POST CATEGORY : Entrepreneurs

Working On Your Business, Not At It

work on your small businessSo corporate life isn’t cutting it and you decide to become an entrepreneur. You translate your idea into a business plan, raise a little capital and start executing your plan. You quickly learn that growth takes longer than anticipated and costs are more than budgeted. So to keep your net profits as high as possible, you take on more and more responsibility for the day-to-day execution of the plan.

But soon funny things start to happen. Your persistence starts to pay off. The phone rings more regularly. Referrals start coming in, sometimes from sources you don’t even recognize! And now you have a new problem.…

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How “Small” Is Your Small Business?

According to a recent SBA press release, there is a proposal to revise the definition of small businesses. This redefinition of how “small” a business is, is in accordance with the Small Business Act. The establishment of size standards has two considerations.

how small is your small business

The first one is that it should have variance depending on industries to account for the differences between them and the second is that the policies set forth by the Small Business Administration should be for further help to small business concerns by encouraging them and reinforcing competitiveness. Small business concerns are defined by the Small Business Act as one that “is independently owned and operated which is not dominant in its field of operation”.…

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6 Tips For Making Sure Your Small Business Succeeds

tips for small business success

Starting a new business is an exhilarating experience. It’s like going out on a first date. Your toes get all tingly, you try to dream of every mishap that could happen and you try your hardest to make it work. And like dating, it’s possible that it could have disastrous results.

In fact, according to the SBA, “two-thirds of new employer establishments survive at least two years, and 44 percent survive at least four years.” For a newbie in the business industry, it might cause you to rethink and falter but in reality, awareness and a definite action plan may just be the key for your venture to succeed.…

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25 Million Small Businesses May Have Zero Employees, But They Contribute to Our Economy

In a recent interview on Barbara Weltman’s “Build Your Business” Radio Show, Anita Campbell of Small Business Trends shared some interesting statistics about small businesses.

She mentioned that roughly 79% of US companies have no employees. Yet, these same businesses, over 25 million, provide full or part time employment for their owners.   So, why does “everyone insist that these types of small businesses don’t contribute to jobs?”   Campbell says that they should be counted. After all, that’s 25 million people NOT in the unemployment line.

25 million small businesses have zero employees

She adds that jobs aren’t everything-when measuring the impact of the smallest, small businesses.   Regardless of what you think of their impact, single employee companies contribute to our economy as they buy products and purchase services.  …

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Take Your Banker Out to Lunch

Starting a small business means having as many allies as possible and few allies are as important to new business owners as the banker.

build a relationship with your banker

It always pays to be on the good side of the person who has a say over whether or not your emerging business will be extended the loan it needs to get through the initial stages. Well as you might already know, it’s important to be on the good side to anybody that influences your business in any type of way.

Here’s a tip: Take your banker out to lunch and build a relationship with them.

For years, entrepreneurs and company associates have taken clients to lunch as a way to either establish a potential relationship or strengthen a rapport that had already existed.…

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Why Maintaining A Business Is Like Maintaining Relationships

maintaining a business is like maintaining relationships

Maintaining a business is very much like keeping a relationship. It’s a two-way street; it’s about giving and taking. Since Valentine’s Day is today, I won’t be dispensing with the usual tips, advices and general opinion about business. Instead, I will be discussing what I have personally observed and experienced on how relationships and business operations are more alike than they seem to be.

On Giving Special Attention

Businesses and relationships have the tendency to demand your utmost attention that at times, it may seem draining. But you know for a fact that both are attention-seekers and you have to fulfill that craving because you just don’t run a business for fun, you do it because it ignites what you are passionate about.…

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Is Your Small Business Ready to Go Global?

The National Export Initiative is an encouragement for small businesses to give aid in tapping into the global marketplace. Exporting is a great opportunity, however small business owners need further assistance before jumping into this with both feet. According to the Global Entrepreneurship and Development Index (GEDI), the United States ranks third in the field of entrepreneurship. In the quest to grow your business, it is not surprising that you want to take it to the next level.

doing business on a global scale

Exporting your products and services to other countries denotes that your client base has grown to include the international market. This is growth for your business.…

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Five Ways to Tell the Recession is Over

recession recovery0

One of the largest recessions in recent history has been plaguing our economy and impacting the worldwide market for over four years. With unemployment rates still high, market shares making vague, inconsistent progress, and a record number of homes in foreclosure, the question on everyone’s mind is: when will this recession end?

Unfortunately, as people with online finance degrees will tell you, the only way to determine the exact point at which the economy starts its recovery is by living through the tough times and studying the records once it’s over. However, in the meantime there are a few indicators you can use to figure out when the economy is starting to recover and the recession has an end in sight.…

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Business Leader vs. Thought Leader, Can You Be Both?

thought leadership vs business leadershipSome people think that it is easy being the CEO of a certain company. They think it’s all about delegating tasks to your employees. And since you’re “the boss” you could pretty much do nothing except point out employees’ mistakes and get an occasional headache when the numbers don’t add up. Those in the business of leadership, know better.

It’s not just about assigning tasks to someone and then kicking off your shoes to place your feet on your desk all day, waiting for employees to deliver. It is about thinking of ways to sustain the value of your business. It is about handling complex issues, synergism and finding new ways to develop opportunities.…

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Don’t Be Disillusioned By These 5 Business Myths

small business myths There was a time when entrepreneurs were all hankering for advice from anyone and anywhere. Now, everyone seems to know everything about operating and starting a new business that those who plan to start their own business become disillusioned. Truth be told, gurus of small business started out with probably as much hesitation and uncertainty as the next person.

Starting a business is a trial and error process. Business gurus, whether self-proclaimed or not, become such because of tirelessly working to be better, to be well ahead in the game. Business gurus learn how to weed the myths from the realities of starting and operating a business.…

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