I think we are always surprised when we meet founders that have no idea how much it's going to cost to build their business and run it for the first year. On the other hand we also meet people that have amazingly detailed spreadsheets full of huge projections that have no idea what their first months rent will be.

A good startup budget is a brass tacks document. It's written by a founder that has worked out what all the desks, laptops, licenses and even the coffee pot will cost. If we could give you any advice it would be "be methodical". Don't guess what you will be spending, actually go and find out.

Sometimes it can be hard to know if you have forgotten anything. For that reason we created a document you can download here: Budget Template

Your startup budget is an incredibly liberating document. Once you know what you are going to spend you know what you have to earn! Revisit your budget regularly and track your actual performance.

Use your budget to drive you towards success. Make sure to keep records of your sales and spending in a spreadsheet. At the end of the year you can hand that spreadsheet to your accountant as this will help them to produce your statutory accounts.