7 Year-End Accounting Tips for Small Businesses

The holiday season is full of obligations. In the midst of the present buying, Christmas caroling, and tree trimming, make sure you don’t forget about your year-end accounting. Closing the books at the year’s end is an integral part of running a business. Year-end accounting is your way of making sure your business finances are…

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10 Key Components of Every New Venture Strategic Plan

Deciding to be an entrepreneur is a lifestyle move, and should be part of a long-term strategic plan. You shouldn’t be making this decision just because you are mad at your boss, or you would like to be rich, or someone else thinks you have a good idea. In these changing times, if you already…

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And Action!

It seems simple on the surface. You sell something awesome that people really need and want. In theory, all you should have to do is let them know you’re open to selling it to them, right? And yet we’ve all experienced the frustrating situation of having someone tell us that they genuinely want what we…

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Don’t Forget Your Media Mix

Back in the good old days, you could advertise in the daily paper, an outdoor board, on one of the local radio stations or one of three TV channels—a media mix. Today, of course, we don’t have the luxury of that simplicity. Instead of three TV channels, there are over 300. Radio and print have…

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7 Steps to Planning a Corporate Team Building Retreat

Employees are an essential part of every company. Therefore, organizations must ensure they stay motivated and energized. How can companies achieve this? A team-building retreat does more than give employees a day off work. They provide an avenue for strengthening relationships between the employees and the management. However, for a corporate retreat to achieve the…

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5 Most Important Illusions About Startups

Q: What are some illusions about start-ups?  A: here’s my list of the five most important illusions about startups The illusion of the idea. Few businesses have truly new ideas. Apple didn’t; Facebook didn’t; Google didn’t. They took an existing idea and did it better, or differently. Quite often the second or third entrant into…

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Keeping the Office Safe: 5 Ways to Create a Disaster Preparedness Plan

Human resource professionals can ensure the safety of employees by making sure that everyone is aware of what to do should an emergency occur. Global warming and climate change have contributed to unfathomable natural disasters. Consequently, an emergency could strike at anytime and anywhere. Organizational leaders must develop emergency preparedness plans to prepare for when…

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Started a Small Business? Now What?

Congratulations! You’ve started your business! After that burst of excitement and glee comes all the considerations; you might be worrying about your responsibilities, taxes, government compliance and reporting deadlines. Here’s a quick start guide to help you work through these elements. First, celebrate that you’ve started something you’ve been considering and bringing it into reality!…

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Caution: 3 Main Reasons for Business Failures

Running out of money Lack of planning Growing too fast There are countless scare stories out there and it’s true, many businesses don’t make it in the long run, but according to the SBA, only 30% of new businesses fail during the first two years of being open, 50% during the first five years and…

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7 Keys to Balancing Profits Versus a Higher Purpose

It’s always been tough to start a new business, even when the bottom line was just making a profit to stay alive. A few years ago, a second focus of sustainability (“green”) was added as a requirement for respectability. Now I almost always hear a third mandate – social responsibility. Entrepreneurs are now measured against…

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