Business Advice, do you need it?
The UK has actively promoted small businesses for many years now. With various start up grants and various government help. But facts show that over 90% of small businesses are still set up through necessity rather than a conscious decision to go into business. It is not until redundancy, or struggling to get a job or falling out with the boss that most so called entrepreneurs decide to go it alone and set up business. This means however, that hard lessons are learnt very early on in the start up process. The 5-year plumbing apprenticeship did not include marketing, cost controls, VAT and many more new skills that any first time business owner has now go to master.
There is truth in statement that many businesses are good at their profession but not at business. It could be for this reason that a huge chunk of businesses will fail in their first year. What may be true as well is that businessmen or women who have studied business but do not have a profession are more likely to be successful by hiring the right staff for the skill base, while they do what they know, running a business. Did Richard Branson know how to fly a plane when he went into the airline business? He decide what he wanted, then hired the right people to do the job that he couldn't do.
Hopefully you are getting the message here in that if you want to be successful with your business and survive the first few years of ownership you need to know about certain business subjects before you go into business. If you don't then you need to get help from those who do know and have actually run successful businesses. When choosing a business advisor make sure he or she has been in business before and hasn't just read the right books and knows all the latest phrases.
Ask them personally rather than looking at their CV. CVs can be made to look more impressive than the actual experience they have. However getting the right person to work with you can make the difference from success or failure. The actual cost is less of a factor than receiving more back than your costs in savings and or extra sales. The last thing to look for is commitment to your cause and someone who cares about their reputation. Most business advisors get their business from referrals, if you fail they fail. If you are about to go into business then good luck and if you already are, take time out to review if you are where you though you would be. If you are, fantastic but if you are not then maybe its time for some hands on experience and advice.
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