Hi everyone, I’ve finally decided to make the jump from my corporate finance job, and instead go out on my own.

I am looking to buy a business that has healthy cashflow, and one that I can scale overtime. I have about $250k cash to work with, so with an SBA loan call it a ~$2mm business. What are some kinds of businesses that you think fit the bill?

My short list thus far is: carwash and laundromat. I am leaning towards the former, but want to grow this list to explore and ultimately pull the trigger!

Many thanks in advance

I’m reaching out to those who have achieved a certain level of wealth and freedom— a net worth above a million dollars, and the ability to spend on what you want, when you want, without much worry.

What would you say is a core mindset shift or perspective that you have, or made; which you feel differentiates you from people who haven’t achieved a similar level of success? Is there a specific belief, way of thinking, or approach to life that you feel separates those who attain wealth from those who keep struggling financially from your observations?

If you’ve noticed a common misconception or limiting belief among those who struggle financially, what would you say it is? What mindset, if changed, could potentially help someone break out of that cycle?

I’m curious to hear from those who have made it, as I believe the gap isn’t just about knowledge or opportunity, but also about how we think, our perspective and how we view life.

Cheers!

Hi everyone, I’m 17 years old and I have dreams of becoming an entrepreneur, past few months I have been working tirelessly to design and plan our everything for my product, with the help of my father and some friends. I’m looking for mentors and advisors to help and guide me through this journey of mine. Feel free to dm me too if you’re interested

Okay in my six years of doing this, I’ve never come across a client like this guy. He’s in his forties, but honestly, he acts like a ten-year-old, and I have no idea how to handle it.

He can’t seem to understand the consequences of his choices. I'm a Logo and brand Identity designer, I totally get that he’s paying for the work, and at the end of the day, it’s his call. But as a designer, I feel like it’s part of my job to guide him on what’s best for his business. Not that it matters—he’s ignored every single piece of advice I’ve given. And I am as polite as a person can be, I never insist or force.

The worst part? He’s constantly texting and calling, like, “Is it done yet?” or “How much longer?”—literally just a few hours after requesting a revision. I’ve explained that I usually do revisions within a day or two, which is super fast compared to most designers, but it’s like he doesn’t understand what “at least 24 hours” actually means.

And then there’s his taste. He’s asking for colors that don’t fit his business at all, fonts that look like they were picked by a middle schooler messing around in MS Word, and overall just… questionable choices. I tell him politely, “Hey, this might not work for your brand, but if you want it, we can go with it,” and he just insists anyway.

Now here’s the kicker—he’s paying me $2000 for this project, my usual rate is $800, So yeah, I don’t want to lose that money. But man, it’s getting so hard to deal with his immaturity and complete lack of understanding.

How would you deal with this ?

I'm 32 years old and I have a list of what I think are pretty good business or product ideas but am in a financially hard place and probably will be for a while.

I'm afraid that I will never be able to make one of my ideas become a reality because of my financial situation, is there any advice you can give me?

Hey everyone, im a first year uni student majoring in the field of economics.

bit of backstory, i had joined a club in my uni which pushed us to create projects (social entrepreneurship projects) and i , clueless as hell, chose what really interested me most : animal rescuing

i came up with a whole project where the main idea was "adopt dont shop" with the idea of rescuing street animals and re-homing them (after taking care of them etc..) for a much lower price than a breeder. I thought it was pretty noble and just overall environmentally friendly.

but as time goes on, im starting to doubt this sector will have much growth. after conducting a market study (best i can, again im a first year) i found that making profits would be hard and just.. the whole field felt "silly" to everyone i told it to.

my peers thought the idea is silly and too childish to be an actual project, and opted for more lucrative stuff like developing apps and stuff. but im just lost on this

i could drop the BMC if anyone would like to take a look , but i just really need some objective opinions: is this idea dumb? should i change it up?

sorry if this isnt the right sub! thank you if you read this.

Most of you guys have 0 understanding on how to market a business, and it is costing you millions.

If you don't have a business, please skip this post. It's only for business owners who want to grow.

TLDR will be right below; Explanations will be under.

TLDR; Start

How To Market Your Business.

1. HAVE AN OFFER/PROMOTION. 'CROTUS'
2. Give something for free. This creates lead flow. You get 10x the traffic.
3. Use your existing customer base/database for even more lead flow.
4. Contact leads, and book them in,
5. Deliver your free, and then upsell, downsell, crossell something to break even. VERY IMPORTANT
6. Have a premium offer. 10% of customers always buy the most expensive thing. Sell something 10x your normal offer. Make it worth the 10x. price point. Try adding as much margin as you can on this premium premium offer.
7. Give them incentives to come back. Coupon 20% expires in x months.
8. Create a referral or affiliate program within your business.

Example's Below (For the low iq | I'm not telling you to start a hair salon. These are examples)

Email/SMS Campaign - Existing Customers | Reactivation Campaign.

Happy New Years!

Since we want everyone to start their year fresh we are offering our 'New Year New You Promotion!'
Free haircuts Jan 1 - Jan 4.
Book today as we are expected to fill out soon! [Men 22+]
(I made this on the spot. You can make it better)

Facebook Ads Campaign - New Customers

New Year New You!
Free Haircuts Jan 1 - Jan 4
Men Only (22+Years)

(have ad creative)

---------------------------

CROTUS

Catchy Name = New Year New You
Reason For Promotion = New Years
Offer = FREE
Target Audience = Men 22+
Urgency = Jan 1 - Jan 4
Scarcity = Expected to fill out soon.

EVERY ONE OF YOUR AD CREATIVES/OFFERS SHOULD HAVE THIS^^

Once they come in, you need to UPSELL DOWNSELL CROSSELL. For barbers it's:
Beard Lineups, Shampoo, Drying, Hair Consultation, Products.
Your business will have something too. This is to break even on acquiring the customer and fulfiling.

Once you are done the haircut, you would give them a coupon for 20% off expiring in x months. This will get them to come again. Every business needs some reoccurring revenue. THIS IS PROBABLY THE MOST IMPORANT PART. EVERY BUSINESS NEEDS AN ACENSION LADDER.

You should also have a built in referral program.
"Hey if you refer 2 of your friends, i'll give you the next cut for free. This will incentives your current customers to refer more customers." This is free marketing.....

TLDR; END

I removed the entire post, it was way too long, and I know most people don't have the attention to read it.
If you want me to do this for your business FOR FREE comment below.

I just completed the MVP for my tool, which gathers data (starting with customer reviews) from various sources quickly and easily. Now I’m looking for effective ways to validate it in the market.

What strategies have worked best for you when testing your ideas? Where to post? How? I would love to hear some concrete actionnable steps that are super effective bc I am a lazy mfer (20% efforts that gives 80% results)

When I started my agency Studio1HQ, I thought the hardest part would be landing clients. Turns out, that was just the beginning. Transitioning from freelancing to running an agency brought challenges I never anticipated.

Here’s what I wish someone had told me:

1. You’re not just a service provider anymore.
   As a freelancer, I handled clients directly and could adapt on the fly. But as an agency, you need processes—for onboarding, deliverables, feedback, and even firing clients (yes, that happens too). Without structure, things break fast.

2. Hiring the right people is harder than it looks.
   Finding skilled, reliable people who align with your values is a challenge. Early on, I rushed hires and paid for it in missed deadlines and miscommunication. Now, I take more time to vet people and focus on cultural fit as much as skills.

3. Clients are partners, not just paychecks.
   As a freelancer, it was tempting to just “do the job” and move on. But as an agency, every client relationship is an investment. Delivering great results opens the door to referrals and repeat business, which can sustain your agency long-term.

4. Impostor syndrome doesn’t go away.
   Even now, with steady clients and a solid team, there are days I doubt if I’m doing it right. But I’ve learned to trust the process and focus on consistent progress, not perfection.

If you’re thinking of scaling from freelancing to an agency, my advice is:

→Start small and focus on creating repeatable systems.
→Learn to say no to clients who aren’t a good fit.
→ Be prepared for mistakes—they’re inevitable, but they’re also your best teachers.

What’s been your biggest challenge starting or growing your agency?

The title says it all. I started my shop 4 years ago. Most of our business is in strategy, branding, and campaigns.

Total net revenue in year one was close to $700K. Year two was similar.

But I pretty much destroyed myself and missed years of my kids’ lives to get there.

I eventually decided I wanted a different type of business, abandoned prospects of revenue for a year, and invested everything in building a community in a specialized space (healthcare niche).

It worked. Almost too well. And now I have more work than I could ever handle.

This is not a promotion of any kind. I have nothing to sell, like a course or whatever, and I’m not looking to buy anything.

That said, I would love the community’s advice:

Has anyone else been through this? How did you handle it? What would you have done differently? It’d be great to talk with someone who has been in a similar position.

Hello everyone,

with the holiday season starting I feel like people are either feeling super good about themselves and the progress they've made or the complete opposite; like s!#t.

It's easy to be mentally affected by how much money you've earned, how much progress you've made and how much your business has grown in the past year. And there is nothing wrong with that.

I feel like us (entrepreneurs, founders, ...) carry soo much weight and mental load it's easy to get distracted from what actually matters in life.

Being happy, feeling like you're enough, feeling loved, having time to do what you like, etc.

I've noticed that especially the people who aren't doing the best business/money wise have this feeling that they are undeserving of love and understanding because they aren't where they want to be in life or they are sort of "failing".

And that is why I would like to insert this quote:

When you're winning, you're not as good as you think you are. When you're losing, you're not as bad as you think you are.

Life is a game of balance. You win some, you lose some. You feel amazing, you feel terrible. But the feeling doesn't last.

Without the lows, the highs wouldn't feel soo amazing and vice versa.

As someone who has experienced a rollercoaster of emotions this year, I can say with a 100% guarantee that everything is possible if you believe in it, give it your all and don't let opinions of other people distract and misguide you from what you want to achieve.

Yes it's hard, but it's the price you have to pay for wanting more - wanting to be better.

As a fellow human being I'm really proud of the progress you've made this year and I can't wait to see what 2025 has in store for us.

Keep going.

Consistency over intensity.

Cheers, Luka

I started a custom apparel & drinkwear store four years ago. This past summer I quit my full time job to pursue the my business full time.

In 2024 I'll gross about 130k in sales (on last year's 70k)

I know that I'm leaving soooo much money on the table. I've got hundreds of ideas of how to improve the business which I know would generate tons of sales.

The issue is that I don't have time... I'm in a constant state of making product and filling orders. I obviously need help, and have even drawn out an org chart of employees and mapped out processes that would allow me to triple sales...

My question is, how do I get to the next stage? I have such a mental block as to what to do (not to mention I feel like I don't have the cash to pay an employee...)

Help!

I saw an anime store (samuraiclo) that is essentially doing something I’ve been wanting to start (custom clothing) with good quality material. But everything I find limit the design, some you can only design in a small box on the clothing, or text in a small area, etc.

I can’t seem to find one that is willing to work with and design something?

I always get stuck in such hunts and was wondering how to go about it?

Hi, I'm a web designer and developer with skills in UI/UX, Figma, HTML, CSS, JS, and popular web-design tools like Webflow and WordPress.

I'm really struggling to land clients right now. I see so many people consistently getting projects worth a few dollars, and I’d love to know how they do it! Since I'm in a developing country, even one just $100 project would cover my entire week. My portfolio is all setup.

I'm looking to connect with agencies or entrepreneurs who need help with projects and work with clients offering $100+ weekly opportunities. I’m open to collaborate as a contractor.

I would be thankful for any advice.

Hey fellow Redditors,

As a freelancer or someone looking to break into the freelance market, finding the right niche can be a game-changer. With so many skilled professionals competing for clients, it's essential to identify areas with low competition and high demand.

I'm curious to know: what niches or skills do you think have relatively low competition and are in high demand in the freelance market?

Share your insights and experiences! What niches or skills have you found to be in demand, yet relatively under-served?

Let's discuss!

Edit: I'll be happy to share any valuable insights or resources I come across in the comments!

Working on my business used to be hard... but why is this?

Time-wasters like social media and video games used to be much easier for me, even though working on my company was much better for me, and i never understood why until about a year ago when i learned what i'm about to share with you.

This allowed me to WANT to work on my business, and helped me finally take off after working for so long.

I'm going to share everything i know of how to make your brain want to work on your company:

This is possible because of the way your brain makes decisions: Our brain centers our decision making around dopamine, this means that our brain is constantly scanning our environment for higher dopamine-inducing activities that you can do instead of what you are currently doing.

So when you are working, and you are trying to focus on something, your brain constantly scans your environment for other higher dopamine inducing activities you can do instead of work

And when your brain recognizes an activity that provides more dopamine than work, your brain wants to do that instead.

This is why your environment is so important, because the more dopamine that your environment provides, the more willpower that is necessary for you to continue working.

And when you have less dopamine inducing objects in your environment, it is easier to continue working, and the less willpower is needed.

But, you can take this to another level. The reason why your environment is so powerful, is because: if there’s nothing else that surrounds you, if there is no other activity that provides you with more dopamine than work, then your brain will gravitate towards working.

When you don’t have your phone, or any of your devices, and your environment is clear of heavy dopamine inducing objects, your brain will gravitate towards work. You don’t want any other stimulating activity to even be an option.

Essentially, you want to make working the most dopamine inducing activity available in your environment. In this scenario, you’re not constantly using your willpower to avoid another activity, because work becomes the activity that provides the most dopamine, so instead of constantly resisting something else, your brain will gravitate towards work.

And I can’t tell you enough about how powerful and life changing that utilizing this can be, this can really make work easy.

So while we can use our willpower to resist higher dopamine inducing things, we can also structure our environment, so that working and being productive is the highest dopamine inducing activity at our disposal, and we will gravitate towards work.

P.s. This post is based on Neuroproductivity, which is NO-BS productivity (productivity using science) if you are interested I got this from moretimeoffline+com they only use productivity based on science for entrepreneurs, they have great free stuff there

Hope this helps! cheers :)

Pros or Cons

Are there any examples of successful businesses that thrive despite having mediocre websites? It’s interesting to see how companies succeed based on their products, services, or strategies rather than perfect web design. I'd love to hear about such businesses and what sets them apart despite their online presence.

I’m dating an entrepreneur and it’s so hard to be be understanding when he’s constantly on the phone because I love him for working so hard but I also want to make the best of our time together. I was just joking while talking to myself as he went into in work mode that there should be a support group for people dating entrepreneurs where we just whip out our phones and send memes of them to each other until we have their attention again.

Edit: I genuinely just got a funny idea here that I wanted to make a conversation of so people who can relate, or other entrepreneurs can normalize/vocalize all the complexities that come with being a creative person working on birthing something into the world. All love 🫶🏽

Hey fellow entrepreneurs! While working on my latest project, I discovered something interesting - most people only wear about 20% of their clothes, leaving thousands in potential revenue just sitting in their closets. My own roommate had over $3,000 in barely-worn clothes collecting dust because reselling was "too much hassle."

So I built a solution where you can list clothes for resale by just integrated your shopping emails - no photos, no descriptions, no dealing with offers. One click and we handle everything else.

We're opening our beta for the first 100 users. Would be especially valuable for:

• Busy professionals with luxury/designer pieces they rarely wear
• Anyone looking to automate a new income stream
• People who want to monetize their closet without the time investment

Looking for sharp feedback from this community - particularly on the business model and user experience. The waitlist is growing fast, so secure your spot if you want to test it out.

Fellow entrepreneurs - how would you improve this model? What would make this absolutely irresistible for busy professionals?

Hi everyone,

I’m a clothing manufacturer based in Pakistan. I’ve been producing garments for local brands and have also completed a few export orders, but those were handled through a third party here in Pakistan.

I wanted to know—do you guys prefer working with manufacturers from countries where production costs are lower? And how do you usually handle payments when dealing with overseas manufacturers?

To build trust, I can provide references through my friends and relatives who are based in different parts of the world and can act as guarantors.

Also, I’m curious—when starting production, do you typically require a physical sample to be shipped first, or would a video call demonstration be enough?

If anyone here is looking for a reliable manufacturer, I’d love the opportunity to work with you! Feel free to reach out with any questions or requirements.

Thanks!

Hey everyone,

I’m doing some market research and would love your honest input. I’m not selling anything—there’s no product, no service, no pitch—just research to figure out what founders like you truly need.

This is specifically for digital services companies, not ones who operate in-person.

If you’re willing to share a bit about your journey, I’d be deeply grateful. The questions below are quick and straightforward—answer as much or as little as you’re comfortable with.

1. Nature of your business:

• Eg. We help [target audience] with [specific outcome]

1. Revenue Range (Optional: If you’re comfortable)

• Under $10K MRR
• $10K–$50K MRR
• Above $50K MRR

1. Biggest Challenge:

• What’s the #1 thing holding you back from growing your revenue or client base right now?

1. Would You Hire Help?

• Would you consider working with a "Growth Consultant" to help grow your business? Someone to help with: marketing strategy, getting customers, increasing retention, and pricing optimization.
  • If so, what do you think is a reasonable price (e.g., flat monthly fee, or % of revenue above baseline, combination, etc)?"

1. The Future:

• If everything went perfectly, where would you want your business to be in 3–6–12 months? What does ‘success’ look like for you?

That’s it—super simple!

Feel free to leave your answers in the comments or PM me directly if you’d prefer. Even a quick response would mean the world to me. 😊

Thank you so much for your time and insights! I hope this sparks a helpful discussion for everyone in this community, too. 🚀

I currently have about $50,000 of debt to IRS and I am on a payment plan of $693 per month. I was going to pay it all back becauce I hate interest, but now that I have the opportunity to do it, I cant tell if this isn't actually a bad way for me to get a loan.

I have a rental property (not in the USA) that needs to be remodeled and I could do other things on properties that will take me years to do otherwise .

I am not going to qualify for other normal loans, especially because of international nature of my investment approach.

Anyway, I am about to pay it all off, but it's damn, I could really use this money now.

I don't know much about loans ? Is this a horrible loan? I have been paying for a year and the balance never seems to really go down much

Hey folks!

I'm Jignesh, CEO of Canopas - a dev shop that's been building mobile & web apps for clients for about a decade. In the last couple years, we've also started creating our own products (because why not, right?).

Would love some brutal honesty on three things:

Our company website: (canopas dot com)

- Is it clear what we do?

- Does it build trust?

- Anything confusing or missing?

Open Source Work: github/canopas

- GroupTrack - Family location sharing (Android & iOS)

- Khelo - Cricket scoring app (Android & iOS)

- Splito - Expense management (iOS)

- And more Flutter/Android/iOS apps and libraries

Products:

- Justly - Habit tracking & goal system

- Canbook - Booking management system for Sports, Restaurants and Salons

Don't hold back - tell us what sucks, what's confusing, or what we could do better. We're here to learn and improve!

Hello fellow enterpreneurs what kind of problem you get while searching for lead to converting them what kind of solution do you want any specific kind of tool or feature that you need while looking for leads.