(Add to Favorites | View All Articles | Resource Directory)
|
|
|
What Happened to the Money and Freedom?
Ask anyone trapped in a cubical about their entrepreneurial dream and they will tell you, "I want to own my own business. I'll make more and have more time." Only 2% of small business owners (SBOs) live that dream. The other 98% find their businesses owning them. They work more hours and have less money. They experience more stress, and feel even more trapped. What happened to the dream? What happened to the money? What happened to the freedom? First, the average SBO has no idea how to make money. No clue. They THINK they do. They believe the crowds will fight their way to the door of their business, but it rarely happens. Success, however, is not an accident. It's no more an accident than getting a college degree or a recording contract. Here's the "secret" to making money in business? 1) Providing a service or product the market can't live without. 2) Locating "lost" money in the business. 3) Protecting the business from financial vampires. Second, once they start the business SBOs become control freaks and fear that relinquishing one minute will spell disaster. They equate time with results when they are actually independent factors. At times a thirty-second decision could produce millions. It's not the time that counts, but relevant action. It's better to work one relevant hour than ten irrelevant ones. Most SBOs never learn this. They worry about being at the office too much, or not enough. They worry about "not being there" for every tiny decision. Third, the typical SBO would rather whine than work. "I tried to call some vendors, but I couldn't get through." "I put in 60 hours, what is it going to take?" "If I had better help this business would turn around." There's no doubt that small business owners across the planet are putting in a lot of hours, but are they engaging in high profit activity? How can SBOs gain the money and freedom they dream about? 1. Do only the essentials. Train the staff to do the rest. 2. Focus on proven profit centers. Stop experimenting. 3. Work without whining. Don't make excuses, make money. Paul Evans is the managing partner of http://www.Embattled.net. Embattled helps small business owners make more money and find more time to do what they enjoy.
MORE RESOURCES: News provided by Yahoo! News and Google News New Wells Fargo Survey: Small Business Owners Expect Increased Revenues, More Hiring for 2012 Wilmington council considers small biz help along with ballpark - WWAY NewsChannel 3 Small Business Hiring Intentions Best Since January 2008 Small Biz Owners: Big Businesses, Millionaires Not Paying Fair Share - OMB Watch You’re the Boss Blog: A Weekly Roundup of Small-Business News Small-Business Owners More Optimistic About Growth -Survey This Week in Small Business: Jobs! #1 Amazon Web Marketing Bestseller, Content Is Cash, Nominated For 2012 Small ... - PR Web (press release) |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Most Franchises Are Small Home Businesses Many of our nations 400,000 franchisees run their businesses out of their homes and therefore their home addresses and phone numbers are listed in the Unifrom Franchsie Offering Circular's, attachments. Uniform Franchise Circulars, UFOC, are for franchise buyers and they explain the investment involved. Alliances: Drawing The Line How far can you go based on your relationship with an alliance partner?The imaginary line you draw in the sand will let you know when an alliance is getting close to failing. I would suggest setting the line a little higher than the disaster point. Postcards Make It Rain Referrals One of the simplest ways to expand your marketing efforts is through the consistent use of postcards. Create a list of narrowly targeted prospects and then hammer away at them with powerful marketing messages. How to Give Informative Talks Why should you do informative talks to smaller groups?Informative talks to smaller groups allow you more intimacy with the audience. You will be able to more closely connect with their needs and their responses to your speech. From Birth to Death Your product is dying. With the same inevitability that we humans move ever closer to death, so does every software application move towards its eventual demise. Cost Effective Franchise Regulations, Come again The Franchise Group at the Federal Trade Commission in all their ego and glory has proclaimed that franchise disclosure laws are "Cost Effective." I hate to break it to the FTC, but your comments and court are completely naked. Measuring Your Way to Success Are you a motivational speaker who consistently gets rave reviews yet your ratio of speaking to return rate is not where you would like it to be? Perhaps you are a trainer whose delivery is complimented time and again, and yet you are only being asked by 10 to 20% of the clients you see for a repeat performance?Are you starting to think that there is something wrong with your message or delivery despite the rave reviews? Maybe you were wondering if your fee is too steep. That may be a valid concern when organizations are faced with discretionary spending, but the rule of thumb is that you are only charging too much if more than 1 in 5 people complain about it. Where To Get Money For a Franchise Idea How often have you thumbed through a business opportunity magazine, noticed a franchise opportunity advertisement, and felt you'd really like to get in on that.. The Virtual Assistant As a small business owner, outsourcing work to Virtual Assistants is fast becoming a popular and intelligent decision. The business owner saves enormous amounts of money by cutting the costs of offices and equipment overhead as well as expensive benefits packages. PR - Cheaper than Advertising and may be more effective Your business is only as good as the number of people who knows about it. For your venture to grow, you need to start spreading the word about your business. Bogus Investor and Consumer Complaints and Consumer Misrepresentation Like most regulatory bodies in the United States, the Federal Trade Commission gets investor and consumer complaints. But how much of these are actually real? These agencies then act on such complaints and increase regulations. Why is My Restaurant Not Full Every Monday Night? In a quest for customers and to keep those customers, restaurants are now compelled to develop a marketing plan. Marketing plans are a crucial component for anyone who has the desire to make their restaurant a success. If you have to do everything yourself, you're not doing it right The air in my client's office nearly crackled with her irritation. A scheduling snafu had left a client without important services. Trailblazer Interview with Diane J. Levin, Partnering Solutions Today is a Red Letter Day! It's special because today is the first edition of the Trailblazer Interviews.You'll meet some of the most fascinating, talented folks in the ADR world who I call Trailblazers. Mobile Car Washes and Shoe Policies Mobile carwashing is hard work, it is tough on the your body and it pays to have athletic type shoes that do not get wet easily. Sometimes rapid pace car washing in parking lots can be a lot like playing basketball, except you are on a slippery and uneven surface. Failure is not an option You may find this Newsletter a little long winded but it's for a good cause: It's all designed for Your Success!One of my favorite quotes is by Alfred d'Souza. It goes like this:"For a long time it had seemed to me that life was about to begin, real life. Small Business Checks - Money Saving Options When you go into business for yourself, there are many things to consider. What you don't want to worry about is spending too much money on unnecessary items. Without a plan, your business has a 92% chance of failing Before you start a business we encourage you to prepare a business plan. Without it your business has a 92% chance of failing within the first 12 months. Tell Me a Story: A Simple But Powerful Tool to Build Your Business Everyone loves a good story. Whether it's the story of your vacation to an exotic place, the story of how you met your spouse, or the story of your small business, people get drawn in and feel involved. 10 Ways to Start a Business on a Budget If you've been thinking about starting a business, but are held back due to cash-flow issues, there are plenty of ways you can get your plans off the ground. Though your vision may be to own a big store, restaurant, warehouse, or office, consider starting on a smaller scale.
|
| Home | Site Map | Privacy Statement | More Articles |
| © 2006 |