How To Survive Your First Year in Business
What's the best way to create a profitable business? A business you really love that makes the kind of money you really want?Planning, planning, and more planning.Before jumping head-long into a new business, you must lay the foundation for long-term success. A good foundation is rooted in a solid plan.Many new businesses skip what is perhaps the most important part of a solid business plan... assessing individual strengths and weaknesses.But does a self-assured, go-getter such as yourself really need to do a self-analysis? Research has shown that many businesses collapse in their first year because of inadequate planning. A thorough self-assessment is the first step in planning a business which lasts well beyond the first year.What happens if you skip this first step?Picture yourself standing on a grassy knoll looking out upon a desert - a sea of sand. You must cross this desert to reach the cool, refreshing waters on the other side.You begin your journey in the brisk, night air.
The warm sand feels good between your toes. But then, you feel a nip at your feet. It is a creepy creature of the night which has mistaken your curly little toe for a frisky, hopping snack.A thought... should have planned for boots.It then occurs to you that your little toe will become quite curly tomorrow when the sand heats up from the blazing sun.Not a pretty picture, is it? Ya gotta plan. Bare feet at first...
great for comfort. Boots for later on... that's thinking ahead. The questions below will help you to prepare yourself... for business.A.
Why Do You Want To Start Your Own Business?Understanding your motivation helps you to see past the romantic notions of being self-employed. The questions below have no correct answer. They are different for everyone. Just look at your answers critically and evaluate how important they are in choosing to start a business.1. Do you want better work hours? If so, what hours do you want to work? 2.
Do you want to be your own boss? If so, why do you want to be your own boss? e.g. creative freedom, current boss is a Neanderthal, better use of your skills... 3. Do you want to improve your financial condition? If so, by how much? How much income do you want every week? Every month? Every year?4. Does your current job leave you unfulfilled? Why? Can your desire to be self-employed fill this need? In what ways?5.
Do you have a business idea in mind? If so, why did you choose this business? B. Are You Prepared For The Physical and Emotional Demands?A new business can be very demanding. A business owner must wear several hats, be able to switch hats in the blink of an eye, and wear them till the job is done. This can be stressful to your physical and emotional health. The following questions will help you gauge your stamina.1.
Are you prepared to put in long hours to succeed? It's not uncommon for the entrepreneur to work 12 or more hours per day, including weekends.2. Do you have the support of your family? Without that support you are far less likely to succeed. Understand that they must also shoulder additional hardships and responsibilities.3. Are you pursuing a business venture which fills you with excitement? If not, the highs and lows of doing business can effect your well-being. A strong passion for your work is a powerful shield against burn-out, physical illness, or emotional distress.C.
What Skills Are You Bringing To Your Business?Every business requires the application of certain skills to be successful. Without these key skills you run the risk of failure. The important thing is to recognize the areas of your business requiring additional support. These questions will help you identify the skills you possess and those you need to acquire.1. Do you have previous experience in a business similar to the one you're starting? If not, you should research your chosen industry.
It's necessary to understand your market, your customers, and your competitors.2. Are you good at planning and organizing? You must stay on top of things such as your schedule, your promotions, your accounting and financial records, your inventory, etc. Educate yourself, or consider hiring outside help if you feel weak in this area.3. Are you a good decision-maker? Do you work well under pressure? Can you take projects through to their completion? These are essential skills for the small business owner. If you've never worked in a supervisory capacity, you may want to take some specialized training to develop these skills.Follow through on your answers to all of the above questions.
Take action to strengthen your weaknesses. Doing so prepares you to move forward into market analysis and the start-up planning phases of your business. All this preparation will increase your likelihood of surviving the first year in business. It's like buying a great pair of boots for your business..
Pine Cobble Ski & Skate Sale This Friday & Saturday
Williamstown, MA (ContentDesk) November 2, 2005 -- Pine Cobble's Annual Ski & Skate Sale, a Berkshire county tradition, will be held this Friday, Nov. 4, 3 8 p.m. & Sat., Nov. 5, 10 a.m. 2 p.m.
The Pine Cobble sale is one of the largest ski sales in the region and for many area residents, the event marks the unofficial beginning of the winter season.
A large array of the finest state-of-the-art new and gently-used winter sports equipment and accessories will be available at impressively discounted prices, with expert skiers, snowboarders and skaters on hand to answer all technical & sizing questions. Top brands featured include Rossignol, Atomic, Volant, Cynaster, Nordica, Solomen, Lange, Bell, Oakley, Kombi, Raichle, Tyrolia and many more. Skis & poles (racing & parabolic with current bindings), boots, snowboards, snowshoes, X-country equipment, hockey, figure & in-line skates, ski clothing, fleece, hats, gloves, liners and accessories for adults and children will...
Boots > Pine Cobble Ski & Skate Sale This Friday & Saturday
Leading outdoor adventure website launches own line of boots
Leading outdoor adventure site, www.epicadventures.com, based in Bloomington, IL, has launched a new line of hiking boots, trekking boots and riding boots. They have also added a new domain name to reflect this side of the business.
The new domain name is www.epicadventures.biz. The leaders of Epic Adventures say "We feel this new line of boots will expand our business and lead us into some new frontiers and the new domain name will demonstrate to our customers that we are serious about this business."
The new boots are hand crafted in Argentina by one of the top custom boot makers in the world using only the finest materials.
Each boot is made to order and can be made to fit any size or shape of foot.
There will be many more boot designs in the near future as well as other types of shoes and even leather bags.
Boots > Leading outdoor adventure website launches own line of boots
Motorcycle Protective clothing That works!
There is some great looking motorcycle clothing on the market these days, but believe me not all of the motorcycle clothing offers as much protection as you think. In Europe, for motorcycle clothing to be lawfully sold as "safety clothing, it has to pass a series of European standards, which are pretty lengthy but are available on my website. The standards cover the clothing's performance in abrasion, tearing and impact tests, and when they have passed; they are sold with the CE mark. However, no such regulation is available in the USA, so what should you look for?Protection in the right places?Not many people realise that most motorcycle injuries occur below the belt. Your legs and feet are extremely vulnerable, so make sure that you wear a decent pair of high boots and some protective pants.
The pants should be reinforced at the knees and hips; ideally they should attach to your jacket by a zipper. Boots should be thick leather, with a sole that can flex with the foot but has...
Motorcycle Protective clothing That works!
Boots > Motorcycle Protective clothing That works!
What is "Ugg" Means? Where can I Find Sheep Skin Boots?
The origin of the Australian ugg boot has a variety of stories as to how and when the ugg sheep skin boots were actually invented. One of the versions has the sheep skin footwear as the boot worn by pilots during World War One. These boots were referred to as "Fug Boots" denoting their use as ugg boots used for flying. In the 1930's, Blue Mountain Ugg Boots were commonly worn by sheep shearers for their added warmth over regular footwear. "Apache Ugh Boots" were fashioned by Mortel's Sheepskin Factory in the 1950?s.
By the 1960's surfers were wearing their own version of the boot, finding them an easy and comfortable way to warm up after surfing the cold Australian waters.The original ugg sheep skin boots were made with two pieces of sheepskin attached in the front and a soft sole. Most Australian's believe the name "Ugg" derives from the word "ugly", therefore coining the term "Ugg Boot", as uniquely Australian as "Joey's " and "mate's". Given the ugg boot's various stories of...
What is "Ugg" Means? Where can I Find Sheep Skin Boots?
Boots > What is "Ugg" Means? Where can I Find Sheep Skin Boots?
How Do I Wear Pink Sheep Skin Boots?
Perhaps you have seen them and thought, "Why in the world is that person wearing pink sheep skin boots?" But then again, while out running errands, you saw those smooth pink boots again. Then one day, while flipping through your favorite fashion magazine, there they were again, this time being worn by a beautiful model. Finally this scenario makes sense. What you have been seeing is the latest and hottest fashion trend. And then you realize that those to-die-for, luxurious and soft looking boots really are not as bad as they seemed at first.
Instead, you think that in fact they are really quite pretty and fashionable.The first thing there is to know about wearing pink sheep skin boots is how you feel about wearing this color. Some people really like to wear pink, and others do not. If you are ok with pink, then read on. There are two basic shades of this pink boot. The most common shade of pink is a soft, pastel color similar to the shade that relates to the arrival of a new baby...
How Do I Wear Pink Sheep Skin Boots?
Boots > How Do I Wear Pink Sheep Skin Boots?
Leather Skirts
As the weather gets colder, a leather skirt looks fantastic when paired with a sweater and boots. Leather definitely made the strongest statement at most couture showings this year, so if you have to purchase a single wardrobe item to jazz up your winter wardrobe, we would recommend a mid length to long tailored leather skirt.
A staple of the cold season's designerwear, leather skirts can be seen everywhere. Interestingly, it is more about attitude than fabric and is usually worn by women who are comfortable in their skin. There is a certain confidence factor when you put on a leather skirt and a woman wearing one should be willing to be noticed. Why? Leather skirts are sexy.
They exhale sensuality. They make you look and feel like a rock star.
Tailored leather skirts aren't just available in classic black, as is the general perception.
This season has witnessed a riot of colors including buttery cream, ruby red and even olive green. Although...
Boots > Leather Skirts
Learn Simple Strategies That Will Stop Spammers From Bombarding Your Inbox!
Spam filter is the solution that most people resort when they try to steam the flood of junk mails and spam. However, there is a problem!First: Some spam will still get through.Second: Some legitimate mails will be stopped as spam. And that legitimate messages get caught in the spam filters is a big problem. It is a big problem for both the sender and for the receiver. If you use POP accounts on your ISP or use free email accounts like Hotmail you will sometimes be forced to use their spam filters.
You are often not even told that legitimate messages may be deleted. Why will they get stopped?There are several reasons!Spam filters may give red flag to an email simply because it contains words which the filters also find in spam messages. Often newsletters you sign up to get blocked because too many messages are sent out at the same time or some subscriber have complained accusing the sender of spamming. The rules of the spam filters changes over time as this is an ever going arms...
Learn Simple Strategies That Will Stop Spammers From Bombarding Your Inbox!
Boots > Learn Simple Strategies That Will Stop Spammers From Bombarding Your Inbox!
The Tax Grind
As an owner of a home based business, a person is also responsible for keeping track of everything they will need for filing their taxes. This is an aspect of the home based business opportunity which confuses many people, but one that is very important to understand and utilize. Nobody wants to accidentally file something incorrectly or incompletely and risk being charged with tax fraud.It is important to save everything related to your homebiz. There are a large number of items and services...
ink cartridges How To Survive Your First Year in Business The Tax Grind
Boots > The Tax Grind
My-Diamond-Jewelry.com Opens On-line Store On-line Shopping Site Provides High Quality Diamond and Gold Jewelry
The Internet XChange today announced the opening of My-Diamond-Jewelry.com, its new on-line store for fine diamond and gold jewelry. To celebrate the grand opening, My-Diamond-Jewelry.com is offering free shipping on all purchases within the continental United States. And also, as a gift for the holidays, My-Diamond-Jewelry.com is giving away a free elegant jewelry box with each purchase."My-Diamond-Jewelry.com is committed to customer satisfaction guaranteed", said president and CEO Sherry...
My-Diamond-Jewelry.com Opens On-line Store On-line Shopping Site Provides High Quality Diamond and Gold Jewelry How To Survive Your First Year in Business diamond
Boots > My-Diamond-Jewelry.com Opens On-line Store On-line Shopping Site Provides High Quality Diamond and Gold Jewelry
US Furniture Online Expands Website and Expects Growth.
Ledgewood, NJ (ContentDesk) August 8, 2004 -- US Furniture Online has launched their new web site has more email functionality such as a contact us form and more information available to customers. Sam Murphy, manager of US Furniture Exchange said "This is the beginning of us getting back into the web game and I think we have a good start. Selling all types of furniture online is a little tricky, however we have plans to move into some specific areas and exploit the web further by the end...
US Furniture Online Expands Website and Expects Growth. childrens furniture
Boots > US Furniture Online Expands Website and Expects Growth.
Preemploymentdirectory.com Releases Preliminary Results to 2005 Employers’ Practices in Background Screening survey
Lake Forest, CA (ContentDesk) May 17, 2006 -- PreemploymentDirectory.com, the leading online directory of background screening companies, today announced the preliminary results from its 2005 Employers Practices in Background Screening Survey. The survey of employers nationwide was conducted in 2005 to identify best practices in background screening in the US. It is an in-depth exploration of the full realm of background checks on applicants including the types of checks conducted, the content...
Preemploymentdirectory.com Releases Preliminary Results to 2005 Employers’ Practices in Background Screening survey
Boots > Preemploymentdirectory.com Releases Preliminary Results to 2005 Employers’ Practices in Background Screening survey
cosmetic dentistry How To Survive Your First Year in Business