The first step toward a dream can be the hardest. Blogger Julie Morris is also a career and life coach. Here’s her advice for turning a passion into profit…
Whether you want to start a side gig to earn extra money or want to start a full-fledged business, you need to know that not everyone is cut out to be their own boss. While it sounds like a great idea to set your hours, work for yourself and not answer to anyone else, starting a business is quite an undertaking. You need to be sure that you have the right characteristics for owning a business and that your products or services are marketable and can turn a profit.
1. Ensure You Have What It Takes to Start a Business
Running your own business is anything but easy. You’ll face financial and professional challenges, make decisions at a moment’s notice, handle customer complaints and poor reviews and manage your taxes and expenses. To determine whether you’re cut out to start a business, Plexus has identified the several signs that you were born to be the boss. If you don’t have all those qualities, never fear. You just need to know where there may be gaps in what you’re capable of so that you can hire others to help fill them.
3. Understand Your Tax Responsibilities
It can be so exhilarating to start your own business that you can forget your tax responsibilities. Plus, the government needs to see that your hobby counts as a legitimate business in order for it to be classified as such. The difference between a hobby and a business affects your taxes quite significantly, so make sure when you leap into business ownership that you have solid records and are doing all you can to fit the business mold.
It’s take a lot to turn your hobby into a livelihood, but with the right planning and strategy it really is possible. With a little extra elbow grease and tenacity, you could change your life.
About the author of this post: Julie Morris is a life and career coach. She thrives on helping others live their best lives. It’s easy for her to relate to clients who feel run over by life because she’s been there. After years in a successful (but unfulfilling) career in finance, Julie busted out of the corner office that had become her prison. Today, she is fulfilled by helping busy professionals like her past self get the clarity they need in order to live inspired lives that fill more than just their bank accounts.
i blew it with the taxes. What a naive surprise.
LikeLiked by 2 people
sometimes the best we can hope for is that we learn for later…
LikeLike
[…] before deciding to help people in other ways. Find out more about her at juliemorris.org. Here and here are a couple of her other posts for Happiness Between […]
LikeLiked by 1 person
[…] finance before deciding to help people in other ways. Find out more about her at juliemorris.org. Here and here are some of her other posts for Happiness Between […]
LikeLiked by 2 people
Very useful advice 😃
Thanks for sharing!
Ciao
Sid
LikeLiked by 1 person
As a new Life and Career Coach myself, on the brink of starting my own business, this was very helpful! 🙂
LikeLiked by 2 people
Also, I just read up on the 12 Signs You Were Born To Run Your Own Business and it’s such a relief! Here I was, wondering whether or not I am good enough to try this, and I think I hit at least 10 boxes big time! I feel happy now, haha. Thanks for sharing this!
LikeLiked by 2 people
I have complete confidence in you!
LikeLiked by 1 person
That makes one of us 😉 Just kidding, but I’ve always have self-confidence issues. I know I can do it, though.
LikeLiked by 1 person
which is why you’ll do well at it — because you can relate to how we all need to bolster each other ❤
LikeLike
wishing you much joy & success, Samantha!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you, Daal!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Samantha – did you delete your blog? fingers crossed that this is not true, just temporary error of wordpress, as just encountered that message when I tried to visity your site…
LikeLike
This was awesome.I can’t imagine having a career that I don’t love.This was really helpful.I’m currently in highschool and super confused,because I wan to do too many things at once!
This makes me feel like it’s okay.Great blog,definitely checking out your other posts!Id love for you to check out
mine as well<3
LikeLiked by 1 person
good luck with whatever you choose – sometimes it’s best to just choose something, then take it from there
LikeLiked by 1 person
Very useful advice! As a teenager on the verge of adulthood, I really needed this kind of refreshing perspective!
LikeLiked by 1 person
wishing you the best!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Really good article, not all businesses are hard work but paying the taxes is important, I use Turbo Tax so all I have to do is answer the questions and the computer program fills in the forms for me.
LikeLiked by 1 person
numbers always scare me LOL
LikeLiked by 1 person
Nothing to be scared of, everything can be simplified by using a computer program and technology.
LikeLiked by 1 person