This is exactly the same kind of situation that I am in with my site www.horrormovies4u.co.uk

As I know my online store will not make enough money in its first year or so until traffic increases, I would just like to know what financial help I could get in order to live. I mean, in regard to claiming Working Tax Credits, what details would I have to supply to them to prove I was working 30hrs pwk on my site in order to claim?

Hi,

The Enterprise Allowance programme is designed to help the long-term unemployed to develop their skills, knowledge and, importantly, confidance that the they will need when taking their first steps on the road to self-employment.

NEA Is available to recipients of Job Seekers Allowance, who have been claiming for 26 weeks or more.

Participants will get access to a business mentor, known as a ‘Business Buddy’ who will provide business start up advice.

Once the individual is able to demonstrate that their new business is a viable proposition with the potential of growth in the future, they can then unlock access to financial support. This will consist of:-
■A weekly allowance worth £1274.00 over 26 weeks. This will be paid at a weekly rate of £65.00 for the first 13 weeks and £33.00 a week for a further 13 weeks
■If startup capital is needed, they may also be able to access a loan of £1000 to help with start up costs.

I hope the above helps. If you require any further information then please contact me at info@newbizexpress.co.uk

Kind regards

Russell Conneely
www.newbizexpress.co.uk

Hi Russell

Just wondering if you could advise me on my own situation in regard to my desire to go self employed. It is this: I have just started earning a few quid from self publishing my ghost stories books on Amazon Kindle. Sales are growing steadily by the month, so I was wondering if it would be worth my while signing off the dole and claiming this NEA money you mentioned. Also, how I could I present to the Working Tax Credit people proof that I am working 30hrs pwk as a self employed Kindle writer?

Hi LDB,

Firstly, well done for having the determination to set up a business whilst being on benefits. I know a number of people in the UK that have done this to successfully but have first had to get out of what is often called 'the benefits trap'.

Your benefits office should be able to help you undertake a 'better off analysis' to calculate the impact on your overall income. The key challenge is that new business owners often have uncertain income levels in the short term and this can confuse the benefits system. Most of the people I know that have done this have started part time to test out the idea and gravitated from benefits to independent income as the business allowed them to.

I hope this helps - I wish you good luck with your business. For information, I have posted some notes below on the MAIR model which is quite a useful tool for planning new businesses (you can google more about it if you find it helpful)

Best wishes,

Mark.

The basic idea is that you explore four 'interactive variables': Motivation, Abilities, Ideas and Resources. Clearly, each has a critical role to play in its own right:



Motivation: I guess that's what separates thinkers and dreamers for actors and doers... The willingness to really go out and work hard, often under conditions of little short term reward and lots of uncertainty, seems to be one of the hallmarks of successful entrepreneurs.

Abilities: We could start a whole separate thread on this - what are the key abilities that make a successful entrepreneur - no doubt a mix of both hard and soft skills.

Ideas: Arguably, these need to be clearly rooted in a market need to be valid, although, there are some business that seem to be product-led rather than market-led... fashion, any Apple product, the Rubik's cube...

Resources: Entrepreneurs are kind of hamstrung until they get resources behind them. I guess we automatically think of cash here, but skills, knowledge and contacts can make a lot of difference to.

...but you also need to think about how these factors interact - a good idea is of limited value, without the motivation and resources to turn it into a business and this is where the final components of the MAIR model come into play: Planning and Organisation! Arguably, this is the real job of the entrepreneur. Bringing all the factors together to create something that didn't exist before, and may just change the world!
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Mark Taylor
www.eriskay-associates.co.uk