Now in my fourth decade as a business owner, this Baby Boomer has been reflecting on what’s been learned that would benefit the next generation of entrepreneurs.
It’s understandable to focus most of our attention on the many hard fundamentals of how to sustain a successful small business operation. But after logging many hours in that tangible mode, you’ll discover that it’s just as critical to respect the softer entrepreneurial intangibles that tend to the human being behind the venture. And those who recognize and incorporate these in their approach to ownership are more likely to achieve that elusive holy grail of human intangibles: happiness.
In that spirit, allow me to offer two intangibles that are just as essential to business success as cash flow and profitability:
It was a Monday morning – 8:30 to be exact – when the phone rang. I was the national sales manager for a publishing company, working out of my home office.
Reasonable people disagree on the exact origins of what is now called Memorial Day. But most accept that the practice of decorating the graves of Americans who died defending their country began in earnest by women of the South during and following the Civil War.
One of the markers of American culture is the “sticker” on the window of a new car. This document reveals to shoppers a listing of standard equipment and options, plus, of course, the manufacturer’s suggested retail price or MSRP.
In nature, all life comes in two forms: plant and animal.
It’s important to note here that there are essentially two kinds of business tax reporting: 1) C Corps, mostly all the large corporations, which file and pay taxes like an individual, but at their own rates; and 2) most small businesses are legally structured as S Corps and LLCs, which file a return, but – and this is important to remember – “pass through” any net profit as income on the shareholders’ personal returns. Most small businesses – millions – are “pass-throughs.”