Outline the next actions to be taken by the group (things to do, next meeting, etc.). Getting your financial house in order before you start your business can buy you critical time to make a success of your start-up. While speaking at several industry conventions, I surveyed attendees about their …

After defining your exciting vision, specific results must be targeted and quantified. And they don t want ownership. In fact, the borrower s track record and management ability are concerns for bankers evaluating a loan application. Are you too busy to take your best customers to lunch on a regular …

Bottom-up can work well in industries that are relatively new, in situations where the lower tiers possess unique expertise or resources, and when the cost of errors is not prohibitive. How often have you had a vendor submit you a price and never follow up? It s definite, comprehensive, and …

Every business must file tax returns, and most businesses need certain licenses and certifications to do business. Remember that you yourself in contact with your customers count for more than anything else. But most Fortune 500 companies have training systems to ensure they maximize their return on employees. The good …

Certainly you have to be selling your products and services at a profit that will let you sustain the business long-term. Don t show one set of numbers to a banker you re trying to borrow money from and another to a partner you re trying to lure on board …

So what numbers have to add up? They are doubtful about the character or standing of some man with whom they are or may become heavily involved. Do what you want to do first, not last, as unimportant things, challenges, commitments, and your busy life tend to get in the …

Your plan should take notice, however briefly, of the fact that you have received or applied for any necessary licenses and certificates. This process should be taken very seriously, because it can have a tremendous impact on the overall success of your business. We know many successful small-business owners who …

An interesting development has been underway as companies attempt to develop special tools for handling these problems. They demand and get from almost all new product makers slotting fees, which are simply payments for the right to be on store shelves. Imagine that it s five years from now. In …

While putting together your numbers, include a capital reserve fund to spend on special projects or to be used for unforeseen emergencies. People do want a fair price, but they also want to know that what they buy is a good value. Divide this total cost by the total number …

Do you anticipate showing your plan to suppliers to demonstrate that you are a worthy customer? A rookie mistake is to make assumptions. But if this was true, everyone would be driving fifteen-year-old Ford Falcons, wearing generic jeans from Wal-Mart, and washing their own cars. Focus on how better players …

Six different excellent and experienced people will still do things six different ways. Leading and getting results starts with communicating your vision, along with specific targets you expect. Following the above lines, and adding thereto good health and steady habits, you cannot fail to be promoted and to rise to …

Seek investors, lenders, consultants, and brokers whom you can trust and build a successful team with. In the early years of your start-up business, you'll almost surely experience a reduction in your take-home income just as you'll also experience the feeling of a lack of security. All businesses have similar …

This is why, as a first-time entrepreneur with limited funds, you should always avoid being the first into a market. Also, once again, you should use the appropriate channels to deliver your message for each niche market where your product is being sold, depending on where your customers hang out …

But don t be seduced. Pay as you go means that all your costs ' whether buying in stock or hiring staff ' are linked to your sales. Young men are desired in these places because of their progressive ideas and capacity to endure work.' Another prominent man who interviewed the heads …

Be quick to change. In this case, even though the margins will be smaller than they would if you were buying larger quantities, you will still make a profit on each sale. It reflects your ideas, intuitions, instincts, and insights about your business and its future and provides the cheap …

Loan covenants, however, may require you to do all sorts of things, from setting a minimum amount of working capital you must maintain to prohibiting you from making certain purchases or signing leases without approval from the bank. There are no set-up fees, no fixed fees, no minimum volumes and …

Plans and loan applications aren t interchangeable, however. After this has gone on for several years, and the financier has backed some percentage of those plans and seen how events have turned out, he or she becomes very good at weeding out plans with inconsistencies or overblown projections and zeroing …

As a business owner, where do you invest the majority of your time? Although many businesses are founded to develop new, never-before-seen products, they re still built around a product, even though it may not exist at the moment. Stocks are a form of equity ownership. That said, be careful …

Your brand represents how you want the world to see you, and it s also how the world does see you. What you GET is a RESULT of what you GIVE! This reliance on good people instead of good company procedures and systems caused lots of field problems, unpredictable quality …

Through your vision, you should express your ideals and what you wish to accomplish on a larger scale than just within your organization. In our experience, however, few people have the knowledge and intuition to be investors in other people's small businesses. It is an appealing idea to create a …

If you are selling to a business customer who does not like the idea of paying upfront, then give them a real financial incentive to do so by offering them a discount off the price, or by giving them a (useful) additional service. So, what is required to make this …

But one cost that didn t seem especially variable went up sharply as business volume climbed. Think of a CPA. The most formidable barrier to progress has always been the senseless opposition of those to whom it would be of the greatest benefit. Most owners don't like sales and prefer …

Ask them what they hope for in their future, what interests them about their job, how you can help them reach their goals, and take an interest in their family and personal life. Every exceptional employee requires three things: money, happiness, and motivation. Investors are looking to back impressive winners …

Yes, this thought is even scarier when you ve put yourself and your uniqueness out there in a vulnerable way. They are relentless and unbending and have to be paid whether you are selling five units or 100 units or even no units at all. The reasons why Bill Gates …

The best use of somebody else s money is to buy or build something that will make more money, both for you and for that person. The Buck Stops Here! And then watch your bottom-line results improve significantly. It is an authority-based model in which managers solicit input from the …

Because positive feedback loops restore equilibrium in their own, often dramatic way, it is sometimes suggested that positive feedback loops occur within a larger, if not directly visible, negative feedback loop. Start by developing a marketing budget. When drafting and evaluating potential mission and vision statements, ask if the opposite …

With secured bonds, the issuer pledges specific assets as collateral in exchange for cash. So what numbers have to add up? Don t brag. If you spend all your marketing money on uniforms for your employees, keeping your facility spick and span, and doing excellent work, you may not achieve …

This creates too much capacity for the total work available in any marketplace, which causes a downward price pressure and a very competitive work environment. Experience has taught them that entrepreneurs who have their own assets at risk are more likely to stick to a business than those who have …

Trust as little as possible to your clerks. Businesses typically pay higher real estate taxes than residents do, while demanding far less in services. Depending on your industry and the software you are using, it may be in your best interest to utilize graphics to enhance the presentation of any …

This area is often not the top priority for most business owners. Plus by then you will have much more experience to be able to make the most of it. If you are waiting on customers, treat the small customer just as courteously as the large one. But until they …

They insist that profits are really the earnings of labor which have been withheld from the laborer by the superior skill and economic strength of the capitalist manager; they are institutional robbery, the exploitation of labor. If you can offer overnight shipping, on-site service, or 24/7 availability, it can …

Even New York City hot dog vendors must be licensed by the city before they can unfurl their carts colorful umbrellas. One way to lead is to offer the best price, service, or quality. Steve Jobs knew long before we did ourselves that we were going to love his products …

Well-thought-out, justified ideas get serious consideration. Ongoing organizational systems will keep your employees headed toward the desired end result. Excellent service is perhaps the most important thing you can add to any product or service today. Outline the next actions to be taken by the group (things to do, next …

But that may not be why they walk through the front door of a store; and without a compelling reason to visit a store many people will shop online. Don't expect others to understand your passion for customers, or quality work, or the need to make a profit. Develop a …

Include the major discussion points and the conclusions reached, and solicit comments, questions, corrections, and clarifications. They make giving back a top priority in their lives. Also, the construction of additional hotel rooms may be called for, causing mortgage payments to increase to a new fixed level. Unless you prepare …

The best way to do this is by creating the most realistic version of one, two, or even three different members of your ideal audience. Finding a mentor or another entrepreneur who has built a business of his or her own can give you the additional insight of experience. A …

Large, multinational businesses have capabilities that small, local businesses do not, but small businesses also perform important economic functions. Have you ever noticed that successful people who have their lives in order are also more active, involved, and generous with charities, their church, and volunteer organizations? If you are doing …

All companies are incomplete and depend for their operations on resources owned or controlled by particular counterparts, whether customers, suppliers, distributors, development partners or public bodies. You must know this number! Profit is financial gain or return from the use of investment capital in your business. Command decision making is …

Being a small-business owner doesn't mean that you have to work 70 hours a week, make a six-figure income, or offer a unique product or service. Because your costs are likely to be much cheaper ' the price of raw materials, office space, and so on are all much more likely …

As businesses begin to grow, they hit challenges and roadblocks, including lack of time, energy, money, people, and customers. It s essential to take criticism with a growth mindset, meaning that you should see every challenge as an opportunity to grow. Does this mean you should ask for a good …