Your thoughts please; what is a business?

[EMMA AT ELITE]

Hi All,

This may sound a bit of a stupid question but after a conversation of different opinions, I wanted to ask you & hear your thoughts & opinions on this.

How would you discribe what a business is?

I rent a beauty room in a sunbed shop, work for myself, have no staff, no big overheads etc like a salon owner does, does this mean I have a business or not?

All comments would be appreciated xxx

 

[Annemarie]

Hi All,

This may sound a bit of a stupid question but after a conversation of different opinions, I wanted to ask you & hear your thoughts & opinions on this.

How would you discribe what a business is?

I rent a beauty room in a sunbed shop, work for myself, have no staff, no big overheads etc like a salon owner does, does this mean I have a business or not?

All comments would be appreciated xxx

I think if you own all your own equipments and or products etc, whether it's your own shop or someone elses you work for yourself I should think thats classed as having your own business,:biggrin:

 

[angelina221]

I would say that a business is something you do that generates a profit and that you keep accounts for and pay tax. You provide goods or a service to your customers. Although there are non-profit businesses!
In that case, you run a business.
I take it someone has said you don't run a business because you don't have staff or run a corporation!
You are in charge of doing your own books, buying your own equipment/products, paying your own tax and taking on staff, if you so wish and you provide a service.
If that's not a business then I don't know what is!

 

[Verve Designs]

Of course its a business! and one you should be proud of.

I think I know what you're getting at- I've had it myself this very weekend.

When I first started my design business people (including family members!) would often look down their noses at me as if "working from home" was just a euphemism for being sat around scratching my a*se all day long watching Tricia- whereas they've got "proper" jobs in offices.

It's a very small minded opinion, in my view, by people who aren't willing to take a risk in life.

The fact is, I left a posh agency to work 3 times as many hours as them and have all the responsibility.....oh, and the business is a success too

If there werent any entrepreneurs then the people in 9-5 "safe" jobs wouldn't be employment in the first place.

I've got lots of respect for the 99% of people on this forum who've decided not to play safe and decided to start a business...good on you.

 

[Ruth Mills]

Of course its a business! and one you should be proud of.

I think I know what you're getting at- I've had it myself this very weekend.

When I first started my design business people (including family members!) would often look down their noses at me as if "working from home" was just a euphemism for being sat around scratching my a*se all day long watching Tricia- whereas they've got "proper" jobs in offices.

It's a very small minded opinion, in my view, by people who aren't willing to take a risk in life.

The fact is, I left a posh agency to work 3 times as many hours as them and have all the responsibility.....oh, and the business is a success too

If there werent any entrepreneurs then the people in 9-5 "safe" jobs wouldn't be employment in the first place.

I've got lots of respect for the 99% of people on this forum who've decided not to play safe and decided to start a business...good on you.

Well said Carl, I *so* agree with you here! Even the biggest businesses have to start somewhere too; I'd much rather start small and grow naturally than get funding from venture capitalists or whatever because if I did, then I'd probably end up making them a lot richer at my expense!

And no, working from home doesn't involve spending all day scratching the planet between Saturn and Neptune and watching Trisha - it's a hard graft and usually involves working all hours that God sends

 

[EMMA AT ELITE]

Thank you all very much for taking time to reply, it has been an interesting read & confirmed my thoughts. x:hug:x