When you’re in the process of launching a business, you’re learning as you go. You have no choice; you have no previous experience of the nuts and bolts of setting up a business, so a certain amount of learning on the fly is required.

While this approach can be necessary, it’s not particularly helpful. Every new business owner knows this, and spends their time trying to overcome their inexperience, making the right decisions rather than being led down a wandering path. Nevertheless, it can and does happen — no business has ever been able to get everything 100% correct from the start.

If you’re in the process of launching your business, you’re likely on the lookout for mistakes — so that you can avoid them. Below are five different classic “rookie” errors for those who are new to the business world; by avoiding these, you can be reasonably confident your business is in good shape.

1. Over-Hiring

Many businesses start out with employees from the start, which is fine — sometimes, hiring is necessary to ensure your business gets a good start. If you have got a decent budget, it can seem tempting to hire anyone you think you might need to get your business off the ground.

If you take this idea too far, then only one thing is going to result: you’ve hired too many people. Be circumspect in the number of people you hire and the salaries you offer. While it’s good to think big and want to hire experts in each area, it’s more important you get your business off the ground and start generating turnover. When you have accomplished that, then you can hire whoever you might want.

2. “Making Do” With Software

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When it comes to managing your operational process, it can be tempting to just make do with whatever free or cheap software you can lay your hands on. It’s tempting to try and convince yourself that plenty of businesses can get by with open source software or using the Google Drive suite; so why can’t you?

To put it simply: this thought process isn’t going to work. It’s vital that from your launch day, you have the right business management systems in place. These are the foundation of your business, the beginning of record-keeping and being able to monitor progress — don’t scrimp here, because it will cost you dear in the future.

3. Offending Freelancers

When you reach out to freelancers to help with your launch, it’s imperative that you avoid offending them. Business owners, especially rookies, tend to misunderstand the cost of a freelancer. Freelancers set their rates at an amount they need to earn; it can be offensive if you try to undercut this because your budget is tight.

Many companies have a tendency to offer work to a freelancer and say it will be good for their “exposure”. Don’t be that kind of business owner. Exposure isn’t going to pay their bills. If you need experienced freelancers to help with your launch, then budget to pay them what they’re worth.

4. Being Overly Optimistic With Timescales

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Pick a date when you think your business will be ready to launch. Got one? Great.

Now set your launch date for two weeks after that.

Launches are always delayed, so take this into account when planning your launch event. There is always a kink in the supply chain, a problem with your tech, or any one of a thousand other ways your launch could suffer a setback. Give yourself that extra leeway that you’re inevitably going to need, so you can launch your business in the right way, when you’re ready.

5. Taking On Too Much, Too Soon

When a business is in its infancy, you’re going to be keen to make it into a success. This can lead to taking on more business than you can reasonably deliver; after all, you’re not going to want to turn down a potentially lucrative future customer.

The truth is that if you’re overloaded, you should be turning work down. This means you can focus on the projects you do have, rather than rushing and potentially making mistakes. Additionally, it gives your business an air of being in demand — never a bad reputation to try and cultivate for any business. Don’t be afraid to turn work down; it’s better to do a small amount of work well, and have satisfied customers, than perform poorly on a number of projects.

By ensuring you avoid the potential potholes as detailed above, your business will hit the ground running.

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