The Shuttle
W e a v e r s W a y C o - o p
559 Carpenter Lane Philadelphia, PA 19119 Phone: 215-843-2350 Fax: 215-843-6945
HOURS: Monday 10-8 Tuesday 10-8 Wednesday 10-8 Thursday 10-8 Friday 9-8 Saturday 9-6 Sunday 9-6
Vol. 32, No. 3 May/June 2003
Visit us at www.weaversway.org
Workshop on Starting a Business
by Larry Schofer, Education Committee Chair
Weavers Way sponsors many workshops, and at the education committee we usually see evaluations ranging from very good to outstanding. I took off my committee hat and put on my participant hat to enroll in "How To Start Your Own Business" with David Mack. This workshop was no exception; it landed on the outstanding level.
David, who runs similar workshops professionally, was not concerned with the nuts and bolts of a particular business. Instead he encouraged the participants to look into their own interests and talents to discover what kind of business they wanted to consider. He mentioned the current ten most popular home-based businesses, including internet sales and marketing, children's products, and home inspector, but he mainly focused on the individuals who showed up for the two-session workshop.
David was able to educate us about the ins and outs of tax identification numbers, incorporating or non-incorporating, federal, state, and local taxes, and all the other little items associated with running a business. He also gave us hints on how to use the internet to get more information.
To my surprise, I found the most valuable tool to be a little homework exercise he gave us--to keep track of every hour of every day for a week. After all, time is the great social leveler. We all have 168 hours per week-- rich or poor, tall or short, black or white--it's the same for everybody. That little exercise is meant to help you determine where you can make time for your new business, to determine where your time is used efficiently and where not so efficiently. I was able to use the time exercise for future planning. I personally have not watched television for almost 30 years, but perhaps I should start watching one hour per day. Then in order to make time for my business I can resolve to stop watching TV, and I will have the time to pursue my business!