one with the fact that your website and your brand – these things need to look good. However, you have to focus on usability of a design. If you were just thinking about how things look visually, then you’re gonna miss out on whether they work correctly. For example, you can have a fantastic website that doesn’t work for anybody. Therefore the design is useless. Make sure that while you were thinking about big designs, things are working for your customers and yourself
- Consider selling one day. Part of building your business is going to know where it’s going. Are you building your business to sell it on? If so then you need to have that in mind with every single thing that you do. You cannot build an empire that’s going to fall because nobody is going to want to invest in that.