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As a business owner, you know what it’s like to lie awake at 2 a.m. Maybe it has happened when you are excited and full of new ideas for your business. More often, it’s because you are worried about issues you will face the next day. Sometimes, it’s because you just woke up with the solution to a problem. I’ve experienced all those emotions about my businesses over the years. Awake at 2 o’clock? is where I share them with you, and hopefully help with answers that will let you sleep.
John F. Dini, CExP, CEPA
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Small business owners are the Hunters of the 21st century. We are 3% of the US population, and yet we create over half of all American jobs. As Hunters, we may not be inclined to manage by the numbers or stick to systems. Are you a Hunter or a Farmer?
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How prepared are you to exit your company?
The Assessment breaks down the four major categories of exit readiness; Finance, Planning, Operations and Revenue/Profit.
Tag Archives: entrepreneurship
Does Your Business Need to be Leaner and Meaner? (Part 1)
I’ve been surprised by the tone of my clients’ conversations since the beginning of the year. They want to get tougher. They want to plan more. They want to find the chinks in their armor, and sharpen their weapons. These … Continue reading
3 Responses to Does Your Business Need to be Leaner and Meaner? (Part 1)
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Business Plans and New Year’s Resolutions
For the last week or so, the regular denizens of my local gym have been “preparing” for the onslaught of Resolutioners, as we call them. Those are the folks that show up every year right after the holidays, determined to … Continue reading
One Response to Business Plans and New Year’s Resolutions
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How true, with no measurement and someone to hold you accountable you will be back to your old ways in no time.
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2013: Planning for Uncertainty
Every conversation that I’ve had with business owners over the last several weeks has revolved around the challenge of planning to do business in a political and economic climate that defies normal planning conventions. The sequestration budgetary measures scheduled to go … Continue reading
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Santa Boss: The Role of a Business Owner
Ebenezer Scrooge was visited by three ghosts, so it’s fitting that I tackle the issue of the holidays three times. We’ve discussed terminations close to the holidays, and the custom of dispensing year-end bonuses. But in the end Dicken’s Scrooge was … Continue reading
2 Responses to Santa Boss: The Role of a Business Owner
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Thanks John…
I’ve never owned a business that supported employees so this is an interesting topic…to be honest, I’ve never worked for a co. that paid a wage/salary that I really felt I’d deserved…the very few times that I did get a “bonus”, I felt it was just balancing out what I’d already worked for/supplied…
You’re right, offering a “piece” of the business would mean much more.
Clint. -
I agree with Clint’s comment about how bonuses are perceived. If your bonus in a privately held business is setup on a profit-sharing basis after an owner-established flat amount, then that is what you have been diligently focused on the entire *prior* year, despite the owner controlling those numbers in the end. Bonus potential is discussed prior to the period for which you are working towards it, so I agree that they are very much a ‘balancing out’ of work provided that met or exceeded the documented criteria. Anything new after the labor year in question would be a simple breach, wouldn’t it?
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Holiday Terminations: Scrooge or Chicken?
This year, my first holiday termination conversation came on November 20th; a bit early in the season. Like traditionalists who hold off on Christmas decorations until after Thanksgiving Day, most business owners start avoiding termination announcements a few weeks before the holidays.With the Great … Continue reading
2 Responses to Holiday Terminations: Scrooge or Chicken?
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Yesterday I was “involuntarily terminated” for the first time in my 55yr life…no one saw it coming. Anyway, today, still in quite a state of shock, I realize what high hurtles must be vaulted, in addition to the futility of engaging in a job search during the holiday season: filing (and hopefully qualifying) for UI; researching, deciding how to continue, and actually paying for, continued medical insurance which is mandatory in the state where I live; encouraging supervisors, colleagues, and professional associates to provide written recommendations while they are preparing for or are away for the holidays; and coping with depressed immediate family members; just to name a few. Had my employer waited until after the holiday season to terminate me, I could have been spared all these additional, time consuming, challenges and appropriately spent this most holy time of year in the joyful company of family and friends (many of whom are my co-workers). Employee termination during the holidays is an act of spiritual robbery that has a devastating impact which is farther reaching and longer lasting than termination at any other time of year 🙁
Excellent overall assessment… looking forward to the details.
Thanks for the post. Time to put this into action instead of
just bookmarking it.
you know john, the ever present threat to small business will, as it now seems, never reduce in size. it is a constant effort to keep one step ahead of all of the negatives, including our government and the world. Looking forward to your continued input on this matter.