• Why do ethics matter in entrepreneurship?

Ethics are extremely important in entrepreneurship. Gaining notoriety in trust and consumer confidence is a surefire way to build a great reputation as a company. As an entrepreneur that reputation is a reflection of yourself. Beyond the obvious moral and legal implications that ethics bring, an ethical entrepreneur has a reputation that will lead to more favorable opinions from consumers and investors alike. Good ethics present well and continue to benefit the entrepreneur and the companies that entrepreneur is involved with.

• How does my own personal budget relate to an entrepreneurship budget?

The similarities between a personal budget and an entrepreneur’s budget are that they both manage the money coming in and the money going out. For a personal budget, there is an assessment of a set income compared against the expenses incurred within the timeframe of that income. An entrepreneur’s budget is focuses on the earning potential of a business, compared against the necessary expenses. The earnings of a business are typically much more fluid than an individual in the beginning and that is why an entrepreneur’s budget will account for profit and loss margins, with a focus on cashflow and outflow.

• Why do we need budgets?

A startup business can incur massive amounts of expenses and it is imperative for the survival of that business to budget out the necessary expenses. This gives an entrepreneur a roadmap for the expenses in a way that the entrepreneur can expect what the business will cost. A properly budgeted company will be able to stay afloat in the face of a slow start or in the event of unforeseen expenses. Budgeting the cashflow and the expenses of a company is essential for a company to survive.

• What is social entrepreneurship?

Social entrepreneurship is a similar idea to business entrepreneurship with a different focus. With business entrepreneurship, there is an obvious focus on business which focuses on economics and wealth. Social entrepreneurship is a type of entrepreneurship that focuses on pushing the social environment forward. This type of entrepreneurship takes business principles and applies them in a business model that aims to promote social change and encourage social improvements. There are many companies founded on these principles, but one example is the shoe brand TOMS that donates a pair of shoes for every pair sold.

• What are the most significant legal issues entrepreneurs face?

There are several legal issues entrepreneurs face and but one of the biggest is how to organize the company. As an entrepreneur, it is important to have a legal separation from the entrepreneur themselves and the business they intend to create. This is where the issue of different types of organizations. Each type of organization has its own legal responsibilities and separations. The organization level also introduces one of the other big issues entrepreneurs face. Taxes are a huge legal complexity and require a lot of attention to ensure that there are no legal complications. There are also of course the less common legal issues in which the entrepreneur has genuinely committed some type of crime in the creation of their business whether it be a violation of some law or an infringement on another companies IP.