Archived Tips for Success - Grassroots Business Development

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Tip #1

Tip #2

Tip #3

Tip #4

Tip #5

Tip #6

Tip #7

Are you awesome?

Of course you are – only you may not realize it yet. There is no doubt in my mind that we can do whatever it is that we desire if we focus on all our creative abilities that are yet to be unleashed. The key words in your vocabulary are now focus and positive.

Release any doubts that you may have right now. How can anyone believe that you are awesome if you do not? Focus on what brings you joy in your work and release all negative thoughts about your life. When you focus on positive things and let go of the negative energy, you will look forward to doing your job as well as it can be done, and be in the position to make it even better.

Do you have clients that are negative? Can you help change their way of thinking to positive? If you can help your clients to become focused on positive changes, you are both better off for having done so. If the client still gives you stress, and you have done your best to remedy the situation, then it is time to let them go. Positive thoughts and actions can only bring positive results!

You are totally awesome!

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Tip #6

Rejuvenate yourself and your garden

Running your own business has a lot of rewards but one of the drawbacks is that we sometimes forget to just shut things off for a while and relax.

Gardening helps relieve stress and involves plenty of exercise so a lot of people are spending more time in their yards than they used to. There is also a lot more interest and awareness now of how fragile our environment is becoming and people are making more of an effort to use green products and recycle. Here are a few of the things that I have learned over the years.

Instead of throwing away your grass clippings you can use them as mulch. Your garden can have a beautiful green carpet without harmful chemicals and there is no residual odor. Old carpeting that you were going to throw out can be cut into strips and also be used as a mulching material. It keeps the moisture from evaporating from the soil and your path will be cleaner after a rain shower.

Composting can be done in a cardboard box if you don’t want to buy a composter. The cardboard will eventually break down and be recycled back into the earth without any harmful byproducts. Not only are you reducing on waste but you will have organic nourishment to add to your plants at little or no cost.

Banana peels are a rich source of nutrients- just cut them into small pieces and add them to your composter. Coffee grounds, crushed egg shells, shredded newsprint, the peels of fruit and vegetables, and ashes from your fire pit or fireplace are also great composting materials.

Dryer lint is great for birds that are now busy making their nests. You can put it in a plastic bag with a small hole in it and hang it somewhere the birds can easily access it.

Panty hose destined for the trash can be used to stake tall plants without damaging the vegetation. (You can also keep a pair in the car in case your fan belt quits.)

Hollowed out oranges can be used as bird seed containers. The birds will eat the seeds and the container.

Rain barrels are a great way to conserve water and the rain water is better for the plants than the treated water from the tap. Your container plants will require less watering if you put some used tea bags at the base of the pot before adding the soil.

There are a lot of excellent sites on the internet that give practical advice on environmentally friendly growing methods. Happy gardening!

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Tip #5

Opportunity Cost

What is opportunity cost and how does it affect your business?

Think of the things that you do well and are paid for. How much revenue would those things bring to your business in the same period of time that it would take you to do a task that can be delegated or contracted out.

For example:

Data entry is time consuming for you to do but is a necessary part of your business. You are not especially fast on the keyboard so it takes you longer than someone who is doing this kind of work on a regular basis. Entries take you ten hours to complete. Your time is billed out at $50.00 an hour, so technically you could have earned $500.00 in the same period of time. Contractors who hire out to do this type of work can get the same amount of work done in six hours – they charge $20.00 per hour for a total of $120.00.

Your lost income:	$500.00
Contracted price:	$120.00
Opportunity cost	$380.00

It’s true that you can still do the work if you work longer hours and it won’t cost you any money, but it will still cost you. You can use this time for marketing your business and increasing your circle of contacts and clients if you don’t want to have time to rest. Eventually lack of rest is going to catch up with you and some virus may find you a very susceptible host. Three days lost work time at 50.00/hour $1200.00. How much money did you really save?

Another way to look at this is to calculate the amount of time it takes you to bill out small items to a client. It takes you approximately one hour to go through your telephone log and add the amounts to the invoices. Your time valued at $50.00 has now been used to bill out $15.00 of telephone charges. You can expense the entire amount from your income tax so why cost yourself $35.00 to bill your clients?

Working smarter with resources that are available to you will balance out your business and improve your lifestyle.

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Tip #4

Your inventory assets turn into liabilities when they don’t convert into cash.

If your inventory has been sitting on the shelf for a long time (six months or more) there are a few things you need to do:

Ø Analyze why these items are not selling

· Seasonality

· Trend or fad items

· Pricing not competitive

· Location or display visibility

· Overstocked on normally slow movers

· Outdated or out of style items

· Marketing

Ø Mark down old stock items and have a clearance sale.

Ø Do comparison shopping to see if your pricing is on par with others.

Ø Gain product knowledge by talking to your suppliers and their sales representatives.

Ø Track your sales regularly to see what’s moving and place stock orders based on that information.

Ø Listen to your staff input.

It’s time to open the door for new ideas and opportunities.

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Tip #3

What you can do to reduce S.O.H.O. stress at income tax time.

Most Small Office Home Office businesses take their information to a professional for tax return preparation. If you have not already implemented an organized system for your records here are some tips that will save you time and money.

This year before you see your income tax professional:

Get organized. Sort your information into separate file folders that are labelled according to Expense and Revenue types.

Create a separate folder for your GST, Income Tax, Bank Statements, Bank Loans, Credit Card Statements, Charitable Receipts, Investments (RRSP, GIC, etc.), and Medical Receipts. (The medical receipts may be used for your personal income tax.)

Store the folders in alphabetical order in a portable accordion file folder or banker’s box (depending on how much paperwork you have). Label with your name and contact information.

Make sure that all related documents are accounted for. E.g. Utility bills for each business month are in the Utilities folder. Bank loan information should include interest expense information, etc.

Be realistic about your expenses and get rid of all receipts that are not business related. Revenue Canada will not allow the following expenses for most of us:

a) Hair cuts

b) Dry cleaning

c) Holiday excursions

d) Pet expenses

e) Clothing and jewellery

Include your mileage log or the number of kilometres travelled for business. You will need this to determine how much of your Vehicle Insurance, Vehicle Maintenance, and Gas/Oil can be expensed.

Make a list of all business equipment purchased and/or discarded this year.

Make a list of any accounts receivable invoices that might be uncollectible.

How many rooms are there in your home and how many of those are used for business? This information is required to calculate the percentage of business portion of expenses.

Invest in an RRSP or increase your contribution total before the February deadline if your budget allows.

For your next business year:

Ø Start at number one from the above list and keep on top of things to avoid last minute panic.

Ø Buy a user friendly accounting package like Simply Accounting or hire someone to keep your accounting records up to date, so you can get a better handle of how your business is doing.

Ø Keep your business and personal transactions separated as much as possible.

Ø Keep the number of business credit card and bank accounts to a minimum. With each account that you have, additional time will be required to reconcile information, which in turn will cost you more money.

Ø Start your RRSP program if you haven’t already done so.

Ø Apply for a GST number if you have not already got one and your projected sales for this year will be over $30,000.00.

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Tip #2

Your most valuable assets are not listed on your balance sheet.

Studies have shown that most employees require at least three months training to function in their position cost effectively. With current demands in the labour market there need to be incentives for employees to stay with employers. What can you offer your staff to gain their loyalty?

Ø A safe and comfortable workplace. Adequate light, heat, and ventilation are essential for good performance indoors. Vehicles and equipment should always be maintained for safe operation. You will lose more than an employee if an accident occurs and you are found at fault.

Ø Appreciation for a job well done. “Thank you”, “You did a great job today”, or a lunch on the boss works wonders.

Ø A friendly atmosphere where work can be fun too. Employees who are always afraid of doing something wrong will make more mistakes than those in a more relaxed atmosphere. Staff turnover rates are significantly lower where workers enjoy their environment.

Ø Consideration and respect for the feelings of the individuals you employ. Employees should never be berated or belittled in front of their co-workers. They should be taken aside and asked for their side of the story when a problem occurs. If there was an error in judgement they should then be shown how the situation could have been dealt with in a better way.

Ø When employees approach with suggestions or ideas for improvement, listen to what they have to say. By listening to them, you show that you value their opinions and make them feel like part of the team. You may even benefit by implementing some of the plans offered. Huge corporations were not built solely on one person’s ideas or ingenuity.

Ø Promises you make to your customers and staff have to be kept in order to build a relationship of trust.

Ø Rewards for employee of the month, promotions, and bonuses for exceeding expectations, are just a few other ways to show that you value your employees.

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