Quality vs. Quantity

It’s tough out there at the moment, from an economic standpoint people are looking for Quality over Quantity. People are seeking superior goods and services that will last for the long haul. We are obligated to fulfill their needs and must figure out how to give our customers, clients and investors exactly what they are looking for. Then we need to figure out how to market these products and services to them. High quality will last forever and so must your marketing campaign.

·         Get training on the latest social media strategies

·         Make use of your local advertising pros, they can give you the best bang for your buck and in today’s economy are willing to negotiate on costs

·         Secure your email list and keep it up to date and in good standing with your clients, do what you say you will do and always follow up and follow through

·         Establish a 100% return or refund policy, this gives your customers and clients the confidence to do repeat business as well as make referrals

·         Remember you are your best advocate so put yourself out there, be your own brand

·         Be selective and specific on your goods and services, this sets you apart from your competitors

·         Promote your customers and share their knowledge, this will establish a lasting relationship

·         Host a private event; this makes your high end customers feel exclusive and pampered

·         Remember money matters to all of us, especially those on a budget but even for high end clients

Discovering the Core of Entrepreneurial Women in America

As I traveled along the interstates, highways and more often than not the dirt roads of America I  watched the scenery pass through my windshield and I thought about the women I have encountered in the small and sometimes unknown communities I visit. I reflect on the women who have made their small town a better place to live because of their commitment to prosper and be enterprising in America. This commitment to success is a phenomenon I have seen over and over again, and each time I come across it I’m truly astonished.

It is the enterprising and productive women of America who are paving a new and powerful approach to supporting life in a small town. These women are a strong and often subtle presence in every state. Each one enjoys an absolute passion for their community and an unwavering drive for success in their businesses. Their sustainability in an environment where small business enterprise can be daunting and unreliable brings a sense of strength to many towns on the verge of extinction. As I visited with these amazing women in each new community, who ranged in career diversity from Icelandic Sheep Farmer to Highway Patrolmen, I realized the women of rural America are some of the finest gems we possess.

A day spent traveling along these roads takes my mind down many thoughts and to many questions. Why are they thriving in rural America? Were they born in these communities? If not then what brings them there? What keeps them there? And what inspires them to stay there? Is it their commitment to small town America where living is safe and secure or is it the love of the land and the wide open spaces? Maybe on a broader scope is it just a strong sense of themselves and the passions they possess. What gives them the confidence they have to see their passions come to fruition? Even in the face of a harsh and brutal economy, and in many cases seclusion in a small town where a shopping center can be many hundreds of miles away and the closest social gathering spot runs into the next county. It must be that they have discovered the core of entrepreneurialism, a place not many are willing to go but those that do achieve great rewards.

These women are pioneering new and industrious avenues to create a sustainable living in rural America. Trust me when I tell you what remarkable lives they live. Upon meeting one of these outstanding women who has made a success of her small business or who has accomplished great things in a non-traditional sense, it is truly an enchanting experience. One common factor all these women have as a collective entity is their passion. A passion about what they do, a passion for where they live and a passion for the people they do business with. They are truly an incredible and remarkable feature of the American landscape.

The Definition of Entrepreneur

Merriam Webster: One who organizes, manages, and assumes the risks of a business or enterprise

Wikipedia: An entrepreneur is an owner or manager of a business enterprise who makes money through risk and initiative. The term was originally a loanword from French and was first defined by the Irish-French economist Richard Cantillon. Entrepreneur in English is a term applied to a person who is willing to help launch a new venture or enterprise and accept full responsibility for the outcome. Jean-Baptiste Say, a French economist, is believed to have coined the word "entrepreneur" in the 19th century - he defined an entrepreneur as "one who undertakes an enterprise, especially a contractor, acting as intermediary between capital and labor

However it is defined, entrepreneurs are the frontrunners of our economy, those people who are willing to take the risks necessary to generate viable and progressive ideas, turning those ideas into practical businesses. Those businesses in turn affect our nation’s success and create a strong workforce in any economy.

The Entrepreneur is the foundation of all populations, so thank you for your contributions.

The study of the Entrepreneurial Brain

The subject of the "entrepreneurial brain" has been studied in many ways and many forms for many years. The foregoing conclusion being this. We are enigmas! We are sideways, backwards, upside down and spinning. We are solid, precise, influential and steady.
We wear many different hats in many different arenas, and our success is dependent upon our ability to be multi-dimensional. Entrepreneurs typically have three strong traits. The need to be creative, a high tolerance for risk and a strong desire for accomplishment. We are the ADD subjects of success. Our brains run in so many different directions it is often times hard to keep the focus on the challenges ahead when we are 10 steps beyond the next challenge.
Carl Silverstein of BizTimes categorizes the different types of entrepreneurs and how their brains function. See if you or your boss fits any of these categories:

The Trailblazer: These individuals are described as being independent, persistent, decisive, and fast. They are not happy unless they are in charge. They demonstrate their calculated risk-taking by basing their decisions on facts, rather than feelings.

The Go-Getter: These generalists are very driven, independent, and have a high level of dominance and sociability. They are very competitive, strong motivators, and leaders. They manage both process and people effectively. Even though go-getters are very driven to succeed, their competitive nature is tempered by a concern about others.

The Manager: These individuals are very goal-oriented and quite analytical, which leads them to focus more on processes than people. They understand that some projects take longer than others and look at people as vehicles for them to accomplish their goals. They tend to offend people by their straightforward style of communication. At the same time, they consider their staff an extension of their family and are very loyal. Their biggest strength is the ability to grow the business. They enjoy working by themselves and managing others can be a challenge.

The Motivator: This individual has the highest level of sociability, an above average level of dominance, and is driven and independent. They work well under pressure, can build consensus quickly, and tend to collaborate with others. They are the change agents, and are skilled in motivating people. They avoid confrontation by being able to create a strong emotional argument. They have mastered the three “Fs,” feel, felt, and found. They excel at leadership and at selling.

In organizations, it’s important to be able to align your personality type with the goals of objectives of the business. Those people that can do this effectively are usually successful. If you are an entrepreneur, you will likely only find this alignment in taking risks and accepting leadership roles within your group or company.

It’s been said that being an entrepreneur is like jumping out of an airplane with all of the tools and materials needed to make a parachute on the way down.
Now that is certainly not a leap that everyone would take. But if it sounds like fun to you, there’s a good chance you’re functioning with an entrepreneurial brain.

Control of your life

If you want to be in control of your life, of your wins and losses, successes and failures, that are, your life!!! then it boils down to making long term plans, making today’s to-do list, then doing it:


one step at a time, one day at a time; time after time, day after day.

Only through the long term implementation of good planning with a great Statement of Work can anyone achieve difficult things purposefully in one’s life. For if we define ourselves by what we once were, than we are dying instead of living.



Antoinette

Tax Law Changes

In just six months, on January 1, 2011, the largest tax hikes in the history of America will take effect.

They will hit families and small businesses in three great waves.
First Wave:

Expiration of 2001 and 2003 Tax Relief

In 2001 and 2003, the GOP Congress enacted several tax cuts for investors, small business owners, and families.

These will all expire on January 1, 2011.

Personal income tax rates will rise.
The top income tax rate will rise from 35 to 39.6 percent (this is also the rate at which two-thirds of small business profits are taxed).
The lowest rate will rise from 10 to 15 percent.
All the rates in between will also rise.
Itemized deductions and personal exemptions will again phase out, which has the same mathematical effect as highermarginal tax rates.

The full list of marginal rate hikes is below:

• The 10% bracket rises to an expanded 15%

• The 25% bracket rises to 28%

• The 28% bracket rises to 31%

• The 33% bracket rises to 36%

• The 35% bracket rises to 39.6%

Higher taxes on marriage and family.

The "marriage penalty" (narrower tax brackets for married couples) will return from the first dollar of income.
The child tax credit will be cut in half from $1000 to $500 per child.
The standard deduction will no longer be doubled for married couples relative to the single level.
The dependent care and adoption tax credits will be cut.
The return of the Death Tax.
This year only, there is no death tax. (It?s a quirk!) For those dying on or after January 1, 2011, there is a 55 percent

top death tax rate on estates over $1 million. A person leaving behind two homes, a business, a retirement account, could easily pass along a death tax bill to their loved ones. Think of the farmers who don?t make much money, but their land, which they purchased years ago with after-tax dollars, is now worth a lot of money. Their children will have to sell the farm, which may be their livelihood, just to pay the estate tax if they don?t have the cash sitting around to pay the tax. Think about your own family?s assets. Maybe your family owns real estate, or a business that doesn?t make much money, but the building and equipment are worth $1 million. Upon their death, you can inherit the $1 million business tax free, but if they own a home, stock, cash worth $500K on top of the $1 million business, then you will owe the government $275,000 cash! That?s 55% of the value of the assets over $1 million! Do you have that kind of cash sitting around waiting to pay the estate tax?

Higher tax rates on savers and investors.

The capital gains tax will rise from 15 percent this year to 20 percent in 2011.
The dividends tax will rise from 15 percent this year to 39.6 percent in 2011.
These rates will rise another 3.8 percent in 2013.

Second Wave:

Health Care Reform

There are over twenty new or higher taxes in Health Care Reform. Several will first go into effect on January 1, 2011. They include:

The "Medicine Cabinet Tax"

Thanks to Health Care Reform, Americans will no longer be able to use health savings account (HSA), flexible spending account (FSA), or health reimbursement (HRA) pre-tax dollars to purchase non-prescription, over-the-counter medicines (except insulin).

The "Special Needs Kids Tax"

This provision of Health Care Reform imposes a cap on flexible spending accounts (FSAs) of $2500 (Currently, there is no federal government limit). There is one group of FSA owners for whom this new cap will be particularly cruel and onerous: parents of special needs children.

There are thousands of families with special needs children in the United States , and many of them use FSAs to pay for special needs education.

Tuition rates at one leading school that teaches special needs children in Washington , D.C. ( National Child Research Center ) can easily exceed $14,000 per year.
Under tax rules, FSA dollars can not be used to pay for this type of special needs education.

The HSA (Health Savings Account) Withdrawal Tax Hike.

This provision of Health Care Reform increases the additional tax on non-medical early withdrawals from an HSA from 10 to 20 percent, disadvantaging them relative to IRAsand other tax-advantaged accounts, which remain at 10 percent.

Third Wave:
The Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT) and Employer Tax Hikes

When Americans prepare to file their tax returns in January of 2011, they'll be in for a nasty surprise-the AMT won't be held harmless, and many tax relief provisions will have expired.

The major items include:

The AMT will ensnare over 28 million families, up from 4 million last year.
According to the left-leaning Tax Policy Center , Congress' failure to index the AMT will lead to an explosion of AMT taxpaying families-rising from 4 million last year to 28.5 million. These families will have to calculate their tax burdens twice, and pay taxes at the higher level. The AMT was created in 1969 to ensnare a handful of taxpayers.

Small business expensing will be slashed and 50% expensing will disappear.

Small businesses can normally expense (rather than slowly-deduct, or "depreciate") equipment purchases up to $250,000.
This will be cut all the way down to $25,000. Larger businesses can currently expense half of their purchases of equipment.
In January of 2011, all of it will have to be "depreciated."

Taxes will be raised on all types of businesses.

There are literally scores of tax hikes on business that will take place. The biggest is the loss of the "research and experimentation tax credit," but there are many, many others. Combining high marginal tax rates with the loss of this tax relief will cost jobs.

Tax Benefits for Education and Teaching Reduced.

The deduction for tuition and fees will not be available.

Tax credits for education will be limited.

Teachers will no longer be able to deduct classroom expenses.

Coverdell Education Savings Accounts will be cut.

Employer-provided educational assistance is curtailed.

The student loan interest deduction will be disallowed for hundreds of thousands of families.

Charitable Contributions from IRAs no longer allowed.

Under current law, a retired person with an IRA can contribute up to $100,000 per year directly to a charity from their IRA.

This contribution also counts toward an annual "required minimum distribution." This ability will no longer be there.

PDF Version Read more: ; http://www.atr.org/six-months-untilbr-largest-tax-hikes-a5171##ixzz0sY8waPq1

And worse yet?

Now, your insurance will be INCOME on your W2's!

One of the surprises we'll find come next year, is what follows - - a little "surprise" that 99% of us had no idea was included in the "new and improved" healthcare legislation . . . the dupes, er, dopes, who backed this administration will be astonished!

Starting in 2011, (next year folks), your W-2 tax form sent by your employer will be increased to show the value of whatever health insurance you are given by the company. It does not matter if that's a private concern or governmental body of some sort.

If you're retired? So what... your gross will go up by the amount of insurance you get.

You will be required to pay taxes on a large sum of money that you have never seen. Take your tax form you just finished and see what $15,000 or $20,000 additional gross does to your tax debt. That's what you'll pay next year.

For many, it also puts you into a new higher bracket so it's even worse.

This is how the government is going to buy insurance for the15% that don't have insurance and it's only part of the tax increases.
Not believing this??? Here is a research of the summaries.....

On page 25 of 29: TITLE IX REVENUE PROVISIONS- SUBTITLE A: REVENUE OFFSET PROVISIONS-(sec. 9001,

as modified by sec. 10901) Sec.9002 "requires employers to include in the W-2 form of each employee the aggregate cost of applicable employer sponsored group health coverage that is excludable from the employees gross income."

Written by:Joan Pryde, Senior tax editor for the Kiplinger letters

- Joan Pryde is the senior tax editor for the Kiplinger letters.

- Go to Kiplingers and read about 13 tax changes that could affect you.

Life Choices

You know, when it comes right down to it, you have three big decisions to make in life: What are you going to do? Who will you do it with? And where are you going to do it?

Are you a traveler or are you a homebody? These are really the ultimate questions to ask yourself…Do you love adventure or are you a seeker of life’s laidback backyard garden secrets…

Do you prefer to work in an office environment or are you one who would travel the world in search of that one lost hidden secret spot…

Do you have the ability to make friends instantly or are you the type that takes days to warm up to the cocktail waitress in your local tavern…



What are you going to do? Who will you do it with? And where are you going to do it?



Take the time to ask yourself these three simple yet complex questions…The answers may surprise even you…

The answers to these questions could change the course of your life forever…

Confidence

How does having confidence affect your professional life? Do you need an aura of confidence to be successful? Do you have to feel confident to get the job done or get the job of your dreams? I have done a lot of listening to the groups of folks I meet every day and I hear how their own personal confidence can affect their professional lives. I also hear how confidence can affect their personal lives. Self-confidence is extremely important in almost every area of our lives, yet so many people struggle to find it. People who lack self-confidence can find it difficult to become successful as they see success both professionally and personally. They tend to do a lot of self defeating actions, often times without realizing they are even doing them.



The same can be said and can be almost the opposite in the case of those who are over confident. This personal attribute almost always comes off looking like arrogance. Where is the contented middle and how does a person display a healthy amount of confidence to gain personal as well as professional success.


I’m a firm believer that self-confidence is an attribute that is learned and we must practice that which is not always comfortable for us until it becomes second nature. This is basically the process of forming habits and what better habit to have then exuding self confidence to yourself and to those around you. We spend our days passing through situations that require us to be self-assured and comfortable, many types of conversations and many types of interactions. We are measured by our projected first impressions to others and to those who know us and we must possess one attribute to accomplish daily success. Self Confidence…


I expect you all to wonder and ask “how do I show confidence in every situation especially a situation where I’m the least knowledgeable person in the room?” How do I present confidence when I enter a situation where I am on unfamiliar ground? Truth be told you fake it. No I don’t mean be deceitful but I mean exude an aura of self assuredness this is a measure of self confidence. This I hope will become a habit and an avenue to fake out fear and fake out self doubt just roll into any situation carrying yourself strong and assured. I watch men do it all the time, it is time women learned this small but very important technique.


Practice Practice Practice


Confidence will then just be second nature to you…


Antoinette

Are you living a life filled with passion?

I have spent the last few weeks talking with a counter part of mine on the topic of passion; you know that small thing we all need to feel alive and confident. We have discussed how essential it is to be successful in life. I mean success as it is to each of us not success as others see us.
We talked about how we have found our passion and how we may support others in finding their passion and how to define it on an individual basis. If discovering what motivates us is also the road to discovering our passion then how do we begin? Where do we begin putting the wheels in motion and how do we assist in the process of discovery? Passion could be the one thing that is in our soul not yet discovered inside us.
I think the only way to begin is to search deep inside ourselves and pull out those bits and pieces we are sometimes afraid to share, those hidden desires we sometimes stuff away into compartments inside ourselves. We all want to be perceived as practical or mature and so we tamp down our inner passions and wait for those small windows in time where we can seek them out or share them with others or often never really let them out at all. Passion is really our inner most wanton motivating goals. Passion makes your belly jump, passion tugs at your heart strings. Passion is what you felt the first time you were in love, that gut wrenching feeling of joy beyond your wildest dreams. Passion is the root of each of us but is very seldom given the sun, soil and water to grow.
Defining your passion could be a long journey of discovery.

What makes you feel good? What do you find inspires you? What takes your breath away? It really is not the breaths we take but the moments that take our breath away. This is where we find our inner passions.

Are you living a life filled with passion?

Let’s start with what I believe are the keys to begin.

• Enthuse: Find what you are enthusiastic about and set it in motion, take action.

• Empower: You are the key to your own empowerment and if not find someone who can help you find your confidence.

• Encourage: Once you have found your passion, then pass it along and encourage others to seek their passions.

These are just the beginning steps to discovering your passion. So if you want to dance then dance, if you want to sing then sing and if you want to surf then surf. Just do it with all of your heart and appreciate how confident it makes you feel in the rest of your life.

Live it!!!!

Antoinette

Entrepreneurship

What is it and what does it mean? The dictionary defines this simply as “A person who organizes and manages any enterprise, esp. a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk or an employer of productive labor.”

WOW…That doesn’t even begin to fill the realm of entrepreneurs; I see us as self-motivated hard working individuals, willing to risk our own personal assets and incomes to provide products and services to the public with little personal gain but hopefully with great personal satisfaction. More often than not failing to attain the desired outcome we had envisioned. We are the do anything group of people. If you are a small business owner I know you can relate, if you are not then today I’m going to give you the hard and astonishing facts of being an entrepreneur.

FACTS:*

• America's small businesses - some 20 million strong - are the strength of our nation's economy. They account for 39 percent of the country's gross national product, create two out of every three new jobs and produce two and one half times as many innovations per employee as do large firms.

• Estimates for businesses with employees indicate there were 580,900 new firms and 576,200 closures (both about 10 percent of the total) per year.

• Two-thirds of new employer establishments survive at least two years, and 44 percent survive at least four years.

• Women owned 6.5 million businesses that generated $950.6 billion in revenues, employed 7.2 million workers, and had $179.6 billion in payroll in 2002.

• Commercial banks are the most important suppliers of debt capital to small firms, supplying more than 80 percent of lending in the credit line market and more than 50 percent in other markets, such as commercial mortgages and vehicle, equipment, and other loans.

These facts are real and sometimes frightening, but for those of us who are entrepreneurs at heart we have little time for facts and figures. We do however have a strong belief in great ideas and seeing them come to fruition. This is the soul of an entrepreneur…

If being an entrepreneur is so tough then why do so many people attempt it? Why do we put ourselves and our finances on the line? Why do we attempt what seems like the impossible after watching so many small businesses fail? Well because we are the idealists, who are optimistic and who often times romanticize our ideas into viable and enterprising business ventures.

If we are going to jump into business what are the avenues to make our ideas work? How do we find them and what do we do to utilize the information that is available to us? Where do we go to find out if our business ideas are sound and if they will sustain a living for us and our future employees? I suggest doing lots of research, starting with your local SBDC (small business development center) or state SBA (small Business Administration). These organizations are your best asset to begin the small business process. Investigate your competitors, why reinvent the wheel, they have begun and are successful, take their model and just add your own personal touches. You will then need to start with a simple business plan, which is crucial, to any idea you feel is viable. You will then be asked to provide financials to back up your projections and help you establish projections. This process may seem daunting but if you take your time and focus it can and will get done. Focus is the key word here and it will be a significant element to your success.

For today I will just leave you with a few great websites and the resources they provide to begin the process for taking your business idea and researching to see if it can be a viable and profitable success.

Good Luck…

A
http://www.sba.gov/
http://www.sba.gov/aboutsba/sbaprograms/sbdc/index.html
http://www.score.org/index.html
*http://www.smallbusinessnotes.com/