Small Business Minute #10 – Work Life Balance

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One of the biggest challenges entrepreneurs face doesn’t have anything to do with revenues or expenses, but has everything to do with achieving that elusive goal of Work Life Balance.

Starting a business requires a total commitment and dedication over an extended period of time because overnight successes are very rare.

Fortunately for most of us, we are blessed with a significant other who is willing to support our ambitions for extended periods of time but we must also live up to our end the deal and this is the challenge.… Read More

Small Business Minute #9 – The Blame Game

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Successful entrepreneurs rarely engage in the Blame Game. The Blame Game is when anything negative happens it’s always someone else’s fault and never theirs.

You see at the end of the day, we make the decision to proceed down a given path even when we’ve consulted or solicited input other professionals. And once we have gathered as much information as we think we’ll need, it is then we make the decision to proceed or not proceed.… Read More

Small Business Minute #8- Checklists

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Successful entrepreneurs have long learned that identifying internal deficiencies can increase profitability far more quickly than the chasing new ideas.

These owners do not like waste. Wasted time, wasted effort equals wasted profits. Doing something over again because of carelessness, doesn’t sit well with them.

We’re all human

I’m not talking about the occasional mistake, heck, we’re all human. What I’m talking about is those recurring situations where individuals are just not paying attention, like sending a technician out after a job has be completed to adjust a setting or flip a switch that should have been done at the time of the initial install.… Read More

Small Business Minute #7 – Growth For The Sake Of Growth

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Growth for the sake of growth is a dangerous strategy for most small businesses. By making revenue generation the prime mission of the company, it fails to take into account how the rest of the organization will execute the product or service delivery of the increased sales.

Risks

Assuming that everything else in the company will expand naturally as revenue grows, is wishful thinking.… Read More

Small Business Minute #6 – What Made Us Successful?

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At one time or another, many owners are faced with a business that has stalled out, and often it’s a simple matter of a sluggish economy and with a little patience things recover and growth resumes.

Look under the hood

For others though, their business has just plateaued and are at a loss as to how to regain their rhythm and push through to next level.… Read More

Small Business Minute #5 – Domain Based Email

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Nothing undermines your professionalism more than using one of the many free email services available today.

Being in business is hard enough. On a daily basis we are faced with numerous challenges that keep us awake at nigh.  We struggle to take our business to the next level and yet we penalize ourselves by not taking care of some of the simple no brainer activities.… Read More

Small Business Minute #4 – Networking

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One of the hardest skills business owners have to learn is Networking. People regularly comment on how adept I am at networking and it usually makes me chuckle. Yes I can network now with relative ease but it wasn’t always that way. I used to hate it!

The high school dance all over again

It wasn’t that long ago that I would absolutely dread going to a networking event, as I would spend most of the event wandering aimlessly through the crowd pretending to be looking for someone or worse stand at the back or the side scanning the crowd hoping to see someone, anyone I knew.… Read More

Small Business Minute #3 – Just Because You’re Struggling, Doesn’t Mean You’re Failing

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Going into business is easy, running a business is hard and until we get in it we don’t realize how very hard it is. Oh sure we talk a good game by telling people that we know it will be difficult but that the hard work will pay off in the long run. The reality is, we haven’t got the foggiest idea of what lays ahead.… Read More

Small Business Minute #2 – Idea Validation

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Validating your idea, is one of the best pieces of advice I can give start-ups as well as existing business owners. This one item should be at the top of your to do list if you’re considering starting a new business or thinking of adding a new product or service to your existing operation.
You may think it’s a great idea and all your friends and family nod their heads in agreement, but frankly they don’t matter.… Read More

Small Business Minute #1 – Your Ideal Customer

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Building a business is hard work and not for the faint of heart. It’s where Survival of the Fittest rules the day. In an effort to be one of the survivors, many small business owners make the strategic error of trying to make everyone their customer. In other words, trying to be everything to everyone.

Although the idea is forged on their belief that having everyone as their customer, will allow them to maximize their revenue when in fact it actually works against them.

… Read More

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