Small Business Success Strategies

Turning Problems Into Opportunities

"In the middle of difficulty," observed Albert Einstein, "lies opportunity." Some of the best opportunities often originate from problems – either yours or someone else's. Like a lot of parents, Debra Cohen's problem was that after her first child was born she wanted to find a way to be a stay-at-home Mom.

Around that same time, Debra became aware of a real problem for most homeowners – namely finding someone reputable to do home repairs or improvements. By putting these two problems together, she came up with the perfect solution for both her problem and that of her neighbors.

Read Valerie's entire article Turning Problems Into Opportunities

Valerie Young, our official Career Change Expert

Truck Driver Jobs and the Student Driver

There is still talk about the truck driver shortage in our country. The shortage of over the road truck drivers have been an on-going topic for years. Truck driver jobs have become harder to come by in recent months, mainly due to the present state of the economy. The business practices by many trucking companies have created this factor that has become known as the truck driver shortage.

There are still truck driver jobs available. What continues to keep this driver shortage topic alive, is the problem that so many newcomers and even veteran drivers experience: finding the right trucking company. The current economy situation has, without a doubt, placed thousands of experienced truck drivers into the truck driver job search market.

Read Allen's entire article Truck Driver Jobs and the Student Driver

Allen Smith, our official Trucking/Truck Driver Training Expert

Do You Know Who Your Ideal, High-Paying Clients Are?

One of the most important foundation steps for effective Lead Generation is to know exactly WHO your Ideal, High-Paying Clients Are. This seems basic I know, but there are plenty of Phenomenal Women Entrepreneurs who don't do this. I know this because I used to be one of them.

When I was a Top Investment Advisor in the US a huge part of my success was working only with ONE market and that was educators. I focused my efforts totally on educators and didn't allow myself to get distracted with others outside my ideal market--no matter how tempting it became. Not that I couldn't help anyone else with their retirement, I just always found it much easier to stick with my niche of educators. As a result I always had more leads that resulted in clients than I could handle.

Read Sharon's entire article Do You Know Who Your Ideal, High-Paying Clients Are?

Sharon Quarmby, our official Lead Generation Expert

Unlock Your Brain: 5 Keys to a Creative Mindset

With the world moving at such a rapid pace, and technology becoming obsolete in a matter of weeks, now more than ever is the time for us to stretch our creative skills and mindset.

A creative mindset is not the same as an artistic skill; creativity is the mental phenomenon of getting ideas and finding solutions. It comes out of the blue, some say is divinely guided. If you've ever had a great idea, you know what the exhilaration feels like.

Holding a creative mindset is key, especially in this era of rapid change and growth.

Read Nancy's entire article Unlock Your Brain: 5 Keys to a Creative Mindset

Nancy Marmolejo, our official Visibility Expert

You Name It! The Complete How-To Guide for Naming a New Business

Many aspiring entrepreneurs anticipate tiny details but overlook the obvious ones, such as the name of their company. For some reason it ranks last on the list, just below "turning the lights on," since naming a company shouldn’t be that hard.

Or so it would seem.

By the time I deal with business owners in this position, they are usually desperate. "I can’t believe we can’t find/agree/decide on a new name!" And so now the task has all the urgency of a bad toothache. "We need a name… is tomorrow a reasonable

Read Phil's entire article You Name It! The Complete How-To Guide for Naming a New Business

Phil Davis, our official Branding and Naming Expert

How to Start and Run Your Own Mastermind Group

Some of the most successful people in history have leveraged the power of mastermind groups, a concept that was introduced in Napoleon Hill's best-selling book "Think and Grow Rich." The purpose of a mastermind group is to exchange and refine ideas, while assisting each other in reaching goals. From experience I can tell you that the right group can create spectacular results.

While you can seek out an existing group, a more powerful option is to start and manage your own group. This will give you the opportunity to cultivate a group with the right level of experience and synergy. Following are some suggestions for getting started.

Read Stephanie's entire article How to Start and Run Your Own Mastermind Group

Stephanie Chandler, our official Entrepreneurial Expert

Top 10 Business Plan Myths of Self Employment

A recent study of 29,000 business startups noted that 26,000 of them failed. Of those failures, 67% had no written business plan. Think that's a coincidence?

Here's the top 10 myths self employed solo business owners often have about business plans - usually, the reasons why they don't have one. De-bunk the myths, and see how having a self employment business plan can actually be easy and fun--and can jumpstart your success!

   1. Myth: I don't need a business plan--it's just me!

      Starting any business without a plan is like taking a trip in a foreign country without a map. You might have a lot of fun along the way, and meet a lot of friends, but you are likely to end up at a very different place than you originally set out for - and you might have to phone home for funds for your return ticket.

Read Terri's entire article Top 10 Business Plan Myths of Self Employment

Terri Zwierzynski, our official Solo-Entrepreneur Expert

Is Fear of Selling Hurting Your Small Business?

So many small and solo business owners over the years have told me they feel held back by their fear of selling. If you're in that position, let's look at that fear as it's not so hard to overcome.

I've heard that selling often conjures up an image of a used car salesman--the type of person who uses every possible trick to get you to buy something you may not want and who is pushy. This type of selling is often referred to as a hard sell and no one is going to respond to it anymore. Perhaps you've even encountered this type of salesperson and it's left you with a bad feeling about sales. Or perhaps you're afraid that "tooting your own horn" and asking for the sale will be viewed as either egotistical or pushy and you're afraid of someone saying no. I totally understand this because when I started my first business 21 years ago, I remember feeling the same way.

Read Janis' entire article Is Fear of Selling Hurting Your Small Business?

Janis Pettit, our official Small Business Strategy Coach Expert

7 Steps to Get Back On Track when Life Derails Your Coaching Business

Ever feel derailed from your best laid coaching business plans? Sometimes holidays, illness, family crisis — things that require your immediate attention — can stop your momentum cold.

Every business owner gets derailed by life sometimes. The key, of course, is how you respond. Feeling guilty about what’s not getting done and disappointed that you haven’t “made it” yet will only prolong the stall. Be compassionate with yourself, and use these seven steps to get back on track quickly.
1. Align your expectations with your commitment

Human beings run into all sorts of trouble when our expectations exceed our commitment to success. We’ve put too much stock on the desired outcome and not enough on the experience of getting there.

Read Rhonda's entire article 7 Steps to Get Back On Track when Life Derails Your Coaching Business

Rhonda Hess, our official  Coaching Business Expert

Advertising Your Home Business On A Budget

When you are starting out in a new home business and no one knows who you are, one of the greatest challenges you will face is how to drum up new business.

If there were not people in your community or marketplace that you knew who needed your products or services, you probably would not have started your business to begin with. But, once you have talked to those who you personally knew who needed your what you offer, then your next task is to find others who will help keep your doors open.

Many people know that they must turn to advertising at some point in the future, but they hope that day will be long down the road.

Read Stone's entire article Advertising Your Home Business On A Budget

Stone Evans, our official Home Business Expert