The number in the daydream is never the number on the receipt. In this episode of Optimized Entrepreneur with Jeremy Hanson, startup cost is treated as the whole stack: registration, tools, insurance, first inventory, deposits, marketing, and the cash you need after you open — when revenue is still a rumor.

Initial investment is not only what you spend to start. It is what you must still have so the household and the company can survive the first slow stretch. If the plan only works if month one is perfect, you have not priced the launch. You have priced a hope.

You’ll learn

• What “startup costs” actually include
• Why the obvious line items are not the dangerous ones
• How initial investment differs from the first month’s revenue
• Why working capital belongs in the launch number
• How to look at the ...