Recent Blog Posts
Government Shutdown Stifling Small Businesses
With the Government Shutdown still lingering on, I thought it would be better to find information for small business owners.
This article from the The Huffington Post gives reality to some of the problems small business owners are facing: [More]
Government Shutdown Stifling Small Businesses
Are Your Policies Killing Your Business?
In all my years being a customer I have dealt with some pretty ridiculous policies. Policies that cripple businesses by pushing customers away or forcing employees to have their hands tied when it comes to helping customers. It always boggles my mind why you would make it so difficult for a customer to be your customer. They give you money! Without them your business will fail! But hey, these policies were written for a reason, who am I to question them?
Here are some ridiculous policies I’ve come across:
Is the Customer Always Right?
Time and time again we hear "The customer is Always Right!", yet we all know we are not always right nor are our customers. The challenge is to figure out what will create a satisfied customer and over all, the customer deserves to be respected. In Lean training,...
Business Plans Aren’t Set In Stone
Every business should have a business plan. But chances are it won't hold up to reality. What? Why have a business plan then? Business Plans are here for one reason, to get you to think through your business by putting your thoughts on paper so you can see the big...
Niche Building
"You gotta get a niche" is heard over and over and what I've seen is just finding the right micro market can be hard. Realize that most of us have some selected information or knowledge we can share. Using the word NICHE, this is a simple way to start thinking as...
Done is Better Than Perfect
I'm a perfectionist that doesn't have time to be perfect. That drives me bonkers but I've realized it is a battle I will never win. It is true that if I'm allowed or allow myself to have unlimited time to complete a project, lets say a web service, I will never...
Neat Receipts
Raise your hand if you hate that box of receipts you’ve been meaning to put into your financial program for the last 6 months or more. Just kidding, don’t raise your hand we all know I can’t see you anyway.Neat
If you haven’t seen the commercials or seen it in action you are missing out. I can put an expense report with 20 receipts together in less than ten minutes. It can also export into many of your favorite programs like Excel and QuickBooks.
Freebies, Loss Leaders, & Up-sells
Gary owns a parking lot sweeping service. After hours he comes in and cleans parking lots of garbage and rocks. Overall Gary's business is pretty successful. He has steady customers and enough jobs to keep him busy all year but he has hit a plateau. For every customer...
September 16 Tax Deadlines for Businesses – It is just around the weekend!
Corporations - File a 2012 calendar year income tax return (Form 1120 or 1120-A) and pay any tax due. This due date applies only if you made a timely request for an automatic 6-month extension. S corporations - File a 2012 calendar year income tax return (Form 1120S)...
Power Naps
I admit it! I've been taking power naps since I was in college. A power nap in my world is fifteen minutes or less; I do set an alarm although I usually awake before the time I set. The power of napping has been known by many leaders including Thomas Edison, John...