Category Archives: Business Success

Creating Equity With Your Work

Business Success, Income Creation, , , , , ,

Marcus was elated when he opened the email from his client. His proposal to create the new brand images for the company had been accepted, and he was looking forward to working on the contract. This job, his most lucrative assignment to date, would help him to overcome some financial difficulties.

Marcus was consumed with designing various elements of his client’s marketing material; spending long hours conceiving the corporate images that would give the company an updated, modern image. He devoted all of his time and work effort into the creative process as he wanted to excel at the task.

Although he had bargained that the project would have been completed in six weeks, the adjustments requested by the company extended the time to three months. While Marcus was happy with the cash inflow from this big client, he realised that the amount of work he did was not reflected in his final bill. Continue reading Creating Equity With Your Work →

Profiting From Helping People

Business Success, Income Creation, , , , , , ,

One strategy to generate extra income for yourself is to find ways to solve people’s challenging issues, and package your product or service appropriately to meet their needs. Most persons will be only too happy to pay for a well-needed solution to their painful problems.

However, there are occasions where you may have created the perfect answer for a difficulty faced by many people, but find that they are not as willing as you thought they would be to pay for it. This situation can be very frustrating for entrepreneurs who believe in the benefits of their offerings.

No profits for a problem-solver
There are several reasons why persons may be reluctant to give money for solutions to their problems. They may genuinely not be in a position to afford the product or service, no matter how useful it is. This is the case in the medical arena, as the high cost prohibits people for partaking in needed items. Continue reading Profiting From Helping People →

Letting Go Financially

Business Success, Debt, Goals, Investing, , , , , , ,

Last week we looked at the value of exhibiting patience when making important financial decisions. You need to be prudent with your spending and debt choices, and you should give yourself enough time to get the best results from your efforts in saving, investing and creating wealth.

While it’s advisable to stay on course with your financial goals and allow time to work in your favour, there are instances when you actually need to move quickly to get rid of unhealthy money habits or reverse unwise decisions you may have made.

When you commit to a specific financial route, you may not be certain if you should hold on because you made the right choice, or if your results indicate that you should change direction. Let’s look at some situations in which it’s time to cut loose and ‘wheel and come again,’ as we say in Jamaica. Continue reading Letting Go Financially →

Business Owners, Watch Your Cash Flow!

Business Success, , , , , , , ,

Ambitious entrepreneurs will have the desire to achieve financial success by operating a business. However, the process of accomplishing this lofty objective is not a simple one. There are so many dynamics that need to be in place before running a business can lead to lasting wealth.

Statistics show that there is a high failure rate for new enterprises, and those that make it past the five-year mark may still find it difficult to attain and maintain profitability. Entrepreneurs have to be skilled in certain technical and theoretical disciplines in order to properly manage their businesses.

One of the critical skills that are often ignored or under-appreciated by many business persons is the ability to carry out fundamental accounting tasks. Some entrepreneurs believe that once they are experts in their fields of endeavour or they are good at doing sales, their businesses will flourish. Continue reading Business Owners, Watch Your Cash Flow! →

Personal Budgeting for Business Owners

Budgeting, Business Success, , , , , , ,

Most business owners and self-employed persons spend long hours making plans for, and carrying out the activities required to run their enterprises. It takes a labour of love to develop a successful small business, very often at the expense of the owner’s recreation and rest time.

Dedicated entrepreneurs will pour their hearts and souls into their businesses, hoping to build an entity that will help them to attain personal and financial freedom. Sadly, many start-up enterprises will not survive past their second anniversary, as there is a high failure rate for this group.

Not a get-rich-quick scheme

It takes more than having a great idea and determination to succeed in business, as it’s vital to pay attention to financial details such as costs, cash flow and profit margins. Many entrepreneurs also neglect to take their personal spending needs into consideration when operating their businesses. Continue reading Personal Budgeting for Business Owners →

The Stress-free Way to Pay Your Taxes

Business Success, , , , , , , ,

It’s tax time in Jamaica, and many business owners and self-employed persons are putting things in place to fulfill their annual tax obligations. March 15 is the deadline for these persons to file several tax returns and remit payments to Tax Administration Jamaica (TAJ).

For those who follow proper accounting practices in their business operations, this annual tax period may not bring on too much anxiety. Once business people keep their records up to date with simple bookkeeping systems, giving the Government its due should not be an problem.

However, for the large number of entrepreneurs who fail to utilise basic accounting procedures, tax time will definitely present a major headache. The last thing business owners need is the threat of having the tax authorities investigating their operations! Continue reading The Stress-free Way to Pay Your Taxes →

How to Get Lean With Your Time

Business Success, Goals, , , , , , ,

We have kicked off 2014 with a mission to improve financial efficiency, by declaring it as the “Year to Get Lean.” Lean refers to the production system pioneered by Japanese automobile makers, Toyota, which focuses on eliminating wasteful processes to improve profitability.

This concept of reducing waste can also be applied to your personal and professional life. If you want to be a peak performer in all your activities and be successful with your goals, then lean is the way to go. This week, we will look at strategies to incorporate lean techniques in time utilisation.

There are three Japanese words that explain the types of inefficiencies that can hamper your results. Muda means idleness or wastage of resources when carrying out your tasks, mura is the unbalanced or irregular usage of resources, while muri means excessive or impossible activities. Continue reading How to Get Lean With Your Time →

Money Musings: It’s Hard to Be Lean in Jamaica

Business Success, Money Reflections, , , , , , ,

Efficiency is a success strategy that should be used to guide all your activities, whether you are seeking to accomplish personal, work, business or financial goals. In everyday terms, efficiency is the ability to effectively complete a task with the minimum amount of effort or time.

In business, efficiency is critical to the bottom-line; as you should aim to use the lowest amount of inputs, such as money, raw material, labour or machine time, to produce the maximum level of output possible. Efficiency helps you to reduce wastage and realise more profit from your efforts.

Last week, we looked at the concept of ‘lean’ production which was pioneered by Japanese auto maker, Toyota. This process of manufacturing focuses on eliminating wasteful and redundant procedures and ensuring the optimal use of resources to maximise output and profitability. Continue reading Money Musings: It’s Hard to Be Lean in Jamaica →

Get Financially Lean in 2014

Business Success, Goals, , , , ,

Once again, we begin a brand-new year, when we can reflect on the past and resolve to improve the future. For some, this is usually a time of remorse, as they regret all the wasted opportunities that passed their way. Others use this period to make optimistic plans for an even better year to come.

If you’re already in the process of recording your New Year’s Resolutions for 2014, try not to repeat the mistakes you may have made last year. It is pointless to put together a wish list of dreams and goals you would like to accomplish, without equipping yourself with the means to get them done.

This week, I would like to introduce a concept of planning and execution that may change the way you think about and approach goal setting and achievement. This methodology will help you to become more efficient and effective in many aspects of your personal, financial and work lives. Continue reading Get Financially Lean in 2014 →

OCPD Can Wreak Havoc in Business

Business Success, , , , , , ,

Jennifer walked over to her assistant’s desk with an obvious look of frustration on her face. “Kathy, there are too many grammatical errors in this report. The line spacing is not consistent and we should use bullet points to shorten some of the paragraphs. Please redo it immediately!”

“But Miss Thomas, remember that Mr. Rogers needs to get the document right now so that he can complete his submission to the new clients,” Kathy countered. “The deadline is a few hours away, and if I stop to make those small changes, we might miss getting this major contract.”

Sighing loudly, Jennifer responded firmly, “What you need to remember is that we don’t send out imperfect work from this department. Do it right the first time, or don’t do it at all.” “In fact,” she bristled, “I will do it myself. I should know better than to let you work on such an important project.” Continue reading OCPD Can Wreak Havoc in Business →