If being a start-up business owner has been your dream for some time, and now that you’ve achieved it you’re finding it to be more of a nightmare than you imagined, then you should seek help and advice on how to making it a success. Even if you are the type of person who is more of a lone wolf, and prefers to do things by yourself, asking for assistance isn’t going to show to be weak. What will show you to be weak would be your business collapsing.
Handing over the reins once in awhile does not mean you’re admitting defeat or letting somebody else take over your dream: it’s a practical way to make sure that your business is performing to its full potential. Having total control of a business is every business owner’s dream. However, having total control of a business, for anybody, even its owner, is not a realistic prospect. You should seek to hire, if you haven’t already done so, a number of professionals to help you steer the ship that is your business away from any potential icebergs. Having an accountant or financial advisor on board, for instance, would take the financial burdens away from you. They would assist you in regards to aspects such as the drawing up of business plans; tax issues; VAT and PAYE procedures as well helping with certain legal requirements. You could also seek to hire or build a relationship with an experienced in-house lawyer, who would make light work of any legal requirements that you face.
Factor in factoring, If you haven’t done already, if you find that your cash flow needs building or that you need money to pay for things such as employee expenses or customer orders. Factoring is a transaction that businesses do when it comes to selling invoices, or other receivables of the like, to a third-party that is known as a factor and is a financial company. You should consider accounts receivable factoring if you want to receive cash quickly in the form of an advance, especially if you are dealing with a customer who is likely to, or is in the midst of, taking a long time to make their payment and you need their money now, not later. Factoring their invoice to a factor will mean that they will pay you for the invoice, for a charge of their own, and then take control of it and collect the money from the customer themselves. There is no sign of ‘weakness’ in factoring, and it is a better option than taking out a business loan, at any rate.
If you feel that you aren’t steering your business’s ship in the right direction, it’s probably not because you’re not a good boss or haven’t got a good business acumen, it’s probably because you’re taking too much on. Never be afraid to ask for help, and never be afraid to admit that you need help, especially when you’re doing it just to ‘save face’.
Honestly, I haven’t read a blog that is as engaging as yours, lately. I completely agree with you on acquiring help when in need. Even if one can do it all, often, it drives their attention away from the problems on hand. In my opinion, a lot of times the reason people don’t want to ask for help, is not because they are embraced, but because they don’t want to miss out on the process of creating something with their own hands. I know because I have been there, I think it is better to ask for help and complete your dream than to never ask and get frustrated and don’t ever finish it. Also, having some friends in the business doesn’t hurt.
I am a co-founder/Business Analyst for soombros.com, which is business to business service provider firm. As a small business, we understand the frustration and feeling of isolation from process of business development, that’s why we believe in a customer-focused service and transparency. We like to work with the clients and involve them as much as possible to avoid feeling of non-involvement, because we know how that feels.
We create and maintain web, android, and desktop applications for businesses and soon to be included, to the list of services, are iOS and macOS applications.