When starting a business, making major financial decisions, or desiring increase it is very important to use mentors.  You should seek them to use them every time.

Mentors provide you with information, sound knowledge, and better opportunities from experience, networks and education that you do not possess that will save you from unwillingly doing mistakes that will cost you money, time, opportunities, and prosperity.

Often a serendipitous experience will occur when working with a mentor and so they should not be casually dismissed as unnecessary.  Serendipitous means “Lucky in making unexpected and fortunate discoveries.”

Sometimes life experiences and/or misfortunes also unwillingly bring a serendipitous experience.  These are brought on by a life threatening disease, losing a job, reading a powerful blog/website or book, meeting a dynamic person/hero or an encounter with God. 

When a bad experience happens to you also consider it as a serendipitous mentor and make necessary changes to change a bad experience into a positive experience instead of thinking it is a defeat.  

A hands on mentor is somebody who has knowledge and expertise for achieving the right path for you to follow.  This is somebody who you ask how is it done.  Be careful when you are fulfilling financial goals that require spending money to find out how is it done correctly to avoid pitfalls that you may encounter otherwise, by using knowledgeable hands on mentors that are trust worthy.   

Often when starting up a business, people have wrong conceptions on how to charge and collect GST, how to claim business deductions, how to keep records, how to properly structure start-up financial structures to minimize paying income tax.  Mistakes in these areas can cost you thousands of dollars and it is very common for people to come in a year or two later who loss opportunities and incurred huge financial penalties because they did not seek out a mentor to set them upon the right path to greater success.  Unfortunately Revenue Canada will not let you correct past mistakes to make your situation better.  The tax courts repeatedly have disallowed any attempts to undo wrong business decisions, including how money was spent incorrectly in a business set-up.

Working with your accountant who has experience should be part of your plan to properly start your business and to maximize financial growth.  Talk to him/her about where you want to go with your company and how you want to involve your family.  Ask him/her what are the realistic expectation of growth and opportunities. Ask him/her what business structures, tax strategies and financial organization should be used to maximize wealth and generate future opportunities.

You will generate for you a better prosperous outcome.