Thinking About a Start-Up? Five Things to Consider

A recent article by Dana Manciagli, “5 Mistakes to Avoid When You Launch a New Business,” caught my attention as Monarch Media approaches its five-year anniversary this fall. I was curious to see if we experienced these five mistakes, and as it turns out we managed to do the opposite of each of them.

I encourage you to read Dana’s explanation for each of the following steps especially if you’re considering business ownership. They offer great insight into starting your business on a solid foundation.

 

1. Preparing yourself out of existence
2. Planning endless sources of revenue
3. Establishing equal partnerships
4. Relying on right-brained thinking
5. Making money your prime motivator

Here’s how we applied each of these early on in Monarch Media’s formation.

Preparing Yourself Out of Existence
A business plan is a great way to bring the thoughts in your head into a map you can navigate. But don’t let that map become so overwhelming that you never launch. You’ve heard the old saying, “Give yourself enough time and you’ll talk yourself out of it.” That applies here. We set a launch date and worked towards it, never with the notion that we wouldn’t launch on the day we set, with the goal of having all the details in place to launch on that date. We set our launch six months out from our very first business brainstorm meeting.

Planning Endless Sources of Revenue
The scariest part of starting a new business is generating revenue. Before the first dollar is made, know where your revenue will come from and be financially prudent especially in the first year. Get good clients and do great work—that revenue stream will expand.

Establishing Equal Partnerships
There are two owners of Monarch Media, and we are equal partners. This doesn’t mean we think a like or have the same skill set. We have similar goals, but we think differently. We have different responsibilities that we established very early on based on our strengths. Guess what! It makes a difference.

Relying on Right-brained Thinking
It takes two “different people” to tango successfully, and it takes different people to make a company function well. I am left-brained, process-oriented, organized and a goal setter. Monarch’s cofounder, Andrea, possesses these qualities, but she is more in tune with her right brain, which brings a good balance to our partnership. She is a voice of reason in my structured world. I am the voice of logic in her creative world.

Making Money Your Prime Motivator
Money is a goal, but it’s not the only goal. We formed Monarch for flexibility. I’m not a fan of the term work-life balance, but it was a term we used when thinking about how Monarch would function. Our offices are in our homes. This arrangement allows us to avoid time wasted commuting, be available when our families need us, and keep our company overhead low. For me, this means I can volunteer with Girl Scouts twice a month and spend time with my child when she is home from school. These aspects are important to me and Monarch allows me this level of flexibility. When considering starting a business, know why you are forming your business—making money may not be the main reason.

If you’re thinking about entrepreneurship, I hope these tidbits will help as you take the first step. It hasn’t always been easy, but if you have a solid foundation in the beginning, it will carry you through.

— Chellie Thompson, CFO and Cofounder of Monarch Media