Everyone starts out their new business with certain goals. Maybe they want to become successful enough to quit their current job. Maybe they want to make enough money to pay for their family vacation, a new vehicle or their children’s college tuition. Or maybe they are saving for their eventual retirement. Regardless of their long term goals, most business owners …
Jumping Off a Cliff
Unless you have completely given up all hope, which unfortunately happens to some of us, we are all driven to succeed in our lives and in our businesses. And that drive for success pushes us to make improvements in our processes. We usually make those improvements in small, incremental steps. We study the data, looking to see what has served …
What Can I Do to Grow My Business Faster? Crawling Before You Walk
I consider myself to be extremely fortunate. I (somehow) ended up in a career that I really enjoy, that allows me to help others and that helps me to provide for my family. I started doing home inspections professionally in 2001, and soon thereafter started teaching other home inspectors (and Realtors) about the industry. In addition to being certified to …
Embracing the Challenge of Constant Marketing (part 2)
Note: This post is the second of a two-part article. Click here to read part one. I hope that everyone is doing well and prospering in their business. In the second half of this article, I wanted to expand on the idea of Constant Marketing, and the fact that every move you make has an effect on your business. In part …
Embracing the Challenge of Constant Marketing (part 1)
Depending on how we choose to live, our life may be calm and even-keeled, with little variation in our daily routine, or it may be filled with challenges: new decisions and experiences popping up at every turn. One of the good things about living in an advanced country is that (typically) we get to choose the path we desire: calm …
Late To the Party
I have been extremely fortunate to find myself in a very unique position in the home inspection industry. I was lucky enough to get in on the ground floor of a multi-inspector firm with my friends and business partners. I started doing inspections, growing my business to 40 inspections a month, and then hiring and training my replacement for those …
6 Steps to Growth in Your Business
Starting and running a small business can be both extremely rewarding and maddeningly frustrating. While success can be achieved in your business venture, the stark reality is that almost 75% of new small business ventures won’t survive past the 2-year mark. In today’s post, we will discuss 6 of the most important points to remember to help keep your business …
You Like Me, You Really Like Me!
I hope that today’s post finds everyone happy and healthy. Today’s title is a misquote of a line from Sally Field’s Oscar acceptance speech for Best Actress in her role in the 1985 movie “Places in the Heart.” Obviously this reference is way too old for the majority of readers to be familiar with, but the phrase touches on …
Can I Do This for Another Year? How To Keep a New Business Going
I hope that everyone is doing well and having more fun than I am at this moment. I am currently at the computer, working on bookkeeping late at night. While QuickBooks is far from my favorite pastime, it is a necessary evil of life as a small business owner. And while I may rather jab myself in the eye with …
Stress Buster! How Setting a Routine Can Help Lower Your Levels.
We are all subject to stress throughout our daily lives. Some people in the world are faced with life and death decisions every day, while most of us must deal with less powerful stressors. Regardless of the intensity, stress is bad for our health. Since we know this to be true, it is easy to see how the stress generated …