Jim Blasingame's Blog, page 24

Be a professional business owner, not an amateur

Professionals are people who can do their job even when they don’t feel like it. Amateurs are people who can’t do their job even when they do feel like it.



I like this anonymous quote because it helps me ask this question: What kind of owner are you: a professional or an amateur?

If your driving motivation to be a small business owner is status and control, you’re probably never going to be a professional.

But if you love what you do so much that you don’t want to be anywhere else but in your bu...

RESULTS: How is the economy looking for your business as we enter the last trimester of 2014?

The Question:

How is the economy looking for your business as we enter the last trimester of 2014?

36% - This year has been great and we plan to finish strong.

29% -This hasn’t been a great year, but it looks like we’ll finish strong

14% - We started out well, but the rest of the year doesn’t look so good.

21% - We’re not going to have a good year, first half or last half.

Jim’s Comments:

Comparing our poll this week to similar results over the past couple of years, it actually looks like small bu...

Small business impact on November mid-term elections

Regardless of political party, history informs that the mid-term election in a second term has rarely been fun for any president. Consequently, President Obama’s party isn’t supposed to do well this November.

But with a Republicans House majority and Democrat control of the Senate now in jeopardy, this election cycle is producing a pitch battle with daggers drawn on every front. And not just because control of Congress is at stake for the next two years, but also six years of Democrat policies...

Balancing reality and vision

When working with entrepreneurs, one of the most difficult things consultants, advisors, and mentors must do is tell their hopeful visionaries when an idea does not have a reasonable chance of success, or simply is not viable. Such advice isn’t meant to demotivate or squash the dream, but rather to ground what is likely a rose-colored-glasses perspective in the realities of the marketplace.

The horns on this dilemma, as you might imagine, are reality and vision. And the challenge for advisors...

RESULTS: What’s your plan for federal candidates?

The Question:

With midterm elections barely two months away, what’s your plan for federal candidates?

3% - I’ll be more inclined to vote Democrat.

63% -I’ll be more inclined to vote Republican.

29% - I vote for the individual, not any party.

5% - I probably won’t vote.

Jim’s Comments:

The mid-term elections in a second term has rarely been much fun for any U.S. president. Consequently, President Obama’s party isn’t supposed to do well this November. But as you can see, if our recent online poll o...

RESULTS: Would you consider raising capital from a crowd funding source?

The Question:

Would you consider raising capital from acrowd fundingsource?

30% — I might consider crowdfunding.

67% —I would not consider crowdfunding.

3% — I consideredcrowdfunding, but decided against it.

0% — I have already usedcrowdfunding.

Jim’s Comments:

It’s interesting that none of our respondents has yet used this capital source. I have to admit, my thoughts on how relevant crowdfunding will be for most small businesses in the previous three Feature Articles may have influenced some of you...

The three points of a well-piloted entrepreneurial plan

Flight is one of the great benefits humans have acquired from the employment of mechanical advantage. When you see an airplane in flight there are three forces at work to create this benefit: thrust, lift, and control surfaces. In order for an airplane to fly successfully, meaning where the pilot wants it to go, all three forces must be working in concert.

These forces are also in evidence when you see a successfulentrepreneur.

* In an airplane, thrust comes from the engines. For entrepreneurs,...

Main Street, not Wall Street, is the leading economic indicator

What sector of the U.S. marketplace produces over half of the economy, signs the front of over half of U.S. private payroll checks, and is the perennial new job engine?

No, it’s not Corporate America or Wall Street banks. It’s Small Business America. If this sector were a sovereign country it would be the largest economy in the world.

So why does Wall Street, instead of Main Street, get all of the economic media coverage?

William Dunkelberg, Ph.D., NFIB’s Chief Economist, is the oracle of the Ma...

RESULTS: Which of the following is the most pressing challenge your business has right now?

The Question:

Which of the following is the most pressing challenge your business has right now?

16% — Negative cash flow

0% –Getting a business loan

54% — Need more customers

5% — Impact of Obamacare

25% — Taxes and/or regulations

Jim’s Comments:

See Until Next Time

Small business owners report top concerns

As you may remember, in our online poll last week we asked about the most pressing issues in your business today, and gave you five options: Negative cash flow, getting a business loan, need more customers, impact of Obamacare, or taxes and/or regulations. Here’s what we learned.

Any business that has survived since 2008 has figured out how to be successful in an extended and languishing recovery. One of the markers of that success has been deleveraging, and one of the markers of deleverage is...