Start-Up Costs
It’s typical to include machines, rent, stationery, all that stuff.
But the real startup costs are the missteps, errors, and learnings that every new project goes through on the way to success.
They’re not mistakes. They’re part of the deal.
A wise man told me when I was young that there are 2 ways for an entrepreneur to get an education:
1. Pay to go to school, then join the professional world and cut your teeth with someone else’s company where they can pay for your mistakes while you learn how to apply what you have learned. In addition to tuition, this road will cost you time that you can never get back.
2. Go into business for yourself and learn your lessons through trial and error. Of course, this way is still going to cost you. It could very possibly even cost more than a college education. But the lesson will most likely stick better, be more relevant to your business and hopefully not take as much time on the road to success.
Both methods of getting your education here have their inherent costs.
I’d like to add a 3rd option in there too. This option sits somewhere squarely in between the other 2. This option is to hire a coach/mentor. It’s the perfect hybrid between the 2. This way you end up getting a real-world education specific to what you are doing at that time.
Does a coach cost you? Sure, a coach comes with a price tag. In general, it’s not usually a small one either. But when the alternative is losing out on both time and money you have to figure in the cost of delaying your commitments to yourself and your business. Hiring a coach is an investment in your future success and could be a big shortcut as well as a little insurance.
What does the cost of everything taking twice as long as it should mean to you?
Something to think about: “Hiring a coach is kind of like hiring an accountant. Either one of them should be making you more money than you are paying them. If they aren’t, you probably made a bad hiring choice.” – JT
