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What you don’t know can’t hurt you.
That’s a phrase that a lot of people like to say, but it doesn’t really apply to newbie entrepreneurs.
The truth: what you don’t know can hurt you, so it pays to be informed.
On the latest episode of the Inner Edison Podcast with Ed Parcaut, we talked about the pitfalls that newbie entrepreneurs can sometimes overlook.
We spoke to Edgar Sierra, the founder of E.Sierra Media and host of The Daily Entrepreneur Podcast.
He shared some of the things he needed to learn as a newbie entrepreneur and how you can avoid them yourself.
You Have to Think About Long-Term Goals
When Edgar started E.Sierra Media, he was focused on building his brand, finding clients, and providing value to his customers.
However, while working on that, he forgot how his business could affect other long-term goals like buying a house.
It wasn’t until he started looking for a home that he found some stunning realizations.
For starters, while he focused on running his business with tax efficiency, it didn’t help him when it came to buying a house.
“I looked like I didn’t make any money because I wasn’t making a profit on paper.”
He learned a valuable lesson. Sometimes in our pursuit to write off expenditures, it can have devastating consequences that you didn’t factor in.
Now, he makes sure to show a profit every year. It’s helping him to look better on paper for things like real estate investment.
Sometimes Your Business Has to Be a Side Hustle
Due to his trouble with his tax finances, he needed to pick up a job to help him look profitable as a home buyer.
While this was a tough pill to swallow, it helped to alleviate the burden he was under and find new avenues for lending.
Along with looking for a home, he was also planning a wedding, which comes with its own expenditures. His 9-5 helped him with both of these long-term goals as he continued his hustle after hours.
Doing it this way helped him find stability during COVID, which helped him manage the moat that many businesses couldn’t cross.
He feels fortunate that his regular job paid the bills. He could hustle for clients and keep his business afloat throughout the pandemic.
Now he’s come out the other side and offers several media services.
You May Need to Pivot
Sometimes, people go into business with an idea only to find that another service becomes their business.
This was certainly the case for Edgar. Initially, he started offering photography services to high-end clients through a business contact.
Due to his quick rise in photography, he was sure his media company would focus solely on photography. However, the market demanded other projects.
Now, Edgar sees the future of E.Sierra media focusing on video and design work.
The point: Sometimes the marketplace tells you what your clients need. Pivoting to meet their needs is natural.
Got Media?
If you want to improve your brand with logo design, E.Sierra Media can help.
Whether you need photography for a social media campaign or video for a new commercial, or web design, we have the resources and talent to get the job done right.
Please contact us with any questions. Our team is happy to help you find the perfect solution for your business to improve your brand.
As always if you’re looking for more great interviews about entrepreneurship, business, and more, please tune in to the Inner Edison Podcast with Ed Parcaut.
We post weekly content to help make your life more impactful. It’s required listening for anyone looking to improve and learn from others. We’ll see you on the other side.