15 Big Hurdles You’ll Face as an Entrepreneur – And How to Beat Them

Throughout your career as an entrepreneur, you’re going to face obstacles. Roadblocks and setbacks like self-doubt, dropped clients and burnout come with the territory of owning a business, but they don’t have to get in the way of your success. Read more.

As Small Business Saturday is just around the corner we must keep in mind that franchises are also small business. Franchise owners are very much the same as Mom & Pop businesses across America having invested their life savings to achieve the American Dream of small business ownership. #ShopSmall and #ShopFranchise on #SmallBusinessSaturday. Thank you!

5 Tips to Keep an Open Mind

In the wake of an economic recession, being open minded can feel like a luxury. Our natural response is to tighten the belt and wait for the worst to pass. It’s in these times that our ability to remain receptive to new ideas, perspectives and solutions is not only important, but crucial. The world is never riper for innovation than in times of uncertainty. As an added bonus, those who choose to see the world as an abundance of opportunity see benefits beyond the economical. Read more.

How 2020’s Pandemic And Election Are Impacting Women’s Small Business

A recent study of 522 women small business owners across the 15 most populous states found 54% feared they’d have to close their doors for good because of COVID-19. The study, commissioned by Groupon and conducted by OnePoll, aimed to understand how women small business owners are meeting the challenges COVID-19 presents. Not surprisingly, 75% of women-owned small businesses have been negatively impacted by the pandemic. A fifth said they either plan to or already needed to lay off employees — and less than 10% said they plan to hire more people in the next year. Read more.

How Successful Entrepreneurs Handle Rejection

If no one told you you’re going to hear “no” as an entrepreneur, here’s what you need to know: You’d better get used to it. Whether it’s telling your spouse about how you want to quit your day job and start a business, or you’re going after small business funding, the one thing most entrepreneurs have in common is rejection. Selling anything (whether it’s the idea of entrepreneurship to a skeptical spouse or the idea of a loan to your banker) is hard. It’s not the rejection that matters. It is how you handle it afterward that will make or break your business. As sure as you set out to achieve a goal, you are going to experience roadblocks. Big or small, each “no” could take a chunk out of your armor, if you let it. Read more.

Join us this week as we celebrate National Veterans Small Business Week. We will be showcasing our nation’s military and veteran-owned businesses all week long. This year’s theme is #VetBiz Resources in Your Local Community which highlights the breadth of free to low-cost entrepreneurial resources that veteran and military entrepreneurs can access right in their neighborhood. Each day during NVSBW, we will highlight different topics related to the veteran entrepreneurship journey. We will also host various national-level events to align with each topic area. You can find a full list of events taking place across the country here. Also, check out SBA Administrator Jovita Carranza’s video kicking off the week and read the Presidential Message on National Veterans Small Business Week.