While dreaming ‘big’ is not a bad idea at all, we must remember who and where we are and what our limitations may be if any. It’s a simple matter of what is doable and what isn’t. So starting right out at the basics of our business plan – two critical resources are time and money.
It is all too easy to consider ‘funny money’ (credit) when you are determining how much you can squeeze out of your budget for your business each month. This however is a bad idea. Not just because you are paying interest on that money but because you have to pay the bill each month and then that is in addition to whatever it is that you charged. This adds up and all too often we can lose control – even with the best intentions of paying the full balance each month.
Do some simple math. Look at your income, versus your expenses to live. Whatever is left over would be what you have to work with. You will be very surprised though if your business is your first priority, how much ‘extra’ money you can come up with if you are willing to make some sacrifices. Is that new suit more important than your business? If not, then don’t buy it right now. Is seeing that movie the most important thing on earth? Probably not. What exactly would happen if you didn’t see it right now?
In the same way analyze what you would need to start up a business online. There will inevitably be advertising and marketing expenses associated with any business. That is probably the first priority since you need to find customers if you are going to make sales, and that is the way to do it quicker. There are many different ways to do these things online and while they are absolutely 100% cheaper than offline, there are still some expenses.
There may be maintenance fees such as your Internet connectivity, hosting, domains and various membership fees if you are an affiliate or distributor. These costs are necessary and it is not something you want to skimp on as it is important to have everything working most of the time. You will not necessarily have a lot of other office expenses like printer supplies, paper, phones, etc., as the Internet pretty much works without those things for the most part. However you will probably want some home office equipment eventually.
Everything you spend on your business is tax deductible when you file your taxes as ‘self-employed’ and even if you pay income taxes on the salary you earn from your job, you can still file your taxes for your home business and declare any income and/or deductions. So this is money you may get back in the way of tax benefits in the following year.|
At this point in the analysis you can pretty well see if it is feasible that you can afford to start a business right now with the money you have available. If you are pretty close to the line then you can possibly find ways to save a few extra dollars so that you can afford it.