Why Women Entrepreneurs Do More With Less

Research suggests that women between the ages of 35-44 are most likely to launch a business, whereas men have fairly consistent level of entrepreneurship throughout all their working years.

Presumably, this trend is largely due to many women choosing to stay home and raise families in their 20’s and early 30’s. They may have trained for a particular career prior to their family commitments, but after raising a family, are now ready to get back out into the workforce, or to find/create a job that allows a better work/life balance.

But why does this necessarily mean female entrepreneurs “do more with less”? One reason may be that women in this age group likely still have children at home. They have oftentimes been the primary caregiver, and are unwilling to sacrifice this role simply because they’ve started a business.

These are women who have less time overall, but who still have a fierce determination to start and grow a business.

They may have less time to commit to their business, but they make it work by being ruthless in how they manage their time. Read more at kimgarst.com.

Women Entrepreneurs: Taking the Business World by Storm

Every day in the US, women entrepreneurs start about 850 new businesses on average. And over the past two decades or so, the number of women-owned business firms has increased by a whopping 114 percent.

These developments are a sure sign that the world of American entrepreneurship is now eagerly opening its arms to women as they become all the more comfortable in taking on the mantle of business owners and entrepreneurs.

As a matter of fact, the overall entrepreneurship rate amongst women is now considered to be higher than ever before.  And these rates are also steadily increasing at an even higher rate as more and more women decide to leave the patriarchal norms of society behind. Read more at percentotech.com.

“I never dreamed about success. I worked for it.”- Estee Lauder

10 Expert Tips for Women Entrepreneurs, Local Businesses and Others

Follow these female entrepreneurs: There are tons of inspiring women in the business world. If you’re looking for some inspiration or pointers from some successful entrepreneurs, this post from Vevue has some suggestions. Small Business Trends’ Anita Campbell is honored to be included.

Find the best cities for professional women: If you’re thinking about starting a company or moving your business to a new location, it might help to look at the trends in various cities. In this GetResponse post, Kamil Guzdek lists some of the best cities for professional women in terms of income and workforce issues. Read more at smallbiztrends.com.

It Takes a Community to Build a Business

In the past year, the value of community and the movement to “support local” have become more prominent than ever before. As post-pandemic recovery efforts continue, consumers want to see their communities thrive, and they know that buying locally is key to that growth. In a recent study, most consumers reported that they buy local in order to provide support to their local community and local economy.

However, multiculturally-owned businesses face disproportionate challenges. Between February and April 2020, Black-owned businesses declined by 41 percent, while white-owned businesses declined by only 17 percent. Even under normal circumstances, eight out of 10 Black-owned businesses fail within the first 18 months. Read more at blackenterprise.com.

How To Be Creative As An Entrepreneur

You might think that creativity requires the antithesis of rules and regulation. Even the thought of being creative conjures up images of disorder. Messy rooms, paint everywhere, scraps of paper with ideas scrawled across them. The frantic creative genius works away, oblivious to the world around them. Chaos. Method in madness. Flashes of brilliance among a cluttered existence.

The best entrepreneurs are creative. They need to find ways of solving old and new problems. They picture a world that doesn’t yet exist, they bring products to life using only their imagination. They think of ways to move forward, grow bigger and stand out. Doing more with the same tools doesn’t happen by accident, it’s intentional and it requires ideas. Read more at forbes.com.

Am I a Good Franchise Candidate?

The following is an excerpt from Franchise Bible: How to Buy a Franchise or Franchise Your Own Business, Ninth Edition, out now through Entrepreneur Press. Order now via Amazon | Barnes & Noble | IndieBound | Bookshop.

Not everyone is franchise material. This is no less true in franchising than it is in medicine, teaching or gardening. Thus, to help you make this determination, you must ask yourself some questions:

What do I really enjoy doing? This does not have to be the work that you are doing at the moment. Instead it could be a hobby that you are passionate about. Indeed, one of the most important factors that may determine your success or failure is the level of enjoyment and satisfaction you can hope to experience in operating the franchise from day to day. You must be involved with the daily operation of your business at some level regardless of the model you choose. So it is critical for you to “inventory yourself” to make sure you are indeed a good franchise candidate. Read more at entrepreneur.com.

Financing the Dream

What are your financing options? Here are a few opportunities. 

• Franchisor Funding. Many franchises offer financing solutions, either through lender partners or direct capital from the corporation. Many allow for financing not only of franchise fees but also equipment purchases and other start-up costs.
• Commercial Bank Loans. A traditional term loan is often a challenging option for minorities, who sometimes lack the credit history or collateral to secure a loan. Banks will want to see your business plan and review your credit history to determine creditworthiness, terms, and interest rates.
• SBA Loans. The U.S. Small Business Association offers loan options through intermediary partners. These loans are often attractive to lenders because the SBA guarantees a percentage of the loan amount. Consequently, lenders in SBA programs are more apt to offer better interest rates and longer repayment terms.
• Friends and Family. Many franchise owners turn to those closest to them to ask for gifts or loans. Some bring on friends and family as business partners. While these situations often come at a good price for the entrepreneur, the risks of family disputes and lost relationships loom large.
• Rollover as Business Start-up. The ROBs strategy lets entrepreneurs leverage existing 401(k) funds to finance a new business or franchise launch. With ROBs, the entrepreneur rolls over existing funds into the new company’s investment plan, issues shares, and has the plan to purchase those shares. The proceeds provide fast, flexible cash to use for franchise fees, leasing, and equipment costs or hiring. 

Benetrends pioneered the use of ROBs 401(k) business funding more than three decades ago. It has helped thousands of business owners find solutions that let dreams be realized. Download the Definitive Guide To 401(k)/ROBS Business Funding to learn more about how Benetrends can help ease the challenge of finding financing. Read more at benetrends.com.

Starting a Franchise with Your 401(k): Is It Right for You?

2020 was a problematic year for many businesses. The COVID-19 pandemic created a volatile business environment across the United States. Many people lost jobs while others struggled to make ends meet. The uncertainty following 2020 has influenced some individuals to bet on themselves by purchasing a franchise.

Starting a business requires a solid financial plan. Part of the plan may include leveraging some of your 401(k). But is it a good idea? Here to talk about this issue is Bill McPherson, vice president of franchise development for AlphaGraphics, a leading franchisor of printing and marketing solutions. Read more at franchisechatter.com.

21 Ways to Quickly Fund Your Business Growth

In a 2020 Small Business Credit Survey released by a collective of Federal Reserve Banks, it was reported that 66 percent of businesses faced financial challenges in 2019. Yet 57 percent did not apply for financing or third-party funding.

The top reasons given by those that either did not apply or approved funding but declined it included:

• Cost/interest rate too high
• Unfavorable repayment terms
• Amount offered was too small
• Collateral requirements
• Debt-averse
• Found enough funding from other sources

When business owners used other funding methods, they often relied on existing business reserves, personal funding resources or personal credit cards. 

Business owners looked to use the funding for expansion, operating expenses, debt reduction or repairing/replacing capital assets. Getting funding is more difficult for smaller businesses, younger businesses and minority-owned businesses. Service-based businesses, which lack collateral, also have a tougher time in the funding process.

Despite all these statistics, the need to raise funds to cover expenses and fuel growth is ever-present. Read more at entrepreneur.com.

“Build your business success around something that you love — something that is inherently and endlessly interesting to you.” — Martha Stewart

How to work for yourself: A step-by-step guide

The first and most obvious step of working for yourself is knowing what you want to do. Although it’s not unheard of that people quit their job with no game plan and become a huge success, you’re going to perform a lot better if you know what you want to do ahead of time.

One of the best ways to figure out how you want to work for yourself is by looking at the things you already enjoy doing. Often, your big idea is going to start as a hobby or passion that you already have, whether that’s art, craft making, programming, etc.

These kinds of ideas make great startup ideas because even if things don’t work out, you’ll still have a lot of fun learning about and exploring a topic you’re passionate about.

Another thing to consider when deciding what you want to do is to figure out if you want to become an entrepreneur or a freelancer. Though both are paths to self-employment, they’re very different.

Entrepreneurship is the traditional route of becoming your own boss. Becoming an entrepreneur just means trying to launch your own business. This can be any kind of business at any scale, whether you’re going to shoot to become the next big tech startup or simply an Etsy crafts store.

Freelancing, on the other hand, involves taking a talent or skill that you already have (like writing or programming) and finding clients to work with on your own rather than working for a company or agency. It offers a lot of the same benefits as entrepreneurship, like working for yourself and setting your own schedule and even follows many of the same steps. However, there isn’t as much growth potential as there is when starting a business. Read more at b12.io.

“We need to get women to the point where they aren’t apologizing. It is time to take ownership in our success.”- Tory Burch

5 Reasons You Should Not Aspire to Building a Massive, Multi-billion Dollar Empire

Everybody loves a good success story. However, the media dedicates much of its attention to businesses that take the world by storm. Whenever you check the news or scroll through your social media timeline, you’ll likely see an article about an entrepreneur who turned their small business idea into a multi-billion dollar empire.

If you’ve ever met with other aspiring entrepreneurs or attended conventions for business owners, you’ve probably encountered dozens of people who want to become the next Jeff Bezos or Mark Zuckerberg in their respective niches. While there’s absolutely nothing wrong with aiming high and having a global vision for your business — it doesn’t mean that it’s the right path for everyone.

In fact, there are plenty of reasons to reign in unnecessary scaling, focus on localized markets, or simply maintain a small business with no intentions of expanding to the international stage. The key is to avoid giving in to the hype and the media narrative that worldwide business stardom should be the endgame for every entrepreneur. Read more at entrepreneur.com.

Welcome to The Social Geek Radio Network.

Get in touch with your inner geek. Jack Monson and many special guests discuss social media and digital marketing trends for brands, small businesses, and franchises. 

Social Geek Radio was listed as one of 20 Best Business Podcasts according to Emerge and was named to the Best Small Business Podcasts by FitSmallBusiness.com. Recently, Social Geek Radio finally made the Top 25 podcasts in the Marketing category of Apple Podcasts / iTunes.

• Franchise Facebook Podcast – every Monday
• Franchise News Podcast – every Wednesday
• Social Geek Radio Franchise Spotlight – every Friday

Listen, download, subscribe to Social Geek Radio!

There are no limits to starting over?

No matter what you’re struggling with—addiction, relationships, impulsivity, layoffs, divorce, other mental health issues—take my advice.

You Can Start Over.

Starting over means that you’re determined to get better. It means you’re able to recognize you screwed up, and you’re going to do something about it. It means you’re taking responsibility, and you’re going to put your best foot forward. Starting over means that you got up off the ground, dusted off your hands, and put yourself back on the path to where you want to go.

It doesn’t matter how many times you have to start over, as long as you start over. So get up off the ground and walk that road, no matter how long you spent walking it the first, second, or tenth time. Just remember you are not starting from scratch; you are starting from experience. Learn more at leadershipfirst.com.

7 Ways to Increase Your Odds of Success

There is no fool-proof way to make sure you reach success in everything you do. If you are a poker player, you will know that no matter how good the cards are; or how well you play them; there is always a chance that you will be “drawing dead”. For those of you who don’t play poker, the term “drawing dead” basically means you are holding a losing hand, but you don’t know it. Although I’ve reached success on many occasions in my life, I’ve equally often been “drawing dead” on many occasions too. The whole point is that we can intend many outcomes, but more often than not, we simply don’t know how things are going to pan out. We need some strategies to increase our odds of success.

The problem is our conscious minds are, at this stage in our evolution, pretty limited. Scientist Dr Bruce Lipton asserts that 95% of our mind is unconscious and it is this part of the mind which is largely in control. This explains why for example, we might intend to lose those extra pounds or save for that vacation, but no matter what our intention, we carry on with old habits and no change is made.

It can feel pretty scary to think we actually aren’t aware of what controls us. Although if you are prepared to learn and become self-aware it can be powerful. All you have to do in theory is to become aware of those unconscious beliefs and recordings which are driving you. Once identified, you can make those changes. Learning and becoming aware of our unconscious mind, definitely increases our odds of success.

Sounds easy? Of course sometimes it is and sometimes it isn’t. What you have to do to tap into the unconscious mind is to ask the right questions and then be prepared to listen for the answer. In the meantime, though we have to make decisions, take action and deal with life. Read more at peopledevelopmentmagazine.com.

“I wake up every morning and think to myself, ‘How far can I push the company forward in the next 24 hours?” — Leah Busque

Philosophy Behind Success

Scientists like to put bullets to make things easier to analyze and they agree that there are 4 simple things that finally define our development in the workplace and our personal growth in general.

Functionality is the criterion of all choices. The question we have to ask each time we are asked to make a decision is whether this is functional or not and if yes up to what extent this particular choice can help us. Does it help our personal development or does it help the group and the company?

It is possible that a choice which helps the group will help us indirectly, besides we are a part of the group after all. Putting others first sometimes works in our favor more than it would if we chose to be selfish. Finding the equilibrium between those two is crucial and can make the difference between success and failure. We are often so absorbed by what is ethical that we tend to miss the point. Just think about how many times during the day we use the words ”good” and ”bad” or words with similar meanings.

All this just to justify actions that should always answer the question ”does this help me or not?” Albert Einstein suggested that half of the solution to a problem lays on the correct definition of what the problem is. Having functionality as a leading parameter in our decisions is vital to put the reality into words and explain it to ourselves in a way that can only prove helpful. Read more at ceoworld.biz.