Many people start a new business which reflects their own passion and these businesses can be very successful as you are very knowledgeable on the actual subject and much more comfortable with selling the idea or the product.

One of the downfalls of this, though, is that you treat the business more as a hobby than an actual business and the company management side of the outfit can become too slack.

If you are running any type of business, whether it is a multibillion organisation, a company selling cheap printed tshirts or a surfing school, it should have the same rules of business applied to ensure that it is successful and that you can make a good and long term living from it.

One classic example is credit control which many business owners do not take seriously enough. If you are selling a product that you love to fellow aficionados, who often become friends rather than being seen as clients, it is all too easy to allow them to pay at a later date and for huge bills to be run up in a short time, affecting your cash flow.

This can happen very easily in niche related businesses where you are in constant personal contact with your clients such as a business selling model trains, old vinyl records or fresh produce.