If nothing else, the events of 2020 so far have meant that the time is gone where business owners can dismiss concerns by saying ‘it won’t happen to me’ or ‘I’ll deal with it later’.

Starting a business is much like starting a relationship – the right time is when it feels right, and when you are so passionate about it that you just can’t wait.

By focusing on the things we can control (our actions) rather than the things we can’t (such as what is going on in the world right now), we can make objective decisions and often navigate our way through uncertainty.

In a world where the meaning of success has become so fundamentally skewed, it is so rewarding to be taking steps to redefine what this means for women in workplace culture.

In business, there will always be unexpected things that happen. Despite best intentions, things can go wrong from time to time. Often these things catch you off guard, making the situation uncomfortable and unsettling.

Having a template can be great to help guide you in understanding what to look for in your business documents and contracts. However, they can also see us thinking we’re covered for everything, when that may not be the case.

Getting across your business’ terms & conditions, and understanding the difference between these and your website terms & conditions is not something that should be filed away ‘to do later’. If you don’t get this right, you may not be protected and could find yourself with all sorts of problems (for example, if a customer doesn’t pay; if there is confusion around expectations; if a dispute arises in relation to what you are delivering).

When you entered into the partnership with your business partner (or partners), hopefully you took the time to have a partnership agreement drafted, and hopefully it was done with the level of skill and care required to reflect the agreement between the parties. If you did, then you will have a carefully prepared dispute resolution process to step through in the event of a dispute.

The legal system in Australia is just that, a legal system. Often this can be quite separate to the delivery of justice.

During my time in legal practice I have seen clients caught out or taken by surprise at various points in their commercial leases.