If your business is going through some struggles, you are not alone. The last couple of years have been filled with tremendous challenges for businesses to navigate. Covid altered the landscape and forced businesses to reinvent themselves on the fly just to stay alive. Just ask any travel agent, hotel, airline, or entertainment venue for example. And while tourism in the Peach State has largely sprung back where I live, all businesses continue to see issues with rising interest rates and problems with hiring and retaining employees, whose mindset about life and work was transformed by the pandemic.
Even if you have a great online business, sometimes things beyond our control still get in the way. When this happens, you can find yourself struggling to hold onto hope and have faith. For people of faith, it’s important to remember that “we triumph in our troubles, knowing that trouble produces endurance, endurance produces character, and character produces hope.” As written in Romans 5:3-4, hope is essential in overcoming struggle. This gives us the ability to take action and find a path that works to grow past the obstacles.
When tough times hit, one avenue to help you navigate the uncertainty is to hire a registered agent. It may not be the catch-all solution that works for every problem that could hurt your business. But, depending on what type of business you have, it could help in a few ways.
What is a registered agent?
A registered agent is an individual that is legally responsible for the receipt and handling of any documents that are addressed to a particular business. Essentially, this person is the point of contact for any entities, including the state government, that want to reach out to your business. Communications like tax forms and legal notices fall under the wing of the registered agent, who will then forward such documents to the business owner.
You can actually register yourself as the agent for your business. However, this is not recommended because of liability and security. You can hire a registered agent from a commercial agent service that specializes in this or designate an employee or trusted individual. You will have to file a form with your state, although commercial agents will usually have this procedure covered.
How can having a registered agent help your business? Here are a few ways.
1. Aiding in Legal Matters
If the problem being faced by your business is legal compliance, a registered agent can help you get back on the right track by ensuring that you get prompt notifications and timely documentation. Whenever you have to manage legal action and government paperwork, a registered agent ensures that this process is efficient and secure. Obligations in terms of regulatory filing and taxes become much easier to meet this way.
Check out your state for companies to help with this. For example, if you’re wondering how to find a registered agent in Georgia, you can actually make use of commercial services that specialize in providing expert agents. This is a safer and more reliable route than trying to screen one yourself. There are multiply options in the state, including ZenBusiness, Incfile, and Northwest.
2. Providing Guidance
Although the role of a registered isn’t necessarily for counsel, their know-how leads to valuable insight that can guide you on the right path. God often instils wisdom within us by pointing us in the direction of those who have experienced exactly what we need to learn.
Complex legalities and managing records are easier to tackle when you have an expert that can support you in these matters. It’s especially helpful if you find yourself having to restructure your business to address the challenges you are facing. They may often even refer you to other experts that can help, such as accountants, consultants, or lawyers. Proverbs 6:6 asks you to consider the wisdom of the hard-working ant in terms of work ethic, and this applies just as well when making active decisions to seek out the proper support.
3. Ensuring Business Continuity
Business suffers when you try to be in every place at once. When you try to go all out on both work and family life, you ironically make it harder for yourself managing both. If you want your business to succeed without sacrificing your family life, you need to make certain adjustments that free up your time and energy.
In our guide on ‘How to Manage Your Side Hustle and Family Life So You Don’t Go Insane’, we talk about creating new time and avoiding workaholism. Getting up earlier, carving out a day for personal rest, and creating a clear line between work and life is essential. One good thing about having a registered agent is that it allows business continuity even when you are not “in the office.” You can actually dedicate some time away from work without worrying about missing out because a registered agent will forward any pertinent documents and information to you. When you feel more fulfilled at home, you have more energy to focus on necessary business tasks during work hours.
4. Improving Coordination
Poor coordination between people or teams can truly hurt a business. A lot of businesses fail or lose a ton of money because of a lack of communication. In fact, a David Grossman survey revealed that an average of $62.4 million is lost every year by companies due to “inadequate communication to and between employees.”
A registered agent can aid in communications as they act as an official point of contact for any individual or entity that wants to address things to your business. They not only organize and manage documents that are mailed to you but they also forward communications in an efficient and timely manner. In doing so, they can help you stay on top of things when it comes to essential coordination.
A survey of American businesses found that a lot of small business owners have felt pessimistic in the last year. It’s important not to fall into this trap, as this is essentially a slippery slope that turns you away from God’s plan. When you don’t allow negativity to erode your sense of self and business, you can make a more actionable plan that actually allows you to tackle the problems faced by your operations.
Leave a Comment or Answer a Question Below: Do you have an agent in your company functioning in this capacity? If so, how has it helped or hurt you? What challenges are you currently facing in your business? What is the biggest obstacle to your success?
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