Building something real boils down to three core traits: emotional intelligence, raw grit, and broad resourcefulness. EQ is the foundation because you need clients, teams, and investors to truly believe in your vision, which starts with self-awareness and finding common ground. That connection has to be backed by serious work ethic - putting in the hours without running yourself completely into the ground. Finally, resourcefulness ties it all together, drawing from a variety of random odd jobs, coffee chats, and uncomfortable experiences to build a deep reservoir of solutions for whenever problems pop up.

The single most important thing you can do for your new business is open a separate bank account. It’s critical to have a separate account for each income stream. This will help you immensely when it comes time to bookkeeping and preparing for taxes.

You’re anxious about how much you’ll owe if you file your taxes. What if it’s way more than you can pay right now? What if it’s more than you were expecting? Don’t panic! You can set up a payment plan to pay off your taxes over time instead of all at once. You can do this for both state and federal taxes, you’ll just need to apply for them separately.

When you think of the phrase “tax firm”, what comes to mind? If you’re a client, probably a stuffy office, suits, intimidating paperwork, and a lot of anxiety. If you’re an accountant… probably the same, actually.