Spent the last while coaching Canadians in their 20s trying to launch their first e-commerce or online business, and the pattern is always the same. It's rarely a lack of capital that kills momentum — it's these three things:

1. Incorporation paralysis. People spend weeks deciding between sole proprietorship vs. incorporating federally vs. provincially before they've made a single sale. Rule of thumb: if you're pre-revenue, stay a sole prop and register a business name. Incorporate once you're consistently clearing $30-40k/year — not before. You can always convert later.

2. Confusing 'building' with 'launching'. Redesigning your logo for the fifth time isn't launching. If you don't have a way for a stranger to pay you today, you don't have a business — you have a hobby with a website.

3. Not knowing GST/HST registration rules. You don't need to register for GST/HST until you cross $30,000 in revenue over four consecutive quarters. A lot of first-timers register on day one and add compliance overhead they don't need yet.

If you're sitting on an idea and haven't started — pick the smallest version of it you can sell this week. Everything else is a distraction.