Business Starter Kit
Dear SJ,
Although there’s a lot to be disturbed by these days (including that point you made about how stupidly loans work in the US), one small but key silver lining is that it is surprisingly approachable to start a formal business. I’ve started businesses in several states and one foreign country by now, and started noticing patterns.
I know you know a lot of this already but in case you need a cheat sheet for the next business or want to share around, I made a starter kit for you.
Each item in the kit could be its own post, and I am not trying to pass on accounting or legal advice, I just want to make sure the parts of the pattern are in one place.
Legal Stuff
You can always just start doing what you do and take cash, Cash App, or whatever. But if at some point you decide to take on big clients or want to grow, you need to go legit and register with your state’s Department of State.
- Business name
- “Doing business as” name (optional)
- Registration with your state’s Department of State
- Registration fee
- Business calendar to record reminders for annual or monthly payments
Tax/Money Stuff
- Employer Identification Number (EIN) from the IRS
- Business bank account — checking and savings
- Spreadsheet to track income and expenses
Branding Stuff
- Colors/Fonts
- Logo
- Favicon
Online Stuff
- Social media accounts —even if you’re just thinking about it, reserve those handles!
- Domain name
- Website
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⭐ Key action: Give some thought to starting a business.
Given the way the economy is going lately, selling your skills or products is a way to keep some control in a market where businesses can hire and fire employees on what feels like pure whimsy.
(And starting a business doesn’t mean you’re forced to do it forever. You can always close or slow down if you take a job as an employee.)
▶️ How to do it: Take stock of your experience and skills.
For example, do you usually help out shoveling snow at your parents every winter? Do you wash your own car? Do you tutor others in a school subject? Do you love making jewelry?
💭 Think about it: Reflect critically for a few minutes on how you might expand what you’re already doing into a new business.
What if you spent a weekend making several pieces of jewelry and then posting them on Etsy instead of giving them away to people? What if you went to your parents’ neighbors and asked if any of them need snow shoveling service? What feels possible and also exciting?
