4 ms·

This is just plain incompetence, up and down the line. Any idiot can google this stuff and find out exactly what he needs to do within an hour.

ajiang 8y ago
Honestly I wouldn't downplay complexity of this stuff. Anyone can Google one item, but there are hundreds of items you need to stay on top of. Missing one could mean a massive liability. The takeaway should be that if it is not your forte, outsource to an expert or spend a lot of time on it to make sure you get it right.
- dumbfounder 8y ago
  Yeah, you don't know what you don't know. You are going to miss something if it isn't your main focus and you are not experienced. Outsourcing this stuff is cheap, you just plain gotta do it at that level.
  - stickfigure 8y ago
    If you have employees, "payroll taxes" are such an obvious concern that nobody can possibly claim ignorance. And there are a zillion startups out there that will automate payroll for you - it really makes no sense to DIY it. I'm going with incompetence.
chaostheory 8y ago
I think it's easy to judge people for their mistakes. There's only so much time and energy an individual can do with 120 hours a week. Seth Bannon just had to juggle too much at one time. I think this is why most investors, including YC, frown on single founders vs startups with multiple founders. This problem is also probably why YC funded companies like Gusto, so founders can outsource that part of running a startup.
- outericky 8y ago
  YC companies like Gusto because it's awesome (and is a YC company). Unfortunately, Gusto was founded 2 years after Amicus I believe. But there were other options out there. At my first company i set up Paychex. And while terrible to maintain, did all the withholding/payroll for us.
katzgrau 8y ago
Agree on the incompetence piece, but not because cause it's easy. The incompetence lies in the CEO not delegating that to a bookkeeper and/accountant. They're not even that expensive. I'm one to talk because I made the same mistake, thinking I could do it all with quickbooks. Three anxiety filled years later I wised up and got a bookkeeper (in addition to my accountant) .
- mark212 8y ago
  you probably did okay with it, but the better metric is to think of all those hours wasted struggling with financials and compare it to the cost of a bookkeeper. (Speaking here from the same experience, btw)

ajiang 8y ago

Honestly I wouldn't downplay complexity of this stuff. Anyone can Google one item, but there are hundreds of items you need to stay on top of. Missing one could mean a massive liability. The takeaway should be that if it is not your forte, outsource to an expert or spend a lot of time on it to make sure you get it right.

dumbfounder 8y ago
Yeah, you don't know what you don't know. You are going to miss something if it isn't your main focus and you are not experienced. Outsourcing this stuff is cheap, you just plain gotta do it at that level.
- stickfigure 8y ago
  If you have employees, "payroll taxes" are such an obvious concern that nobody can possibly claim ignorance. And there are a zillion startups out there that will automate payroll for you - it really makes no sense to DIY it. I'm going with incompetence.

chaostheory 8y ago

I think it's easy to judge people for their mistakes. There's only so much time and energy an individual can do with 120 hours a week. Seth Bannon just had to juggle too much at one time. I think this is why most investors, including YC, frown on single founders vs startups with multiple founders. This problem is also probably why YC funded companies like Gusto, so founders can outsource that part of running a startup.

outericky 8y ago
YC companies like Gusto because it's awesome (and is a YC company). Unfortunately, Gusto was founded 2 years after Amicus I believe. But there were other options out there. At my first company i set up Paychex. And while terrible to maintain, did all the withholding/payroll for us.

katzgrau 8y ago

Agree on the incompetence piece, but not because cause it's easy. The incompetence lies in the CEO not delegating that to a bookkeeper and/accountant. They're not even that expensive. I'm one to talk because I made the same mistake, thinking I could do it all with quickbooks. Three anxiety filled years later I wised up and got a bookkeeper (in addition to my accountant) .

mark212 8y ago
you probably did okay with it, but the better metric is to think of all those hours wasted struggling with financials and compare it to the cost of a bookkeeper. (Speaking here from the same experience, btw)