What small businesses can learn from four notable Big Business ‘mistakes’. by Reed Richardson. For many entrepreneurs, the notion of making even a small mistake often sends a chill down their spines. That fear of failure can be a powerful motivator, but if in the pursuit of avoiding such a mistake it breeds hidebound thinking and paralysis, it can create even bigger problems. “Success in a business career—any career, really—doesn’t happen because everything falls into place,” notes...

Statistics show consumer buying is low, and many small businesses are facing sluggish sales. Beginning in March, the NFIB’s small business optimism index fell three months in a row after six months of rising. And, falling sales were cited as the number one business problem by one out of four business owners, particularly in the services sector.  Only 23 percent of owners reported higher sales, while 36 percent reported lower sales. However, there are some small business sectors that are showing...

Many small business owners say that overhead costs are one of the leading concerns, or even barriers, to starting or growing a business.  Most of those costs are associated with office space and other equipment. Today, however, business owners have the option to lease on a monthly or annual basis virtually anything from computer software and printers to delivery vans and specialized production machinery. Renting, as opposed to purchasing outright, can deliver important benefits to small...

by Reed Richardson. Matt Mireles vividly describes it as his “hallelujah moment,” that point in time two-and-a-half years ago when the notion of starting his own business suddenly made perfect sense. “After trying a number of other things in my life, I still felt like I hadn’t quite found my niche,” recalls Mireles, who is the founder and CEO of the Silicon Valley–based startup SpeakerText. But after a five-week entrepreneur’s course at the Stanford Graduate School of Business, he says...

Five good reasons to launch your startup in today's economy (and two reasons to think twice). by Reed Richardson. In a still fragile business climate marked by stubbornly high foreclosure rates, uneven consumer demand, and tight credit markets, budding entrepreneurs might consider right now to be one of the worst times to start a new business. But launching a startup in the midst of ongoing economic struggles can actually be a roadmap to long-term success. According to studies by the...

In this four-part series, we examine the different ways to structure your small business, comparing the various advantages and disadvantages of each Part III - S Corporation By Reed Richardson The notion of a forming an incorporated business that would also enjoy many of the same pass-through tax advantages as a sole proprietorship or general partnership was what prompted the IRS to first create S corporations more than 50 years ago. At the time, S corporations were a fairly effective...

Aaron Patzer's Start-up experiences Aaron Patzer, founder of the online money management website Mint.com, started his first business-PWeb, a web development company-at age 16 in his hometown of Evansville, Indiana. After graduating from Duke with B.S. degrees in computer science, computer engineering, and electrical engineering, and getting an M.S. degree in electrical engineering from Princeton, he moved to Silicon Valley. There, he worked a short stint at IBM, where he earned three patents...

When does (and when doesn't) a business loan make sense for your small company? By Reed Richardson Whether you're a budding entrepreneur looking for seed money or an experienced owner of an established small company seeking to fund an expansion, capital is the fuel that makes small businesses go. When choosing between the two main types of funding-debt vs. equity - there are advantages and disadvantages to each. And, particularly in the current economic climate, the choice over whether or not...