In 2011, I started a speech therapy practice. It was me, myself and I. I left it open; maybe I’d sit tight and always have it be “just me,” maybe I’d hire and expand… I stayed flexible as I built my business plan. I had a ‘let’s see what happens’ attitude and was along for the ride; whenever it would entail.
I’d say that flexible mindset served me pretty well on my journey all the way until its sale at its height almost 9 years later, with 26 employees.
If I HAD to do it all over again, yes, there are a couple things I would have changed or planned for. I’m sharing them with you today because I don’t want my real-life business lessons to go to waste.
1. Tell them it is coming. You can’t possibly have EVERYTHING ready at your launch- that equipment order delay, the wall decal you just didn’t have time to get up, that flyer that you sent to print, then found one more error on… there will always be something to do. Capture the essence- then create the buzz. Get it “good enough” and invite people in; start your social media pages, put a sign out front, and start to network. Don’t wait for it all to be “done” to let people know what’s coming. If you do, you will waste valuable time.
2. Know (and plan) that some service-based businesses have a lull in payments (like my practice did). In a cash-based industry, you may be fortunate enough to complete a service, then turn around and be paid for it. In the insurance world, or in a monthly service-based industry, you sometimes wait 6-9 weeks to get paid for the work you do. If you have employees, the dollar amount you are carrying gets large- and quick. It is manageable, and things will catch up one day, but you HAVE TO PLAN. Keep a buffer in your account, calculate and plan for the expense before you are paid, do things on your own for a while instead of creating extra expenses, get a back up loan or line of credit to get you through the thin times or when things take extra long to process (INSURANCE!!!!).
3. This is not going to be easy. If this were easy, everyone would be doing it. Think about just how hard it could be… and then multiply it by 10. Don’t believe coaches out there that romanticize what owing a small business actually is. It is hard and it is going to continue to be hard. Accept it. Own it. Be flexible and just keep moving. It will all be worth it someday. It is truly a life-long journey and not a destination.
CONTACT ME if I can help! You don’t have to do it all alone.