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Entrepreneurs´s Journal
August
28, 2003
If I Only
Knew Then… Pitfalls to Avoid (Part 1)
By
Emily McHugh
How
many times have we felt like
pinching ourselves for something
we wish we could go back and
change or have done differently?
Especially when it comes to
one’s business, there are
so many things we invariably
would love to have done better,
had we only known better. We
have to accept that mistakes
are inevitable when charting
new territory, however, the
good news is that we can save
ourselves much heartache by
learning from the experience
of others. There are obviously
scores of lessons that one learns
through the course of doing
business, but here are the top
three for today.
No.
1: Know and ask for exactly
what you want. This sounds
simple, maybe even too simple.
But it is amazing how few of
us actually do it because we
fear that we might not get what
we want, so we ask for less
than we should. It is imperative
to verbalize what your needs
are so that they can be met.
In business, this means stating
your goals and the path to accomplishing
them. If you need help, ask
for it. This is not the time
to be shy. No one can actually
read your mind, so we cannot
assume that others instinctively
know or will give us what we
need. Ask and ye shall receive!
No.
2: Do your own homework and
think for yourself. It is
very easy to defer to someone
else who we perceive knows better
or has more experience. This
is especially true when starting
a business, the average entrepreneur
initially tends to look to others
for answers. It is a good idea
to seek advice, but that does
not mean we ever stop thinking
for ourselves. If something
is not comfortable, or does
not feel right, or most of all,
does not make sense, it is your
duty to get to the bottom of
it. This is a really big deal,
especially if the advice you
get is meant to manipulate your
actions for the ultimate benefit
of someone else other than yourself.
Do not be afraid to question,
until you get an answer that
you understand – and most
importantly, can live with.
No.
3: Think big from day one. The transition from a business
idea as a figment of one’s
imagination to becoming an actual
going concern, can be a slow
and gradual one. So it is possible
to wake up one day and suddenly
realize that you really are
in business. From the moment
you decide that you are starting
a business, you should act like
it. The first person to acknowledge
your business is you, if you
do not, who else will? So here
are some tips to make that business
real. Obviously, you want to
make sales your first priority,
but make bookkeeping your second.
The last thing you want to do
three years down the road is
try to figure out what you did
three years earlier. Start with
a good accounting software program
to capture all your financial
data and save yourself from
untold agony. You will be ever
so glad you did.
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