Many small business owners start businesses not because they are fabulous business owners or budding entrepreneurs, but because they are passionate technicians. They have a particular skill that they know they can market and sell without working for someone else. But, for many of those business owners, that skill that sets their business apart can also be their Achilles Heel. It’s eas...

It’s hard to hear, but… any time something goes wrong in a business, the business owner is to blame. If you’re the owner of the company (or even the president of the organization) and customer has a terrible experience, it eventually comes back to you. For example, if a customer at a restaurant has a bad experience, it’s easy to blame the server or the chef, but your managers hired and t...

Running any business is hard, but when you’re running a family business, you face a unique set of challenges – it’s hard to leave work at work, it’s hard to manage the emotional entanglement of family and there’s more at stake than money when something goes awry. So how do you manage and grow your family business without fraying the relationship you’ve built with your loved ones? It come...

Networking takes time and, even for extroverts, it can be uncomfortable to talk about yourself and your business or career. But we have good news! Making a great first impression at a networking event actually requires a lot less talking and a lot more listening.When You Meet Someone NewIf you’re new to a networking group or you meet someone new, making a good impression starts like any ...