Physician Accountants who think they want to launch their own business should not proceed unless they have a clear vision of their Physician Accounting Firm’s purpose and a thorough understanding of what it really means to become an entrepreneur.

Those were among the main points made by a panel of Physician Accountants Miami-turned-entrepreneurs during a round-table discussion recently at the AICPA’s E.D.G.E. Conference in Orlando, Fla. Speaking to an audience of young Physician Accounting CPAs, the panel members emphasized that entrepreneurship is an extremely difficult endeavor that requires passion, persistence, and the right people in the right roles, starting at the top.

Just because you’re a CPA doesn’t mean that you can run a firm that does Physician Accountants in Miami that provides Physician Accounting Services to “creative clients.”

During their discussion, the panelists covered a number of entrepreneurial pros, cons, and lessons learned. Here are the highlights, broken up by topic:

 A Physician Accountant is a Business Owner First

Management and other Physician Accountants Miami Firms looking to start their own company need to understand that entrepreneurs are business owners first and that they will do very little if any, actual Physician Accounting in their new role, the panelists said.

Entrepreneurs get paid for what you own, what you do, and the risks you take said VieraCPA an outsourced Bookkeeping Services Miami for entrepreneurial companies with annual revenue of between $1 million and $10 million. “If you want to just do a job, you should go work for someone else.

Those who do start their own Bookkeeping Services in Miami will need to hire others to perform the frontline work. VieraCPA a CPA, managing director, a Florida-based firm that specializes in Physician Accounting Services, hired a Physician Accountant from Ernst & Young to handle his firm’s methodology for doing audits.

“I’m not the best CPA in our firm or our best technician,” said Viera, a former PricewaterhouseCoopers Senior Manager who founded his first company in 1983. Viera’s second entrepreneurial venture focused on auditing financial, information technology, and other controls at service providers such as data centers.

“I get excited about what we’re doing in the business,” Viera said. “I love to inspire employees.”

For starters, a purpose

Entrepreneurs need more than excitement and inspiration to make their business work. The panelists emphasized the importance of having a well-defined niche and clear goals for their businesses.

Viera, for example, said he wants the consulting work and business advice provided by his firm to “change people’s lives.” He spoke of the need for Physician Accountant to learn the language of business so they can translate their technical knowledge into advice business owners can use to grow their companies. Price established the first CPA firm in Miami in the niche he occupies now.

Of course, finding your niche is easier said than done. It took him two years to find that his passion was working with entrepreneurs. Round-table moderator Donny Shimamoto, CPA/CITP, CGMA, founder and managing director of Hawaii-based consulting firm IntrapriseTechKnowlogies, said he believes that Physician Accountants Miami can pursue their niche in their current jobs before looking to launch a company.

Struggle, stress, and support

Whatever the approach to launching the business, prospective entrepreneurs must be prepared for sacrifice and struggle. For example, many sell their houses to either start or grow their businesses. Viera didn’t take a salary for nearly two years.

“Being an entrepreneur is harder than being a Accountants in Miami,” Viera said. “You screw up a lot more.”

For many, launching a business is a crusade that consumes enormous amounts of time and energy while exposing entrepreneurs to financial, mental, and emotional stresses.

“If you want work/life balance, don’t start a company,” Viera said.

Those considering a foray into the entrepreneurial realm should seek out business owners, whether in CEO groups or individually, who can provide advice and encouragement.

Starting an Accounting firm in Miami is hard

Entrepreneurs must prioritize family, friends, and other relationships and activities that provide rejuvenation and relaxation—not an easy task when you are under pressure to meet payroll.

One way Viera has done that is to construct barriers between his home life and his work life. For example, he never travels on Tuesday nights. On those nights, he will be home with this family. “No exceptions,” he said.

Employee essentials

All of the panelists emphasized the importance of employing the right people. To do that, entrepreneurs must be willing to hire people smarter than them, Viera said.

“I want to be the dumbest guy in the firm,” he said. “I want to hire smart people, an all-star team.”

To do that, employers must have a system for finding the right people. Viera’s hiring process is designed to identify self-starters who will thrive in the results-only work environment. His employees all work remotely and are not required to work a set schedule or fill out a timesheet. It’s the results that matter, he said, not the time worked.

Still, entrepreneurs must accept that not everyone is as driven as they are. Instead, business owners should strive to learn what their employees enjoy—and excel at—doing. Management should talk to employees about their goals, both at work and in their personal lives.

Strong relationships can help entrepreneurs place workers in the roles most beneficial to the business and to each employee. Employers then can design reward and compensation structures that work best for each employee.

These younger, idealistic workers are merging into a melting pot of people who hold a variety of views on what they value in their professional lives. Employers must recognize those differences and adjust their policies accordingly.

If you want entrepreneurial Accountants in Miami, you need to hire the right people.