There’s no financial prerequisite for starting a small business. In fact, as many of us would admit, the financial side of managing the business is not our strong suit. At least, not in the beginning.
But like exercising a muscle, paying more attention to your numbers on a regular basis can actually strengthen your “financial IQ.” Not to mention help you avoid all kinds of (unavoidable) trouble—and take advantage of some real opportunities you could be ...
It was almost exactly two years ago when President Obama, in a speech in Buffalo, referred to small businesses as “…the backbone of America’s economy.” A lot of us, including the news media, have repeated similar thoughts on small business until we are absolutely certain that small businesses are single-handedly lifting us out of our economic doldrums. But then we read convincing evidence that makes a very different argument: that small business’s share of—and influence ...
Call it a celebration, call it a relief, just call it over for another year. Your taxes (or extension) are filed, and you
deserve a reward just for making through—again.
Retailers get this, and a number are participating in a growing tradition of tax-day “freebies.” Take a look at the
list below (There are several lists out there – we picked this one up at msnbc.com.) to decide where your own
tax-day celebration may take you.
Be sure to read ...
There’s so much communication going on these days, it’s hard to imagine that anyone needs to be more
skilled at it. After all, aren’t we ‘practicing’ hundreds of times every day, in every conceivable way?
Yes—and maybe. True, there is a lot of information flying around in all directions. It may or may not be
connecting with the intended audience. Often there’s no way to really know. So is that ‘communication’?
What about face-to-face, one-on-one, in-person communication? Intuitively, we’d ...
We recently ran into friends—a couple—who decided to go into the wine business together. Each had had
separate and very different careers, one as a teacher, the other as a software developer. They had long
talked about starting and growing a business together until, finally, the time seemed right to take the leap. It was,
they felt, now or never.
As it turned out, they were in for a lot of surprises. Some they were able to meet head-on ...
Sometimes it’s an event that motivates small business owners to finally write a business plan. Often that
event is the process of getting financing. At that point, scrambling to put a plan together can be a real pain. And your plan probably won’t be as good as it could have been, either.
So whether you’re just getting started or have been in business for awhile, why not put your business plan at the top of your to-do ...
As a small business owner, you may look at reading, even when it’s for business, as an unattainable luxury. What, me read?! On top of everything else I have to do? Maybe between the hours 2:00 and 6:00 am… Sounds familiar.
But the winners of the 2012 Small Business Book Awards reminds us that somehow we’ve got to find time to read some of these great books. We’re really missing out if we don’t!
The Small Business ...
We absolutely love that not only did somebody, somewhere, actually think up ‘Don’t Go to Work Unless It’s Fun’ day, but also that it has managed to make it onto some calendars of special days. The calendar we found it on says, essentially,that if you’re not doing something along the lines of traveling with a circus, tasting ice cream for a living or designing costumes for kittens, you need to take the day off—and hope ...
Given that the Supreme Court is currently hearing arguments regarding the constitutionality of healthcare reform, there are few topics that are more timely—for small business and for all of us—than the effects of healthcare reform on various segments of our society.
Like a lot of other folks, we get frustrated because so much information is thrown around as ‘fact’ that is in truth, distorted or just plain false. And then it’s hard to find the truth. ...
I know we plan to celebrate National Lemon Chiffon Cake Day today (March 29) in a big way. Seriously. You may want to, too. But while you’re doing that, you’ll be interested to know that it’s also National Mom and Pop Business Owners Day, definitely worth celebrating—and acting upon. Be sure to visit and buy from a small business, today,especially. But also a good thing for all of us to keep in mind every day.
In ...
