I do have an MBA. I got it right after my MS. I didn't go to an Ivy League or anything though. And I do pick up things from reading and associating with like minded individuals.
Im the OP of this thread ... I have a business right now I posted about in the first page .
Given that I own an online accounting business, I'm going to be obligated to tell you that while it's entirely possible for you to keep your own books, if you are at all serious about your business and growing it you need to outsource some of these non-core tasks like bookkeeping and accounting to professional third parties. It's more cost effective than hiring in-house and the time savings alone are well worth it. Not to mention you are going to make mistakes and when it comes time to file taxes, these mistakes are going to cost you, either in the form of missed tax deductions or having to pay your CPA $150+/hour to fix them.
Take it from someone who deals with small business owners on a daily basis - the ONLY ones who do well and grow their business are the ones who are able to outsource and delegate. If you are a control freak and aren't able to do this effectively, you don't stand a chance.
I will say one thing about professional services - it is HARD. Like really, really hard. You have to be on point 24/7 and there is NO margin for error. On the flip-side, if you can achieve operational excellence, there is really no better type of business in terms of margins. Getting to that point in a services firm, however, is going to be your biggest challenge (more so than bringing on new business). Scaling a product is way easier than scaling a service, so think long and hard about the service you are offering and how you plan to scale the business. And like I said in a previous post, 100% read the book Built to Sell. Such a simple read, but if you are in professional services there is no way this book wont make an impact on your business.
edit: I never bothered reading the first post of this thread, and I just did. Kudos to you on being able to expand your headcount and grow your business like you have. Sounds like you're on the right track so keep it up! We actually have 3 or 4 clients doing the same thing as you and they are all doing exceptionally well.
We're in the same boat. Except I work a heck of a lot more hours and our business operates entirely online.
2015 is going to be a massive year for us. The majority of small businesses are still employing dated, traditional accounting methods and techniques and in the next 12-24 months there is going to be a massive shift from traditional to the cloud/online.
Forbes just put out this list: 5 Technologies That Will Blow Up My Business (And Yours) In 2015
#1 is online accounting.
Given that I own an online accounting business, I'm going to be obligated to tell you that while it's entirely possible for you to keep your own books, if you are at all serious about your business and growing it you need to outsource some of these non-core tasks like bookkeeping and accounting to professional third parties. It's more cost effective than hiring in-house and the time savings alone are well worth it. Not to mention you are going to make mistakes and when it comes time to file taxes, these mistakes are going to cost you, either in the form of missed tax deductions or having to pay your CPA $150+/hour to fix them.
Take it from someone who deals with small business owners on a daily basis - the ONLY ones who do well and grow their business are the ones who are able to outsource and delegate. If you are a control freak and aren't able to do this effectively, you don't stand a chance.
I will say one thing about professional services - it is HARD. Like really, really hard. You have to be on point 24/7 and there is NO margin for error. On the flip-side, if you can achieve operational excellence, there is really no better type of business in terms of margins. Getting to that point in a services firm, however, is going to be your biggest challenge (more so than bringing on new business). Scaling a product is way easier than scaling a service, so think long and hard about the service you are offering and how you plan to scale the business. And like I said in a previous post, 100% read the book Built to Sell. Such a simple read, but if you are in professional services there is no way this book wont make an impact on your business.
edit: I never bothered reading the first post of this thread, and I just did. Kudos to you on being able to expand your headcount and grow your business like you have. Sounds like you're on the right track so keep it up! We actually have 3 or 4 clients doing the same thing as you and they are all doing exceptionally well.
We're in the same boat. Except I work a heck of a lot more hours and our business operates entirely online.
2015 is going to be a massive year for us. The majority of small businesses are still employing dated, traditional accounting methods and techniques and in the next 12-24 months there is going to be a massive shift from traditional to the cloud/online.
Forbes just put out this list: 5 Technologies That Will Blow Up My Business (And Yours) In 2015
#1 is online accounting.
Literally in the same boat. Working part time so I give about 100 a month.Want to start a business in the future and have some ideas, but first have to graduate and pay off this student debt..
You can intern in your free time then. Anyone can use free help. I grew up on NT....I regret wasting so many bored summer/winter breaks doing nothing. If I can go back, I would intern in every field I can/found interesting.
RE: textbooks, I would honestly just get a couple of textbooks to understand the fundamentals, ie fixed cost, break even point, variable costs, etc. Opt to buy the older edition because they're cheaper. The only things change are examples, but rarely do the actual text.
business books come and go. One of the first business books I bought in the mid 2000s was on how Blackberry found success. Welp, look at where they're at now. I see these books like sports analysis. If Kobe makes that 3 with 3.1 seconds left to win the game, analysts would phrase him for it. If he misses, they would've said he got lazy and should've gone for a lay up with that much time left. It's easy to reflect retrospectively.
I disagree with this though you certainly don't need one to succeed. I thoroughly loved my MBA program and would still go through it if I can. My first master's program is questionable...at this point, I probably would've skipped it since it was for a field I don't particularly love though the pay is decent.
In an entrepreneurship class, we all had to help local businesses who were failing. I had to help a restaurant. The guy put his life saving into it, and was losing everything. Worst case scenario: he would be on the streets. He had a degree in Biology. He had no business plan, no marketing strategy, nothing. I had to revamp from the ground up. It's scary how many small biz owners do things blindfolded.
Then you need to stop buying those Jordans every month, bud
In all honesty though, people just see the end result and the salt kicks in...oh look at him in that 458, swerving the steering wheel to show off the Rolex, I wish that was me, etc.
When you start a business, you are finance, you are marketing, you are human resources, you are everything, but you are the last one to get paid. When you have a steady job, you are guaranteed a paycheck, with most likely a decent package including paid time off, dental/vision/care, and 401k matching.
Most people succeed because they have something passionate they want to turn into fruition. Making money is the by product.
if this device is fairly simple, can you make a proof of concept right now with stuff you already have or 20-30 dollars of materials from a store?
