Useful Books?

[DannyLewis]

So I am taking a few steps in the right direction, yesterday I registered as a Sole Trader with HMRc.. I am slowly getting my head around a lot of things but I am wondering if there are any books I can buy that I may find useful? Are there any that you personally found useful when starting your business?

 

[Jet Virtual]

So I am taking a few steps in the right direction, yesterday I registered as a Sole Trader with HMRc.. I am slowly getting my head around a lot of things but I am wondering if there are any books I can buy that I may find useful? Are there any that you personally found useful when starting your business?

Sorry Danny can you please elaborate on what information you are looking at getting from these books?

 

[DannyLewis]

I'm not actually too sure, just anything that may be useful to me when starting up a Sole Trader business. Bookkeeping, laws, useful pointers etc. There's still a lot I need to learn, but I'm willing to put in the hours to do that.

 

[Lunazzurra]

Not sure what your going to be trading in but here's a couple we found useful when we set up our shop in 2007 and still occasionally refer to today. I think they are both still in print (albeit in updated versions probably).

1. Start And Run Your Own Shop by Val Clark. Published by howtobooks.co.uk ISBN 1-84528-046-6.
General, clear advice on everything from looking for premises, buying stock to even dealing with shoplifting. Direct experience comes across well from Val Clark. Principals of general business advice could be adapted for other similar trades.


2. The Financial Times Guide to Business Start Up (2007). Sarah Williams. Published by FT Prentice Hall 2007 version ISBN was 0-273-71082-6 but current edition will be different.

General business advice not limited to retail. Found really invaluable for things like Cash-Flow forecast, profit & loss and balance sheet templates.

There are multitudes of 'how to' business books out there and these are possibly the best we've come across. Don't get sidetracked by 'celebrity' how to books. These can be saved for more casual reading when you feel so inclined.

Hope this helps. If I think of anymore I'll let you know.

 

[Lunazzurra]

Sorry, nearly forgot to mention following as well:-

Why not contact your local Business Link or Regional College for any free or low-fee one day seminars/workshops they might be running. Our regional Tax Office also runs free one day courses on things like VAT and other Taxes.
Federation of Small Businesses might also be a consideration as a resource.

 

[DannyLewis]

Sorry, nearly forgot to mention following as well:-

Why not contact your local Business Link or Regional College for any free or low-fee one day seminars/workshops they might be running. Our regional Tax Office also runs free one day courses on things like VAT and other Taxes.
Federation of Small Businesses might also be a consideration as a resource.

Thank you very much for your help, I will be ordering those books sometime during the next week

I am doing a one day course run by HMRC soon, which should help me a little.

 

[Deleted member 157097]

I wish I had noticed this years ago, but it's Drayton Bird's Commonsense Direct and Digital Marketing. Drayton is a big beast of the marketing industry, having built the UK's largest direct marketing agency and then taking a senior role of Ogilvy & Mather. He is utterly refreshing, because everything he does is based on measuring results. I have found it invaluable - and it definitely contributed to my first year in my current role going swimmingly.

 

[ncoopie11]

Dragon's Den Peter Jones wrote a pretty motivational book. Not too much content just inspirational!