business support / 26 posts found
What’s in a name?
Is it possible to register a trading name for an existing business? Sole traders and partnerships You can trade under your own name, or you can choose another name for your business. You don’t need to register your name. You must include your name and business name (if you have one) on official paperwork, for example invoices and letters. Sole trader names must not: include ‘limited’, ‘Ltd’, ‘limited liability partnership’, ‘LLP’, ‘public limited company’ or ‘plc’ be offensive be the same as an existing trade mark Your name also can’t contain a ‘sensitive’ word or expression, or [...]
Good foundations
All good structures are built on good foundations, whether we are talking houses or companies. Good foundations in houses rely on bricks and mortar, whilst good foundations in companies rely on good founders. We have pulled together some top tips to help you be a brilliant founder. Get along with your co-founders: obviously we can’t get along with people all the time, and disagreement is a healthy part of every relationship. However, toxicity isn’t. Learn how to accept constructive feedback, and how to give it! No-one likes to be criticised but feedback is essential to improve. Pull the trigger: it [...]
Take control of your time
Apparently, we spend less than 60% of our time working productively. That’s nearly half our day we waste on activities such as checking social media, checking emails, having dead-end meetings. Imagine what you could do with half a day, every day. Go for a walk, cook a nice meal, spend time with your family, read a book. No doubt one of the reasons that you started your own business was to be able to be flexible with your time, take the odd afternoon off, start late on a morning, take a long holiday. It’s unlikely that you started your own [...]
No money…no problem!
People tend to think that you need a large chunk of capital to start your own business; however it is possible to get started without needing to invest large sums of money into it. You might have a great idea, or just want a change of lifestyle that running your business may allow. Whatever your motivation it is possible to start off with a small budget. Here are three great tips to get you going. Reduce your needs: You don’t need flash offices, or the latest laptop. Take a look at what you really need to get going, bearing in [...]
Ignore these pieces of bad advice
Advice, like many other things, comes in both the good and the bad. Some people dispense excellent advice, based on a sound understanding of the circumstances, while others simply fling phrases at random, with little or no regard for their helpfulness. We work with businesses of all sizes, from entrepreneurs to established family businesses, all of whom have received advice of both varieties. Entrepreneurs in particular seem to be in receipt of an astonishing amount of unsolicited advice. Here are a selection that we have come across: “You must have the smartest offices,” – you don’t need a smart postcode. [...]
Adaptability is the key to success
Every day we meet people whose small businesses are struggling; either the business is stalled or heading towards closure. I see the same facial expressions frustration, fear and inner turmoil. And I hear the same words – I don’t know what to do! Time and again we resist the temptation to wish that they had come to us earlier. But often it was beyond their control. If you see your accountant once a year and your business has been slowly sliding downhill over that year, you are in a very vulnerable situation. If you work with your accountant throughout the [...]