LPT: Being good at your profession and running a business are two different things.

Submitted by Cajundawg t3_zmrs1d in LifeProTips

Commercial collector here.

I deal with a lot of people with failed businesses. Quite a few of them seem to be competent professionals, but BAD at the basics of running a business.

Lots of back taxes owed. Lots of not even filing taxes. They don't know what their business has, owes, makes, assets, etc.

Much of that can be handled with a computer program like quickbooks (or just knowing excel) and having a regular process inputting the information.

This includes people with high education - doctors, lawyers, and for some bizarre reason, accountants.

I'm not QUITE saying that running a business is filing the right paperwork...but if you are not filing the right paperwork, you're not competent at running a business. If you cannot produce your last three years of tax returns, a balance sheet, Profit and loss statements, etc, within a couple of hours, you REALLY need to rethink if you are running a business well.

If you are good at a skill, find someone good to work for. If you are good at running a business, find good, skilled people to work for you and pay them well.

197

Comments

You must log in or register to comment.

senorvato t1_j0cr5ia wrote

Former Auto repair owner/operator. I wanted to treat my customers the way I wanted to be treated. Talk to them, educate them on what and why I did the repairs. My problem was I was too honest, maybe didn't charge for my full time or gave away time for simple jobs that were fixed in a minute or so. Realized if the successful shops rip people off. Upselling unneeded work, or not fully doing work they claimed. Paperwork wasn't the problem. I got tired of the bureaucracy. Everyone wanted a slice of the pie. Fees to bureau of auto repair for a paper to run a business but they offered nothing in return. The fire dept inspector, water, sewer, waste disposal, etc. Instead I went to work for fortune 500 company making many times the $$$ + great benefits and pension. Best move I ever made. Former customers that I work with now, have told me they can't find a mechanic the can trust anymore. And I'm the only one I trust to work on my own vehicles.

32

Allmightydohllah t1_j0czrfp wrote

Sounds like a worker co-op would've been a better fit for you. You can do the honest work while someone else handles the business details (charging, taxes, etc.) and everyone gets a cut of the profit.

8

boardmonkey t1_j0d1249 wrote

This is a big issue in many work places. Being a good employee and being a good employer or manager are different skill sets. Being a good business person doesn't mean you will be good in politics (no matter your political party). Being a good artist doesn't mean you can run a gallery, studio, ETSY site. A lot of failing businesses would do a lot better if the owners got out of the way.

One of my favorite examples of this is Jimmy Buffett. He has restaurants, appliances, clothes, real estate, books, and so much more. He doesn't run any of it. The secret to his success is he surrounded himself with people who are great at what they do, and then he takes care of them.

One of the best pieces of advice I ever got was from a restaurant GM. He said a good GM has no responsibilities other than overseeing their employees. A good GM delegates all responsibilities to those under them, and only steps in when needed. A good GM lets people do what they are good at, and then takes care of those people with everything they have.

6

cetacean-station t1_j0d6x9m wrote

I'm an artist and that's been one of the hardest lessons of the last few years for me. I'm a great artist, but that doesn't mean shit when it comes to running a business. Such different skillsets.

6

spiderborland t1_j0dq7mv wrote

As a Commercial Collector, what would you say are some of your favorites? Personally, I love the first generation FreeCreditReport.Com ads. I can still sing a few of the songs!

5

buyinguselessshit t1_j0cw9ks wrote

Also, if you're starting a business Seek help there are alot of sources that can help you get started

3

EquanimityVibe t1_j0d35y0 wrote

I had a successful business for 25 years. Every single year we were in business (including the lean years) we outsourced all the tax preparation to professionals. No way we could've done everything else AND the tax preparation.

2

0chazz0 t1_j0d8rma wrote

This is also true for anyone doing freelance work. I'm really good at my job and have a constant flow of work because I undercharge in an industry that's severely lacking skilled technicians. But I'm still short about $10k this year from people not paying me. I fucking hate paperwork but unfortunately it's the line between success and failure.

2

mizukata t1_j0drkxj wrote

From a coaching and sports administration perspective people tend to equate alot achievements with coaching skills. I'm a much better coach than I ever was as an athlete.

2

keepthetips t1_j0coigd wrote

Hello and welcome to r/LifeProTips!

Please help us decide if this post is a good fit for the subreddit by up or downvoting this comment.

If you think that this is great advice to improve your life, please upvote. If you think this doesn't help you in any way, please downvote. If you don't care, leave it for the others to decide.

1

Head-Average2205 t1_j0csbbx wrote

I agree! I'm trying to get into the trades, and one of my internships this summer was a decent electrician & a good man, but not usually the best businessman (not my conclusion, more experienced employee told me.) He still got me my paychecks and everything though. It wasn't the worst experience, and I learned a lot from him.

1

skunksmasher t1_j0fbhth wrote

Most highly educated people are often still very stupid at things which are not related to their profession or education.

1

danab42 t1_j0fi3z7 wrote

Take a business management class. They have them online and sometimes for free. It costs less to educate small biz owners than it does to try to collect their debts.

1

racf599 t1_j0jrro2 wrote

I work with a huge range of businesses from small to large in many different industries. there is nothing that will bankrupt a small business like screwing up the taxes. and it's not just income tax - I've seen some enormous sales tax issues, and I've seen businesses get their accounts frozen for failing to pay payroll taxes. There are so many ways to mess up when you don't actually know what you are doing.

1