Hey folks - please tell me that I can succeed

[sovietsurgeon]

Hi all,

Thanks so much for being such an amazing community to learn from.

I'll make this as short as possible.

Two years ago: I realized I hated the 9-to-5 and I was meant to be an entrepreneur. Quit my job (with no plan), got into debt, and had to get another 9-to-5.

One Month ago:

I quit my 9-to-5 again. This time, I have $13K saved up and a plan. I have a small part-time job that I can do from home, that covers 40% of my living expenses, and reduces my burn rate to $1.5K per month.

I'm working on a private label product which should be ready in the next month or two, but it could totally fail, as the manufacturer is iffy, and I may need to start over.

In the meantime, I'm trying to do a mix of consulting, retail arbitrage, and gigs to make up the additional $1.5K per month that I am burning. So that I can preserve my $13K and invest it into business when I find the right supplier, as opposed to burning it on rent. So far, aside from $50 here and $200 there...nothing solid.

THE MAIN QUESTION:

With $13K, in the red every month, and nothing "definite" other than some ideas...can I make it? Can I do this? Can I succeed?

I'm feeling a bit uncertain right now, and even though I never want to go back to the 9 to 5, ever, my business is taking off a bit slower than I expected, it's probably still 1 to 2 months away, and it's hard to break even every month.

Thank you guys so much, all the best

 

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[mws87]

Hi all,

Thanks so much for being such an amazing community to learn from.

I'll make this as short as possible.

Two years ago: I realized I hated the 9-to-5 and I was meant to be an entrepreneur. Quit my job (with no plan), got into debt, and had to get another 9-to-5.

One Month ago:

I quit my 9-to-5 again. This time, I have $13K saved up and a plan. I have a small part-time job that I can do from home, that covers 40% of my living expenses, and reduces my burn rate to $1.5K per month.

I'm working on a private label product which should be ready in the next month or two, but it could totally fail, as the manufacturer is iffy, and I may need to start over.

In the meantime, I'm trying to do a mix of consulting, retail arbitrage, and gigs to make up the additional $1.5K per month that I am burning. So that I can preserve my $13K and invest it into business when I find the right supplier, as opposed to burning it on rent. So far, aside from $50 here and $200 there...nothing solid.

THE MAIN QUESTION:

With $13K, in the red every month, and nothing "definite" other than some ideas...can I make it? Can I do this? Can I succeed?

I'm feeling a bit uncertain right now, and even though I never want to go back to the 9 to 5, ever, my business is taking off a bit slower than I expected, it's probably still 1 to 2 months away, and it's hard to break even every month.

Thank you guys so much, all the best

Welcome. I'm sure someone else will chime in here with a more concise reply to your questions. The only question you should be asking is to yourself. So, let me ask you: do you believe you can do it?

I understand you're looking for support, however, at the end of the day it doesn't matter if we believe or don't believe you can; you have to believe in yourself.

Although, if you stick around and learn from the many awesome members here, I believe you can learn a whole hell-of-a lot. Take your coat off and hang around a bit.

 

[sovietsurgeon]

Absolutely mws87, I'm going to pore over the threads and will definitely hang around here.

Do I believe I can do it? Yes.
Do I believe I have any other choice? No.

But...it'd be nice to hear someone else say it

Thanks for the response my friend, all the best to you.

 

[mws87]

Absolutely mws87, I'm going to pore over the threads and will definitely hang around here.

Do I believe I can do it? Yes.
Do I believe I have any other choice? No.

But...it'd be nice to hear someone else say it

Thanks for the response my friend, all the best to you.

Well, I honestly believe anyone can accomplish whatever they desire (if the desire is strong enough) through proper execution and respect of the process involved so, yes, I think you can. BTW--To help you cut some of your time down, read through the gold threads.

Cheers.

-Mike

 

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[MattR82]

I like your username

Of course you can succeed. Almost everyone hates the 9 to 5 job. I suppose just do what you have to do until you do succeed. What are your options anyway? Just keep going and learning until you make it. May be 1 month may be 10 years. Enjoy the process!

 

[sovietsurgeon]

Thanks guys

The importance of surrounding yourself with good, like-minded people is not lost on me, but I don't really know anyone who has gone on this journey before, and everyone I know just urges me to get back to the 9 to 5 grind.

Appreciate your responses and the positivity!

 

[Andrew Ward]

Hi all,

Thanks so much for being such an amazing community to learn from.

I'll make this as short as possible.

Two years ago: I realized I hated the 9-to-5 and I was meant to be an entrepreneur. Quit my job (with no plan), got into debt, and had to get another 9-to-5.

One Month ago:

I quit my 9-to-5 again. This time, I have $13K saved up and a plan. I have a small part-time job that I can do from home, that covers 40% of my living expenses, and reduces my burn rate to $1.5K per month.

I'm working on a private label product which should be ready in the next month or two, but it could totally fail, as the manufacturer is iffy, and I may need to start over.

In the meantime, I'm trying to do a mix of consulting, retail arbitrage, and gigs to make up the additional $1.5K per month that I am burning. So that I can preserve my $13K and invest it into business when I find the right supplier, as opposed to burning it on rent. So far, aside from $50 here and $200 there...nothing solid.

THE MAIN QUESTION:

With $13K, in the red every month, and nothing "definite" other than some ideas...can I make it? Can I do this? Can I succeed?

I'm feeling a bit uncertain right now, and even though I never want to go back to the 9 to 5, ever, my business is taking off a bit slower than I expected, it's probably still 1 to 2 months away, and it's hard to break even every month.

Thank you guys so much, all the best

The short answer is yes. The long answer is maybe.

Have you ever tried putting together a cash flow forecast? If not it is essentially a plan of what your bank balance looks like on a month by month (or sometimes week by week) basis based on your ins and outs.

The whole point of one of these is to see whether you run out of money whilst completing your plan. If you cash flow drops under 0 at ANY point then your business goes bump without more money coming from somewhere.

To put together a cash flow you need to work out what you will need to spend and when. Then conversely what revenues you hope to generate and when.

You should always do three cash flow forecasts. One that is overly optimistic should the plan go flawlessly, one that is pragmatic and probably more accurate, and one that is very pessimistic and that assumes lots goes wrong.

If you see any of your cash flows dip you into the red before zooming off in the black quite quickly after then you probably do not have the right level of starting capital.

If any of them stay in the red forever then your business idea isn't viable. Though you'd hope that if your idea is solid that there would be a route to cash otherwise what is the point?

Of your cash flow sees you stay comfortably in the black even with your pessimistic cash flow forecast then things are looking good and you may just be ready to roll.

I hope that helps?

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

 

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[sovietsurgeon]

The short answer is yes. The long answer is maybe.

Have you ever tried putting together a cash flow forecast? If not it is essentially a plan of what your bank balance looks like on a month by month (or sometimes week by week) basis based on your ins and outs.

The whole point of one of these is to see whether you run out of money whilst completing your plan. If you cash flow drops under 0 at ANY point then your business goes bump without more money coming from somewhere.

To put together a cash flow you need to work out what you will need to spend and when. Then conversely what revenues you hope to generate and when.

You should always do three cash flow forecasts. One that is overly optimistic should the plan go flawlessly, one that is pragmatic and probably more accurate, and one that is very pessimistic and that assumes lots goes wrong.

If you see any of your cash flows dip you into the red before zooming off in the black quite quickly after then you probably do not have the right level of starting capital.

If any of them stay in the red forever then your business idea isn't viable. Though you'd hope that if your idea is solid that there would be a route to cash otherwise what is the point?

Of your cash flow sees you stay comfortably in the black even with your pessimistic cash flow forecast then things are looking good and you may just be ready to roll.

I hope that helps?

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

Thank you Andrew, that helps immensely!

To be honest, I am forecasting that in the next month or two, between my part-time work and gigs, I'll be able to break 0. Therefore, my cash flow will be 0, and I'll have about $11K to toss into my business.

I was hoping to toss in $6K, so I'm leaving a lot of room for error, and if it takes an extra month or two, no big.

All the best and thanks again!