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Am I Planning for Success or Disaster? Business Start-up and Taxes

Posted by rstapholz on
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Business
Am I Planning for Success or Disaster? Business Start-up and Taxes

Many times the accounting or tax professional is the last person an entrepreneur speaks to when starting a business. When in actuality the tax professional is first person you should consult when starting a business. This episode will discuss the importance validating your business idea, developing a business plan, and selecting a structure (Sole-Proprietorship, Corporation, LLC, or Partnership) for tax purposes. Proper planning and guidance in each of these areas will help you to succeed in starting and operating your business. You will see the importance of proper accounting and payment systems, so you can take the right steps and make a profit faster.

Mom Entrepreneur: Raising a Family and a Business By Marcia Zidle

Posted by Editor on
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Business
Mom Entrepreneur: Raising a Family and a Business By Marcia Zidle

Why would a mom start a family and a business almost simultaneously? There is a saying…Necessity is the mother of all inventions. The reality is that moms and dads are often faced with everyday parenting challenges that bring ideas to their minds on how to make it or do it better, easier, less expensively. Here’s how an idea turned into a series of products which turned into a family business.

My guest on this episode of the Business Edge Andrea Thomas, Owner and Creator of the ScratchMeNot. The parenting challenge that started her entrepreneurial journey was designing a product to prevent her daughter from damaging her skin by constantly scratching her eczema. Andrea will share how she is making her product visible to the masses as well how she navigates these two very different world…mom to 4 kids and business owner growing a company.

Listen to this Podcast and Learn
* Why you must be strategic when selecting the right product or service to bring to the marketplace.
* How she’s making her children part of her business educating them in business 101 so they won’t feel left out
* The identity crisis and other challenges she tackled transitioning from a corporate career to being an entrepreneur
* Her preparation for the growth of ScrathMeNot: hiring the right people, creating a * culture, building a management team
* How to deal with your spouse becoming part of “your” business: The solution regularly negotiate roles and responsibilities

The key take away: Before taking the leap, know what you’re getting into. Talk with other entrepreneurs and ask lots of questions. Get past surface answers. Really find out what the challenges are, how they dealt with them, their lessons learned. Get a variety of opinions and insights. Take it all in and then decide if it’s right for you. She realized that she should have done more research especially when expanding her product line and finding suppliers

Listen Now

From Start Up to Real Company: The Five Key Essentials By Marcia Zidle

Posted by Editor on
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Business
From Start Up to Real Company: The Five Key Essentials By Marcia Zidle

You have an idea, you’ve shared it with a few of your friends you’ve written a business plan and then took the plunge not knowing how things would work out. To your surprise or not, they did! Now what? For most entrepreneurs the answer is:  Grow! Grow! Grow! But there are definite challenges.

My guest on this episode of the Business Edge is Zain Ali, Managing Partner at Sunbonn, and adjunct professor at the University of Texas at Dallas, He will explore three common choices that most entrepreneurs have in front of them. If it’s growth, he then shares his vast experience and methodology as a consultant to major companies as well as a successful entrepreneur and business owner.

Listen to the Podcast and Learn:

*The biggest mistake he made with the rapid expansion of his company
*How to build a management team that is aligned with the culture you are creating.
*The big dilemma: Keep or let go of people who are not the right people going forward.
*Why it’s important to clearly define the product s and/or services that you will take to market
*How to trickle down company goals and values to everyone: It’s communication and measurement.

The key take away: It’s OK to borrow money to advance your vision. In the Goldman’s Sach 10,000 Businesses Program he attended, there was an exercise that gave everyone a blank check of a specific amount to spend on their business. He gave his check back because his business was self-funded. What he realized was that to grow, you will need additional funding and that it’s OK to take on realistic debt.

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