It may be fair to say that most startups are what is now being called “lean”—slim to no salaries, bootstrapping to pay the bills, and proudly calling the basement or garage an office.
But it never hurts to look forward and plan ahead. What about when the ship comes in? When you’ve got some funds to make big strides? At Forbes, Shafqat Islam gives us his “Confessions of a Ex-Lean Entrepreneur”—a rundown of what a scrappy innovator does next once the coffers allow for some spending. Here’s just a few:
- Hire an office manager. This may seem like a godsend, and rightly so. Without spending so much time on tasks like payroll and scheduling, Islam was able to use that time to think about the big picture.
- Invest in marketing: Lean entrepreneurs, says Islam, take pride in spending $0 on marketing. “Get over it,” he says. Building the brand is pivotal.
- Cannibalize your job: Wearing multiple hats may be the specialty of a lean entrepreneur, but its best to hire people who are smarter and better at doing all the jobs, that you were filling, Islam says. The work will improve, and you won’t run the risk of burnout.
There’s plenty more in the full article—practical advice for how to spend your funding, or just enough reasons to inspire you to go out and get some.