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7 Habits of Highly Successful Small Business Owners
Do you spend every waking minute in your business? Do you find it difficult to take time out for you? Are you constantly working in a mess?
Unfortunately there are far too many business owners working too long and too hard. They tend to be...
Best Small Investment Ever!
Why is it that the older and richer people become, the more conservative they are with their money? Have you ever done or know someone who has made an investment that promised a 10% interest or profit per month? Everyone wants to make above average...
How To Add Fresh Content To Your Website
I've read over and over that when it comes to building a website and getting a lot of traffic to it "Content Is King." If you do a search for any topic you will find the websites that come up in the Top 10 all have a lot of content on their...
The Big Picture: 5 Questions that Can Boost your Business
As business managers, entrepreneurs, and Webmasters, we strive for unobtainable perfection. Why do I say unobtainable? Because when we focus on perfection in one area, we forego attention elsewhere. Limited money and time mean you must choose...
Time Management Tips - How to Have a Filing System That Works
Recently I was working with a new client who had invested hundreds of dollars for a records management organisation to set up a filing system for his business.
The system looked impressive. The only problem was it didn't work! It had been...
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The Care and Feeding of Your Small Business
While I was hard at work last week, an everyday drama was
playing out in a hospital room in the next town. My niece was
working on presenting me with a new great nephew. Tyler James
came into the world Thursday afternoon, mother and child are
both doing well. Naturally, I am able to discern at this early
stage that the child is adorably cute, remarkably bright, and
very advanced for his age. Takes after his Great Aunt, I'm sure.
Now, watch how I turn this blessed, private family event into a
small business parable--hopefully the child didn't inherit my
one track mind.
Young Tyler received the pre-birth gifts of two pairs of baby
shoes. Then, he was born with big puppy feet. Already he has
outgrown at least one pair of his new shoes. By the end of the
week, I suspect the other pair will be much too snug as well.
Two things are sure with babies and small businesses, Growth
Happens and Change is Inevitable. Your infant soon becomes a
toddler who soon becomes an adolescent. Each stage of growth
brings different challenges and opportunities.
The key is to anticipate the growth before it happens and
prepare for the challenges before they develop. Tyler, like your
business, will grow. His needs will change and his parents will
need to change with him. Many of the challenges to be faced are
not anticipate-able. But many are.
When you start your business, your main concern is survival.
Often small businesses don't make it through the first year and
by year four many more have succumbed to the pressures and harsh
realities of the small business climate. It is classic
Darwinism--survival of the fittest at its most basic level.
Businesses
that are well capitalized, well run, serving
flourishing markets, and executing a solid business plan have
the best chance of survival.
And then there is the rest of us. Struggling along, trying to
figure things out as we go. Anticipating the changes makes the
trip much easier, and makes for successful businesses. My own
business has taken just such a trip over the years. And yes, I
have many "if only's". If only I had done this then, how much
farther along my business would be. If only I hadn't handled
that situation like that, how much better my business would have
run. Sometimes the "if only's" outweigh the successes.
Consider the stage your business is at. Is it a newborn needing
protection and nurturing? Is it struggling to stand on its own
feet? Is it rocked by rapid fire changes and needing a firm
foundation? What can you do to help your business through
whatever stage it is in? What can you do to prepare your
business for its next phase of life?
Your business and my nephew will go through predictable growth
stages. Business owners and parents each start out with the
wonder and excitement of new birth, struggle through the early
work-intensive years, seek balance during the intermediate
years, get tossed about by the turbulence of adolescence, and
someday, through the grace of God, are able to stand back and
say, "My work has paid me handsomely."
About the author:
Caroline Jordan, MBA helps self employed professionals build
successful businesses, attract clients they enjoy working with,
improve cash flow, and develop additional sources of revenue. To
find out how visit: http://www.TheJordanResult.com
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| United States Small Business Administration |
| An electronic gateway of procurement information for and about small businesses. Search engine for contracting officers, marketing tool for small firms, ... |
| www.sba.gov |
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| SBA |
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| Main Page - SmallBusiness.com - Small Business Resources |
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| Business & Small Business |
| Online and print small business publication. Information to help start, grow or manage a small business. |
| www.entrepreneur.com |
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| Microsoft Small Business Center |
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| The Small Business Advisor - advice for starting and operating a ... |
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| SCORE "Counselors to America's Small Business" |
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| www.score.org |
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| Small Business and Self-Employed One-Stop Resource |
| IR-2006-2, January 3, 2006 - Temporary and proposed regulations will significantly reduce tax filing burden for nearly 950000 small business owners. ... |
| www.irs.gov |
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| Welcome to Small Business BC your business resource in British ... |
| BC Business Services offers assistance and resources for those running or starting a business in British Columbia and Vancouver. |
| www.smallbusinessbc.ca |
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| Small Business Service | Home |
| Provides information and advice to help small businesses realise their potential. |
| www.sbs.gov.uk |
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| NSW Small Business |
| A site developed by the NSW Department of State and Regional Development for small businesses. Topics include management, resources, current issues and ... |
| www.smallbiz.nsw.gov.au |
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| Business Management & Advice: Small Business Resources & Information |
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| Directory categorized by industry with company business card feature. |
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| Our site has moved! Please update your bookmarks! |
| Facilitates the sharing and exchange of information among small business development centers, the small business administration and other business-oriented ... |
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| Small Business Development Corporation |
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