Tips on going independant - the Money Eaters.

The money eaters...

1. Telephone/mobile costs - wow - as an international travel/business person, any tips and tools on how to keep my connectivity costs down when traveling would be greatfully appreciated. It is soooo important to stay connected (unless you are on vacation or with a client directly) but, it can be quite expensive! Hotels charge huge rates for WIFI, international rates for using a sim card in the PC or doing email/internet stuff on the iphone are outrageous. So... think this out carefully. Doing business just in Switzerland would be a lot cheaper.
2. Clothing! I have found that all my previous office clothes just dont feel right anymore. I feel "not me" when I wear them... so I am giving them away as I replenish my wardrobe. I had not counted this cost in to my business planning! Shoes also included here!
3. Purchasing resources - I do a lot of research for my work... and I spend a lot of money on purchasing articles, books, etc. that I think will help me. I love doing this as I learn so much, but it is a significant cost in my business plan (and has an impact on costs for the PC and Office interms of storage availability!).
4. The Right PC and related stuff - oh... so important! My first PC was great but burned up after 2 years. Now have another model (hopefully a little bit more robust) ... It is really worth spending the money on a good product that has great after sales service and really meets your needs (what ever they might be.. I need "light", "fast" and "reliable"). Security and back up systems all cost money on an annual basis - dont scrimp here either! Same with the phone!
5. Self Development - My development as an independant business person / coach / facilitator is up to me, 100%. Some of that comes in the assignments I accept (stretching me) and much of it comes in the form of self learning (see above) and quite a bit comes from taking new courses, having a coach myself. This cost for me was particularly heavy in the first year or two as I developed my coaching skills.
6. The office - what worked as a home office when I was working 150% in the corporate world, was not good enough when I started to run my business from that same space! Am on my third update - and soon need to make a fourth one... Luckily so far, I have not had to shell out big bucks on this...yet...
7. Inappropriate Marketing - Perhaps others are smarter about this... but I certainly spent too much initially on things like white pages /yellow pages subscriptions, being first in searches in the on-line telephone books. All that money has not generated one client! All my clients come from my relationships/networks/happy clients - trust that has happened between me and other people.
8. Belief that a website is mandatory, right now - I am sure this depends on the business and especially on the clients for that business , but I have found that websites are part of an overall business progression plan and dont have to be created right away. Websites created right away can be quickly outgrown, and... if you dont have the time to maintain it and manage it well... it can just be a waste of money.
9. Being a sucker for sales people that show up at your home - As an independant company - your phone number seems suddenly attract all sorts of sales people. NOTHING I have purchased when a sales person has called me on the phone, or has visited me at their request, has ever really worked out - with the exception of one company where I buy my office supplies. So the new rule is - anybody that calls me to sell me something, is politely told I am not interested. I buy things / services ONLY when I have decided I need them - not when somebody else decides I need them.
10. Be really careful of WHEN you buy things / make important decisions related to money. In the corporate world - there are always approval processes and other people's buy-ins to get when you make big, important, risky decisions so there is time to distance yourself from the decision and look at it again. As an independant person, you dont have that hinderance (or luxury) any more. Your emotional state at the time of when you make decisions related to money can be very important. If you are sad, depressed, a little down, tired, disappointed because you just lost a great potential deal - you can be sure that you will not be evaluating the decision as well as if you were happier, energetic, and more sure of yourself. We all have emotional waves of some magnitude. Pay attention to them and find a process that helps you at these times. Two minds are better than one!

Hmmmm... looking at this list, I feel a little silly. After all - I have a good business head on my shoulders yet, I have made some mistakes in the spending of my hard earned income since becoming independant. On the positive side - the cost of the mistakes has not been significant enough to make my business suffer and I have learned a huge amount from all this!

The big learning is that there are hidden costs out there that can derail you, especially if they incurr in times where cashflow is an issue. So, Plan, Plan and Plan, and have a back up plan. Talk to people that have successful independant businesses and learn from them!

Would love to hear about other money eaters or time eaters...