Hey there, fellow small business warriors! Today, let’s dive into the heart and soul of what makes small businesses thrive: leadership. Whether you’re just starting out or already deep in the game, buckle up for a ride through the ins and outs of being a tremendous leader in the world of small business. Why Leadership Matters in Small Business Let’s get real for a sec. In the wild world of small business, leadership isn’t just a fancy title – it’s the secret sauce that keeps the engine running. Picture this: you’re the captain of your ship, charting a course through choppy waters and basking i ..read more

Collaboration is essential in any business. It allows teams to work together and share ideas, resources, and insights and drive growth and innovation. However, collaboration isn’t always easy. As a business owner or leader, take steps to ensure that your teams are working together effectively and efficiently. Here are some tips on how you can improve collaboration in your company. Encourage Inter-Team Cooperation Cross-team collaboration is a powerful tool that fosters innovation and strengthens relationships between teams. It allows teams to learn from each other and gain new perspectives on ..read more

I love Jim Rohn. Jim was someone that I aspire to be like. He was a self made man and successful entrepreneur. He believed in the value of people and took every opportunity to build people up and to use everyday experiences to motivate people. People can make a huge difference in your life and to the success of your organization. Jim often said “You are the average of the five people that you spend the most time with.” Think about who you spend your time with…are they building you up or tearing you down? Some people are joy-suckers. No matter what happens, they seem to always find the negative ..read more

I read a quote once: “If you want your life to get better, YOU have to get better.” Getting where you want to get in life, business, relationships or just about anything begins with a vision. You have to visualize where you want to be. Before you can move forward, you have to realize where you are. YOU are the one who made the individual choices that has brought you to where you are now. If you want to go somewhere else or be someone different, then YOU are the one that is going to make that happen. The only limitations are set by you. There is always a way to achieve your dream but the road i ..read more

Most of us have a love-hate relationship with meetings. Heaven knows I intensely dislike almost all meetings…it seems that many of the meetings I’ve attended were for the sole purpose of having a meeting. Often the actual reason for getting together got lost as the time withered away and we went off track…as usual. Some of the best ideas I’ve heard or implemented have come from a brainstorming meeting BUT most of the time it seems that we get lost in discussion with no action being assigned. This lack of action causes frustration and lack of direction. Meetings are valuable only if they accomp ..read more

A few months ago I wrote an article that discussed the culture of Disney cast-members entitled “What You Can Learn From Disney.” The article focused mainly on the culture that Disney has cultivated among its employees. In this article, I want to talk about the Cult following that Disney has in its’ Guests. If you read my previous article, you know that my family spends A LOT of time at Disney. We are unapologetic about the fanatical way that we plan and execute our trips. That process usually begins when we are at Disney World…planning the next trip before the one we are on is over. I am actua ..read more

Once you become an entrepreneur, it changes everything. Your perspective on everything is different. Owning your own business can be one of the most rewarding AND stressful things in your life. Helping your employees some insight into what it takes to start, run and grow a successful business can change the way they approach their job, you and your customers. So how do you do that? I’ll share a few ideas and hopefully you’ll gain some additional perspective! Empower Your Employees To Make Decisions In a small business, every role is critical. You don’t have the redundancies that larger compani ..read more

This blog is a repost from a favorite blogger, Derek Halpern in his blog “Social Triggers.” It was posted on February 14, 2018 and it reprinted here in part. For the full article, visit here. Being transparent about your business practices is not only the RIGHT thing to do… New research suggests it’s also the SMART thing to do. I’ll explain. I have to start this with a confession: I eat out WAY TOO MUCH. I especially enjoy going to new restaurants. And when you live in New York City, there are a TON of new restaurants opening every month. It’s great – last week alone, I went to 2 new restauran ..read more

Fred Rogers, better known as “Mister Rogers” used to have a saying: “Its hard not to like someone once you know their story.” Most people these days want to do business with more than just a faceless company: they want to have a relationship. Having a relationship with your customers is Business 101. The stronger the relationship, the more likely you will have repeat customers and be a success. Large companies have a dedicated marketing department that is staffed by marketing guru’s. A small enterprise (and even some medium sized ones) doesn’t usually have that luxury and yet having a relation ..read more

I am one who believes in employee empowerment. The more you can get the members of your team to be comfortable making their own decisions, the more effective and efficient they will be within their sphere of influence. One of the pitfalls, however, is the real danger of complacency on the part of managers/owners assuming that the “store”is being minded by those that have been “empowered.” Several years ago, I was feeling pretty proud of myself for the highly efficient team I had developed. I noticed that the day to day operations were going like clockwork and I was having to put out fewer and ..read more