Advice for first-time business owner?

Oh, and one more thing. How much money should I have to get me through the early months of the business?

Hmm...one mistake I made was not having at least 1-2 years capital in place over costs. Now it's living job to job which really sucks ass, despite the fact that I do love my work.

Oh, man. Big questions.

A lot of them depend just too much on specifics -- impossible to give you advice without knowing more.

Will think about generalities.

For sure, before you do anything, study the pertinent laws in Florida thoroughly.

And probably join the area Chamber of Commerce for good leads and resources.

1-2 years? Wow, that seems like a lot. How much did you have?

Those are good ideas Soz. Thanks. Okay, here's a more specific question. How did you learn the business before you were actually in it? Or did you just learn as you go?

Hmmm... I have a master's degree in the field, sort of... there were a lot of things I was prepared for, a whole lot more that I had to figure out on the job. All the way through I would thoroughly research the next step -- OK, if I wanna do this, what do I need to do? What have other, similar companies done? What worked and didn't work for those people? What is the market? How do I convince financial backers to back me? Etc., etc., etc.

Having a knowledgeable contact in the field can save you a lot of time and headaches. Find and cultivate one.

I didn't really have anything. I flew by the seat of my pants for 3 years, and then it all came crashing down. Make sure you have enough money. Try a line of credit, preferably secured. That's one way to float things for a while if you don't have the $$$ on hand.

Great suggestions.

I don't think the money situation should be too much of a problem. I have some money, and I want to buy an already existing business. Hopefully when I do, the seller will agree to train me for a month or so.

I've had 2 businesses.

#1. I was a General Contractor in construction. I had atleast 6 employees at a time, not including myself. More in the summer. My business was wood siding and roofing and I was contracted by builders only where we did large projects which took several months to finish before we moved on to the next project. I inherited the business when my father died, but I knew enough about it from working for him to keep it running until I decided that it wasn't what I wanted to do (about 2 years). I think the worst part of the business was the paperwork. I had to do my taxes quarterly and I think in every business that the bookkeeping is the worst part.

#2. I owned my own taxi business. Again, I drove a cab for about a year before I decided to buy my own cab. It only cost me a few thousand to get into that business, so that wasn't bad. I actually enjoyed that business since I'm a people person and it was nice to meet all different kinds of people from all over the world. Again, the paper work was a pain in the ass, but not as bad as the construction business was.

In both businesses I had people working for me, which is also a pain in the ass since it's not easy finding good help. If you ever hire anyone to work for you, whatever you do, make sure it's not a friend. I made the mistake of hiring a good friend once and I had to fire her. That truly sucked and it almost ruined our friendship.

Bottom line is the best thing you can do is work the job first before you get into it. Work for someone else, learn the job, ask lots of questions and save some funds for when you branch out on your own.

Best of luck to you Kicky :-D

Buying an existing business is great since you already have customers established, but I still think it's a good idea if you work for someone else for awhile first, just to learn the tricks of the trade.

Thanks, Montana. My brother and father work together in their own trucking business. I never had much interest in their particular business, but I'm sure I could tap them as a resource for general business info.

Don't have a partnership.

Do your own bookkeeping, with an outside advisor if you feel the need. Do not, ever turn the full bookkeeping over to an outsider. If they do your books, make deposits, and reconcile your bank statement, they can own as much of your business as they want.

I agree with Roger. I would never enter into a partnership.

General business info is all good Kicky, but the most important info is the tricks of the trade you decide to get into.

Yep, you definitely want specifics as well as general. An apprenticeship sounds good to me, too, if that's not practical, some kind of contact/ mentor is still doable but harder.