Latest Ethics Articles

How to Structure Your Small Business

Mon, 12 Jan 2009 01:58:51 -0800

Small businesses are difficult to get started these days, and making a success of one harder still. Without a solid business plan, start up cash and good location you're doomed to fail. However, one possible advantage is that you can be own boss. And, of course, there are a variety of resources available to help the newbie out.

Talking about your â€œbusiness structureâ€ means, essentially, what legal organization your enterprise is going to take. There are three general types, and details about what constitutes what may change from state to state, but in the main you will choose to be a sole proprietorship, a partnership or some form of corporation. There are pros and cons to each, which we shall investigate.

Kind of businesses

When starting a small business one must decide if they wish to incorporate, set up shop with a partner (or a few) or do business as a sole proprietor. Some of the advantages of sole ownership are that the accounting is simpler, there are fewer filing requirements, there are no corporate taxes and you answer only to yourself in terms of management authority. These are compelling advantages, and this structure works for many â€œprofessional serviceâ€ businesses (architect, writer, insurance agent, etc.).

However, the disadvantages of sole ownership are serious and can affect your ability to grow in the future. You will find that it is often harder to raise capital, and financing can be difficult to obtain from banks. Also, as to sole ownership, you are liable for all debts incurred by the business and if sued you could lose your home and any other assets, whether or not they are legally â€œtiedâ€ to the business.

Partnership structures

Partnerships, often called â€œgeneral partnerships,â€ add a few dimensions to the proprietor structure. Of major importance is that you can spread the liability among the partners, therefore dampening the blow of losses, lost lawsuits and/or dissolution of the business. The partnership structure also enables you to bring in additional expertise to the business, and can give you flexibility in remuneration for the partners.

Partnerships, since they are formed by individuals, are taxed in the same manner as sole proprietorships. This means that each partner adds his or her business income to a personal income tax return. Of course, each partner can also deduct business losses (pro rated). Depending on your tax planning and business strategy, this can be either good or bad for your goals. However, there are some disadvantages to a partnership, such as differing visions for the business, an unequal commitment in time or resources and the fact that each partner may be liable for the decisions, debts and actions of other partners.

There will certainly be disagreements over management style, growth plans, operations and future goals for the business. You must learn to deal with these without souring a working relationship. You may or may not do well going into business with family. Finally, you may encounter difficulty in attracting investors, since a partnership is much closer to being a proprietorship than a corporation.

The corporate option

If our fictional partners in the foregoing example decide to incorporate, they won't have fewer people to answer to, but more. They will have shareholders or investors in the business, people who will help them get started but may also be there second-guessing from the sidelines. These individuals will provide the capital necessary to get the ball rolling, but if this is your situation, you must consider what ongoing role they will play.

With corporations the burden of any liability is not solely resting on the shoulders of one person as with a sole proprietorship, or even several, as with a partnership. You can limit your liability in other ways than incorporating, although that is a major benefit. In fact, there is one business structure called a Limited Liability Corporation, a partnership with the additional feature of corporate-style limited liability.

The IRS also recognizes what is called a â€œSubchapter Sâ€ corporation (or â€œS Corporationâ€), available as a structure for most companies with 75 or fewer shareholders. This form of organization allows the company some of the corporate benefits, particularly limited liability and financing options, while taxing it as a partnership.

A regular corporation, of course, is the ultimate form of legal organization for business today. However, it does take some expertise to set up and run, and is not appropriate for everyone. If you do not know how your own business would fare under another structure, you should speak with a knowledgeable business consultant, financial planner and/or attorney. It is not a decision you should make on a snap basis.

Bottom line

Whichever legal structure you decide on is almost at the level of a moot point if there is no business plan â€“ and you can't develop a plan unless you know what it is you are going to market, where and what your target market is, what your costs are and so forth. Do the research. You may have a great idea but if no one is interested in using your product then you have no business.

The final step before deciding on a legal structure is doing a business plan that extends out at least five years. You have to consider where you may be down the line, and be prepared to make quick moves in the future depending on changing market conditions and other factors. In today's volatile economy, you must be more vigilant than ever, and no business decision is a simple or easy one anymore. Get some good advice from people and institutions you trust.

Finally, be prepared to ask yourself some hard questions before embarking upon a new enterprise or taking your existing one to the next level. If you cannot be brutally honest with yourself about your product, marketing, sales efforts and the rest, then you will doom yourself from the start. Be honest, be careful, be wise and always â€“ always â€“ have contingency plans ready for those â€œwhat ifâ€ moments that just might come true. We are seeing a lot of that these days!

The Simple Way For Choosing The Right Gift For Your Employees

Thu, 08 Jan 2009 02:55:52 -0800

The number of different ways that business owners celebrate the holiday season is nearly limitless, ranging from none at all to magnificent parties and individually selected gifts. The size of the company is not as important as the attitude of the owners, since some struggling companies continue their holiday celebrations even as some larger, more successful firms might ignore the season completely. If you are more of a Santa's helper than you are a grinch, then this article will help you see how easily you can choose the right gift for your employees for the holiday season.

One of the most important things to remember is that gifts with even a minimal amount of individuality, chosen with the recipient's likes and habits in mind, have a far better effect on morale than either â€œgroup giftsâ€ (a stereo in the break room) or â€œmass giftsâ€ (where everyone gets the same Starbucks $20 coffee card). At a large company, then, owners and executives may have to delegate the gift task to department heads or the personnel department â€” to someone who knows a little bit about each employee.

Of course, firms without much money to spend may indeed have to settle for a group or mass gift, or perhaps a modest get-together in the lunchroom with an employee gift exchange. But firms that can budget the necessary funds can make the holidays a real morale booster for their employees, and do so cost-effectively and creatively, too.

The basket approach
If the decision has been made to give each employee a gift from the company â€“ which can take place at a potluck lunch, perhaps â€“ then the first step for the gift buyer(s) is to gather some â€œintelligenceâ€ on each employee. This should be done at least three months early (September) so as not to raise suspicion. Talk to the co-workers and supervisors of each employee to get some kind of idea as to their interests and hobbies.

Gift baskets are a great way to ease the task of making individualized gifts. They can be either simple or extravagant or somewhere in between, and can be designed to work within any size budget. You can also save time and money by making similar â€œbaseâ€ baskets â€“ cheese, wine, crackers, etc. â€“ with a single, central, themed gift appropriate to the recipient.

For example, the fisherman in the accounting department would get a basket topped with a new reel or a gift certificate from a bait-and-tackle shop. The cake decorating hobbyist in administration would get the same basket, but with a recipe book or some choice almond flour in the middle. Let your creativity shine with a themed gift basket for each worker.

The single-item approach
Given enough time and a large enough budget, you might choose to give each employee an individual gift. To ease this process, you should consider shopping in a single location, either online or off, that has a great variety of modestly-priced items. It doesn't have to be Wal-Mart and it certainly shouldn't be Kay's Jewelers, but there are plenty of places left â€“ like eBay, crafts shops in your area, the wholesale district of any good-size city and so forth.

As much as you can, keep the costs reasonable, and reasonably close to one another, too. Relationships at workplaces are complicated, and giving a Rolex to Bill and a Timex to Bob is not a good way to keep morale high. The fact is, with just a little planning and some tightly scheduled rounds of shopping and gift-wrapping, you can have all the components of a great holiday bash at your business.

Investing in people
Business is all about relationships, both inside and outside your company. It is actually a complex, interwoven system of â€œrelations and communicationsâ€ that has evolved for the mutual advantage of participants â€“ in other words, it should be â€œwin-win.â€ The quality of the â€œhuman environmentâ€ is even more important than that of the physical environment, and much more difficult to clean up once it's polluted with jealousy, bitterness or other â€œbad vibes.â€

A holiday gift will go a long way to maintaining good morale, but by itself will not build it initially. That is to say, don't count on a holiday gift and a potluck to make up for shabby treatment of your employees the rest of the year. Gift giving and parties should be part of a continuum of activity and attitude that exists year-round. When you really do have this outlook about your business and your employees, it does become easier to select either group or individual gifts. And don't forget that a quick Internet search on these various terms will bring you more ideas than you can ever use. Once you have the giving spirit, the rest almost takes care of itself.

Buying Gun Safes at a Discount and a Historical Marketing Tragedy

Wed, 26 Nov 2008 12:51:25 -0800

In today's world, sometimes marketing seems to get vicious as companies try to out do their competitors, or stores as they try to outsell other retailers. But a lot of marketing strategies have changed with the internet. Not only do stores have to compete locally, but also nationally and often globally. They compete against large internet companies, and companies that can appear large online, but may be home run businesses. It is a new competitiveness in today's market that has drastically changed the way the public shops. This is obvious with many items today, especially smaller ones, but what about large, heavy items, such as gun safes? Yes, even these are available online, gun safes discount prices, and sometimes with free shipping. After all, isn't that one of the main concerns about ordering a heavy items online - the shipping charge? Now, regardless of apparently devious marketing practices of today, they do not compare with many underhanded tactics used 150 years ago.

In the 1850's there were two rival safe manufacturers, Thomas Milner and George Price, whose relationship was akin to that of the Hatfields and McCoy's . It all got started when Price published â€œGeorge Price's Treatise on Fire and Thief-Proof Depositories and Locks and Keysâ€, a 1,000 page book in 1856 (sounds like thrilling reading!). The book included many testimonials of the results of fire tests conducted by his rival, Thomas Milner, along with the heavy suggestion that these testimonials of the fire resisting attributes of Milner's safes were nothing but lies. But despite this, Price was using Milner's technology of a fire resisting compound in his own safes (allowable since the patent had expired).

At first, things started out mildly. Milner displayed in his window a mint condition Milner safe, with a totally mutilated Price safe next to it. But then things escalated to a series of challenges of public testing of the safes, both against fire and brute force entry.

One of these tests took place in April of 1860, both Price and Milner showed up with safes to include in the test. As a public test, anyone could try to test the safes. One man, Mr. Freestone, did not like Price, so he showed up that day with a large quantity of gun powder to test a safe. When he tried to place his charge in the lock of the Price safe, he discovered that the lock would not hold the amount of gunpowder that he expected,and he was unsuccessful. Milner's safe was then prepared (by Prices men), and the door was blown right off its hinges. Milner had boasted a â€œdouble patent gunpowder-proof solid lock,â€ but within seven minutes a hole was drilled through the door plate, and the powder was poured through the hole to where the movement of the main bolts were located. His safe didn't stand a chance!

Milner then tried to do the same to Price's safe. But met with failure when they tried to drill or find any other way to dislodge the spindle so they could placer a full charge of gunpowder. Considering the trial over and a success, Price and his men left. But Milner was not to be outdone, he was determined to blow up a Price safe that day. Milner had his men bring in an older style safe. Though only five years old, it did not incorporate the improvements of the newer safe, and the lock had been packed with an excessive amount of gunpowder. The safe was blown into bits. The crowd had only been expecting an explosion similar to what they had seen before, so no extra precautions were taken for the larger amount of powder. Pieces of the safe flew into the crowd and a young boy was killed.

Though full of remorse for what happened, Milner and Price continued in the their bitter rivalry, their attitudes unchanged.

Today similar rivalries may be around, but through lessons of history, common sense and protection of modern law, the public is more protected. Plus, we mostly benefit from industry competition, it is one of the blessings of capitalism and free trade and it is brought to our door step with the internet. So, as you shop for your new gun safe, look for retailers that offer gun safes discount.

The Litmus Test: Don't Lie, Cheat, or Steal

Thu, 30 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700

In life, "Truth matters", to quote one of my favorite leaders ever, a former General Counsel with whom I worked. If you are like most people and want to sleep well at night, stay off the slippery slope. When an alarm bell rings in your mind, listen to it! It probably sounded off for a reason. Pausing to consider why the alarm went off ensures you will take time to reconsider the situation from an ethical point of view. Definitions of fraud, describing various kinds of theft, understanding what constitutes a conflict of interest all serve to help you consciously consider ethical choices. But having this knowledge isn't enough. You also need to have an instinct for what is right and what is wrong. If you ever have that niggling sense that something isn't right, stop and ask someone you trust and admire to help you think through the situation. The risky thing is to take action without really thinking about the variety of choices you are faced with on a daily basis. Sometimes, you may not even realize that your choice has an ethical side to it. You may simply see it as what is easiest for you, or what causes you the least conflict, or helps a situation keep moving forward. However, putting on ethical lenses could prevent a mis-step that you would later regret. The examples in previous articles may serve to illustrate just how easy it is to start down the wrong road without even knowing it. While you may not be at risk of committing even a slight ethical transgression, it is amply clear from the debacle on Wall Street in the fall of 2008 that your simple ethical decisions can affect more people than you'd ever imagine. For example, you can blame the predatory lenders, or you can blame the dangerously innocent borrower, or both. Which ever way you look at it . . that the Wall Street mess was deliberately engineered by a variety of business, or that the whole mess is an example of what can go wrong unintentionally, the fact of the matter is that we all suffered. If people in any part of the equation had slowed down to consider whether what they did was right, not just was it possible, we might not find ourselves in the financial crises we are in today. I recently finished reading Extraordinary Circumstances: The Journey of a Corporate Whistleblower by Cynthia Cooper, formerly of WorldCom. This woman, whom I was privileged to hear speak recently, is the heroine who blew the whistle on the WorldCom fraud. She recounts that her strength to blow the whistle on the huge Wall Street darling company came from lessons from her child hood. Specifically, she relates that her parents told her, "Don't ever let yourself be bullied", and "Think of the consequences of your actions." Three really simple rules can help you negotiate the sometimes treacherous times life thows at us. Follow them, and you should be in good shape: 1. Rule Number One: Don't lie. 2. Rule Number Two: Don't cheat. 3. Rule Number Three: Don't steal. I wish us all the strength to do in all circumstances what we know to be right.

That Slippery Slope: Four Examples of Stinking Thinking

Thu, 30 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700

You have probably heard of examples of behavior at work that seem unbelievable. Imagine a case where an employee in a landscaping business is found to have been ordering extra plants and other supplies from a vendor to use at their home and their families' homes. You think to yourself, and maybe have conversations with co-workers, "WHAT was she thinking?" It is an interesting question. Based on thought leaders, my own experience, and research results I offer the following to try to explain the seemingly inexplicable. 1. "I deserve some slack". This form of entitlement thinking is the "Hey, I've worked here for 13 years;I deserve some special consideration, after the way they have treated me!" In this "stinking thinking" pattern, a person believes that he or she is due something extra. Maybe the person has felt underappreciated over time, or believes their compensation level is inadequate. Whatever the case, they convince themselves that it is okay for them to take something that is not theirs in order to make up for a slight they believe they have suffered. 2. "It isn't really much." A daisy here, a trowel there . . what is the difference? It does make a difference if the, "Oops, I accidentally took this trowel home" becomes, "Hey, I think I'll re-landscape my yard." Whether it seems like it at the time or not, taking something that is not yours is theft. The concept of theft extends to theft of time. Time spent at work on personal tasks such as personal phone calls, e-mail and errands beyond the inconsequential is a form of theft. Would you want your child's teacher to spend classroom time on personal chores? 3. "I'll pay it back later." This stinking thinking can have to do with cash, such as the petty cash drawer or accounting entries, or time. Imagine that someone arrives at work and discovers that they don't have any cash in their wallet because they forgot to go to the bank last night what with going to the grocery store, picking up the kids, and polishing off some homework for night school. The employee figures that they will just take a few bucks from the petty cash drawer to cover lunch from the lunch cart, and put back what they borrow tomorrow. Well, tomorrow never comes and the cash is never replaced. The intent is good, but the follow-up never happens. 4. "I'll never get caught!" The examples above are those of people who unintentionally take the first step on the slippery slope. This example is different. It is for the person who knows at the time that what they are about to do is wrong. They just figure that they are so smart that the world won't catch on to them. Well, sometimes they are right and sometimes they are wrong. Believing you will never get caught is the first step in a web of deceit, and there isn't an easy way back. If you or someone you know has such an idea, squelch it from the beginning. The idea can't be good for you. While you may not see yourself falling into any of these stinking thinking scenarios, is it exactly how the wrong things start. If you hear any of these phrases at your work place, stop the thinking it its tracks and get back on the ethical plane.

Business Opportunity Laws And Rules

Wed, 29 Oct 2008 00:00:00 -0700

Too many offers of guaranteed income or of projected income can be found online these days. When someone is scouring the internet for job announcements or possibly with the intent of starting a business, the number of business opportunities that pop up is growing quite large. These offers are sometimes not in compliance with business opportunity law specifications. How does one know if that advertisement offering easy income or a product that sells itself is in compliance with the local business opportunity law? A look into state law will provide the answers. Not A Federal Issue Business opportunity laws are not made at the national level, currently some states have a business law, and some states do not. Of the states that do have such a statute, the different forms that the law takes are variations on a theme. In general, a business opportunity law that exist is set up to protect people who buy into money making opportunities whether these opportunities turn out to be real money makers or if they are simply scams. All business opportunities fall under the statute of a law if there is such a law in the state where one resides. It does not matter if you are a legitimate business or are scamming people into selling a product for you. All business opportunities fall under the realm of the law, so anyone thinking of responding to a business opportunity should check the state laws before agreeing to anything. What the Law Says Although the particularities of a states business opportunity law vary, the essential piece of the law is that it requires those making an offer of a business opportunity to release a disclosure statement to prospective business partners. In some states, this disclosure statement has to be reviewed by an official before it is allowed to be used as a disclosure statement for a business opportunity. In other states, the contents of the disclosure are discretionary, the business opportunity law simply states that the partner offering a business opportunity must have a disclosure statement to offer prospective partners. In the disclosure statement, essential information should be found. For example, the number of business partners that the offering individual has held during the last three years, and a history of the offering persons arbitration, litigation and financial history. All of these are considered information that the prospective business partner has the right to have. Of course, anything disclosed in the disclosure statement must be true, so creating a disclosure statement that is full of lies does not make a business compliant with business opportunity law. The law is designed to give those buying into a business a critical view of what it is that they are buying into. One should have the chance of making an informed decision about such a business opportunity, instead of being victim to a bunch of slogans like guaranteed to sell itself and the like. Business opportunity law requires the offering party to offer real numbers instead of slogans. Take a look at the disclosure statement and only then decide if the business opportunity is legitimate.

Questions to ask before you pick out your dropshipper

Wed, 22 Oct 2008 02:57:01 -0700

Dropshipping is what most people are looking at, when starting an online business. Because of its low cost â€“ low risk features, it is indeed a safe bet for beginners. In order to get started, you need two things,

a) Internet Marketing Skills
b) A Genuine Dropshipper

If you are planning to go for dropshipping business, we can safely assume that you have got the right skills needed for online marketing. That leaves us with second requisite i.e. a genuine dropshipper. Good thing is that a simple search at Google will fetch you hundreds of results for your desired product's dropshippers, and the bad news is that most (if not all) of them will turn out to be scammers and frauds. High demand for dropshipping suppliers has attracted the imposters into this area and many new comers are trapped right away. However, if you are reading this article, you will hopefully be able to differentiate between genuine dropshippers and scammers. Next time when you search for a dropshipper, be sure to check out on these things before you pick one.

Business age:
A real supplier will be able to provide its business history and experience. Someone who is in business for many years is less likely to be a fraud. Be cautious of those having no past experience of wholesale or dropshipping business, they may find out in the middle that the profits are not sufficient and would be looking to quit suddenly, leaving you in dismay.

Try the product yourself:
If possible, place a small order with that dropshipper for yourself. Don't ask for a sample, because the fake one can easily trick you by presenting a sample of high quality. By purchasing yourself you can determine the quality of product they deliver to their customers.

Business location:
Try to find a dropshipper who operates from some area near your targeted market. This will help in keeping the shipping cost under check; otherwise shipping cost will eat up your profit margin, or you will not be able to offer competitive price to your customers.

Product Range:
Ask for their complete product range. This will give you an idea of business size, plus you would be able to offer your customer a wide range of products without having a need of dealing with separate dropshippers for every product.

Nature of business:
Most genuine dropshippers are mainly wholesale suppliers or manufacturers. This is the reason why you can get the products on factory rates and sell them online for huge profits. If you are dealing with some middle man pretending to be a dropshipper, you will lose a part of your profit to him. He can just forward the order to original supplier and run away with your income without doing anything.

Do your own research:
Don't just rely on the information provided by the dropshippers. Do some research on your own. Try to find some of their clients and ask if they are satisfied. As stated earlier, purchase something for yourself to confirm the quality and time they take in shipment. Compare the prices with other suppliers as well as retail prices.

You need to be patient and spend plenty of time in research before initiating your business. Still, if you are eager to start immediately, getting help from www.wholesalepages.co.uk and www.aidandtrade.com can be a good idea. Dropshipping business can be a stroke of luck for beginners; but one needs to be careful when selecting a dropshipper.

Managing your Warehouse inventory as a wholesaler and manufacturer

Wed, 22 Oct 2008 02:55:20 -0700

Good inventory management is necessary for manufacturers and wholesalers to maintain their profits. Inventory management includes good warehouse administration skills, like implementing safety measures, cooling and cleaning, record keeping and pricing techniques. Lousy inventory management will leave you with large inventory on hand while you still find it difficult to fulfill the customer's orders.

Warehouse Administration:

Warehouse is the building which is used by a business (mostly a manufacturer, big exporter or wholesale supplier) for storage of goods. These are the key points to remember in warehouse management.

Safety:
Safety comes first. With so much loading and unloading going on all the time, warehouses possess greater chances of accidents then any other workplace. Workers should be well trained, especially those who operate the machinery like forklifts. Rules and instructions should be followed carefully by everyone to avoid hazards like slipping or falling. Also install good sprinkler system and evacuation plan to help in case of fire.

Cooling & Cleaning:
Warehouse is normally quite congested with stock piled up all over the place. Develop a good ventilation plan to maintain the air quality and save the workers from dehydration. Keep it tidy and preserve good working environment. All goods and inventory items should be properly stacked.

WMS:
Warehouse management system is some software which helps in managing and controlling inventory at warehouse. WMS can make the job a lot easier if used efficiently. While choosing a WMS, out of many available at market, you should look at what suits your business more, also the usability of that particular warehouse management system.

Inventory Pricing:
Setting prices for your inventory is a tricky business. Normally three techniques are used for inventory pricing, which are:

1. LIFO
2. FIFO
3. Average Method

You can choose any of the above method, though none of them has a real affect on your profits, but businesses maneuver around with these techniques to save tax, because the figure of gross profit changes with every method.

ECQ and JIT:
ECQ model decides how much inventory you want to keep on hand. A good ECQ model should be able to avoid both, inventory shortages and inventory in excess. JIT helps in reducing the inventory to minimum. Goods and products arrive just-in-time when they are needed, eliminating the extra cost of storing that inventory.

Record Keeping & Physical Counting:
All arrivals, departures, sales or purchases of inventory should be recorded. Physical stocktaking should regularly be scheduled on small scale, rather than calling the employees on off days and carrying out physical counting on annual basis. Forms should be available for workers and supervisors to fill every time they receive or dispatch some items. This will help in making your record more accurate.

Conducting Market Research for your Drop shipping Business

Wed, 22 Oct 2008 02:54:37 -0700

Market research is often the most neglected part of dropshipping business. Business research provides you with the facts and figures you need when making those all important decisions. Your perception that some product is in high demand can be a possible cause of disaster for the business. Before you invest your money and time into some dropshipping business, it is worth investing some of that into market research. Having a concrete base of well researched figures is always better than starting on some false conception. Here's how you can conduct a short and simple research for your dropshipping business.

Collecting data:

Usually, the basic research for dropshipping business is not that difficult. Data is readily available and you can easily assess the demand by observing the most researched keyword trends at search engines. Now it's much easier to know where your customers are located, their age group and what exactly do they need?

Data collection can be tough for entrepreneurs who are looking to sell some product not really tried before on internet, you can't really decide on what kind of reception will it receive from online shoppers. However, you can still find out a lot of data to help in your business planning.

Analysis:

Once you have gone through the data collection, now is the time to do some mind work. Free flow of information has made the research part easier; still you have to analyze and draw conclusions on your own. Keep in mind your goals and objectives and derive useful information out of this data. You can't get the answers straight away. Start from arranging raw data in a clear and concise manner, mark out the variables which you can control and those which are uncontrollable; do your calculations, evaluate the risks involved and write down the conclusions in detail. Try to make these conclusions as unambiguous as possible.

Instructions for Dropshipping Businesses:

One can safely assume that you are a small business with a smaller budget if you are conducting research for your dropshipping business. Obviously low cost is the reason you have opted for this business model, so don't spend heavily on your research work. There's no need to hire some research specialist, just make use of freely available information on internet. Don't involve yourself into complex research methods. As you are searching for information on internet, you need to be very careful about source of information and its validity.

No matter how attractive a business may look to you, don't get started without checking on facts. Hasty decision making or flaws in research work can give way to business failures. Good research and thoughtful analysis will always payoff. Moreover, you can apply the information you've collected in your marketing strategy for even better results.

Thinking Big - A Fundamental rule for your business planning

Wed, 22 Oct 2008 02:54:05 -0700

Thinking big combined with good planning and proper implementation can bring you huge rewards. It's no more an option; it has become a must in today's business world. Gone are the days when you were able to earn reasonable profits while staying in your comfort zone. Now you need to break the shackles and go all out if you want to succeed. If you don't, you will soon find some large enterprise running over your business.

Your business is what you think of it:

All huge and truly successful businesses have one thing in common. Each of them has someone with a great vision at their back. Someone who managed to think ahead of others, who was able to visualize something huge in his mind and then transform that thought into reality. If you want your business to get big, you need to think big. Good positive thinking attracts riches.

Set goals that challenge you:

Many times, we are afraid of disappointment which will come our way in case of failure. This fear alone makes us aim for smaller targets instead of going for something big and rewarding. Making unrealistic goals is no doubt, a bad idea; the thing is to set a big enough goal that it challenges you. Challenge yourself to go and accomplish a little more than what you think you are capable of.

Innovative Ideas:

Some new value added to your product, innovative outlook, or some distinctive marketing idea can increase your clientele to a great deal. As soon as you start thinking big, you will find new innovations coming into your mind. New idea is a product of free mind; you can never embark upon any bright business idea if you keep thinking on same old lines.

Thinking big & Investment:

Negative thoughts often drag people into saving mode rather than investing, thus depriving them of all the profits that might have come their way from that investment. By thinking positively, you will be able to foresee the opportunities and obstacles lying ahead. You can plan to tackle the upcoming problems and invest more into opportunities.

Thinking big is thinking global instead of local. It's like painting a picture on a bigger canvas. It protects you from unconstructive and limited style of thinking which has been the biggest obstacle of your way to prosperity. By changing your thought's pattern you can change your business fate in no time.