Learn before you leap

There are two areas that I recommend anyone pondering entrepreneurship get a firm grasp on:  solid accounting practices and legal matters. 

If you don't understand these two areas and just open for business, you can get in hot water pretty fast.  If you have been an employee, you may be used to having taxes automatically withdrawn from your check. You also may not know which expenses are tax-deductible, and how to keep track of them. 

You also want to learn which legal structure will best fit your business.  You choice has both tax and liability implications.  If you are working on anything that is proprietary in nature, you want to educate yourself on patents and trademarks.

I wish I had a good book or online reference for these two areas, but I don't at the moment.  I will recommend links in future posts.  Anyone have any suggestions?

Comments

[Murali]

I read a book titled "Own Your Own Corporation : Why the Rich Own Their Own Companies and Everyone Else Works for Them" by Robert T. Kiyosaki & Co. This simple book has details about different legal structures for a startup company with cases understandable to layman in accounting and taxes like me. This might help for people looking.