Many people dream about starting their own business, but very few are actually able to live their dreams by executing them, and even fewer make it past the first five years. This is mainly because a large number of times, some business owner don’t really know what to expect.There are no words to describe what it feels like but in simple terms; it’s fun but scary at the same time. A large number of small businesses fail because of an inability to successfully make it past year one.Many business gurus believe that with the right knowledge of what to expect, a new small business owner will know how to prepare for upcoming challenges. Here are a few things that any new small business owner should expect.Be Ready to Hustle When You’re TiredIsn’t that what being a small business owner is about? You may be thinking that as a small business owner, you can take a day off when you feel like it but that’s not the case. As the brains behind the entire operation, you need to hustle even when you feel like you’ve done enough. That’s the difference between being an employee and a business owner; you’ve never done enough.There will always be paperwork that you need to sign, orders that you need to make and customers whom you need to talk to, especially in the first year. Just like in every other phase of life or an industry, the initial period is always make-or-break, and the end result highly depends upon how much work you put in.You can spend each second checking and rechecking your plans and improving them, working on ideas and developing new strategies. After all, there’s so much on your plate (marketing, product development, vendor contracts and employee training)You Can’t Make Every Customer HappyIt’s true that as a business owner, you need to retain a sense of balance in everything you do but when it comes to satisfaction, you can’t make everyone happy. As a small business owner, you’re bound to make quite a few customers unhappy and the truth is, you don’t really need to make everyone happy, either.It’s important that you remember that the key is to have a consistent customer service policy and handling complaints carefully. If your product doesn’t impress a customer all that much, then the way you handle a complaint is sure to make them a loyal customer.A major factor that differentiates your small business from that of a larger conglomerate’s is that you, as the owner, can give customers the attention they want, which is why they are likely to approach your brand in the first place.Be the Master of All TradesWhen you first thought of starting a business, you may have guessed that you’d only have to sign things and the wheels of your business would turn themselves. Wrong. In year one, you should expect to be able to do everything and know how every process works.Along the way, you’ll think ‘they didn’t teach me this at business school’ as you try to find a good web hosting company for your company website or take aesthetic pictures of your products so you can post them on a social media account. You don’t learn everything about starting a business; you have to experience it hands-on.From managing office operations during the day to writing content for your website at night, you’ll have to do most of it in the first year. You’ll be lucky to have friends or family who’ll be willing to help around but in year one, you can’t afford to hire many employees. In addition, even when you do get people on-board, you’ll have to know how to do things yourself before teaching them the basics.Be Familiar with LawsNo this is where it gets interesting. Staring a small business will require you to be familiar with laws about hiring and taxes so that your business will genuinely be able to help people in the community by offering employment.There are a number of regulations, laws, and licenses you need to know about before you can officially carry out operations as a business. In the beginning, you should expect to hire a lawyer for such needs because it’s impossible for you to know all the complex regulations that surround the startup of a small business.This is crucial because no matter how hard you work on your business, it’s likely that even a small detail or legality can be held against you. You’ll be doing yourself a favor by investing in proper legal advice and obtaining all the licenses you require. Nevertheless, legal counsel isn’t cheap so you should expect to have enough financial resources.There Will Be Some Bumps along the RoadFailure, no matter how big or small, is an inevitable part of running any business, whether big or small. You could make a product that doesn’t turn out as successful as you thought, your marketing strategy may backfire or worst-case scenario, you get a wave of negative feedback.The first year won’t be failure-free but that doesn’t lessen your chances of reaching success. To keep yourself prepared for these situations, business experts advise that before you should quit your job, you need to have some savings. To be more specific, you should have enough money to support yourself for a year.You need enough savings because no matter how well you plan the first year of your business, you can’t predict the future so there is always a chance that you might fail. There’s nothing wrong in preparing yourself for the worst-case scenario while planning for the best.ConclusionThese are just some of the things that every small business owner must expect, especially during the first year after launching their business. Of course, no amount of expectation and preparedness can actually make you battle-ready to start a business but knowing a few of the most common symptoms will help you diagnose and reassure yourself that this is supposed to happen.
Women’s Credit Card – How To Be One Step Ahead Of Credit Card Companies
Women’s Credit Card – Compare Women’s Credit Card and find out what is low APR and balance transfer credit cards.Have you ever wondered why you get credit card offers in mail when you have not even made a request for it. If your name and address is in public information system than by now you must have received many credit cards offers. Each giving better offer than other competing credit card company.With so much information to process will lead to confusion and wrong acceptance of credit cards. Choosing a right credit card is a daunting job, it needs careful analysis and close scrutiny of fine points written in small fonts. Special attention should be given to credit card rates, when new higher rates will apply. Give importance to reading terms and conditions of credit cards. You will get new understanding of how credit cards work. Before you start applying credit cards you need to know few important terms used in credit card. By knowing these terms will help you applying for a correct credit card.Credit CardsAs you know small plastic card known as credit card is in dimension of 85.60 X 53.98 mm. As the name suggest you get moneyon credit or you buy things in market on credit. The credit card differs from Debit card because when you make purchase by using your credit card it doesn’t remove money from your bank account. where as when you do purchase using Debit card it removes money from your bank account after every transaction you make.When you make transaction using credit card the credit card company lends money to merchant where you did shopping. Usually you get one billing cycle money on credit without any interest being charged to you.All is required from you is to pay full balance before due date to avoid interest charges. In case you have made big purchase which you can pay in full in one month, try paying off balance as soon you can to avoid more interest charges. In case you are not able to pay money back to credit card company please ensure you pay at least minimum balance required by due date. Usually this amount is little and it helps you to keep your account in good standing. Ideally this option should be avoided as it will pile interest amount on your borrowed amount and in no time your borrowed money will start swelling.Credit card company issues credit card to user after his/her request for application has been approved.Every credit card company will set credit limit for each customer based on his/her credit strength
The credit card user will make purchases by using issued credit card.The credit card on average is in dimension of 85.60 x 53.98 mmEvery credit card has number written on it by which your account is identified.Some of the known credit card companies: Chase – Bank of America – Citigroup – Wells Fargo – American express – discover etc. Practically every major bank issues its credit card to users.When you make purchase at any merchant you sign a small receipt acknowledging you will pay same amount to your credit card company.Few of the transactions can be done over phone, such as airlines and hotel booking, by giving your credit card number and expiration date etc. Please be care full when making such transactions. Ensure you do such transactions with trusted parties.Almost all merchants or store owners have credit card verification system, while you swipe your card for payment it is checked in background for fraud or missing card status.The credit card payment terminal or Point of Sale (POS) system helps store owners to do verification with issuing credit card company’s system.The security code of credit card is printed on back of credit card.Each month credit card company will send monthly statement to credit card users. The statement will include details of transaction made by credit card user. The important details will be visible such as day of transaction, merchant’s name, amount paid etc. This information helps you to cross verify purchases made with amount charged on credit card.The credit card statement also gives other information such as billing cycle, due date (payment date), total balance and minimum payment you can make.The grace period is the number of days to make payment back to credit card company from the day he/she made purchase.The credit card companies form associations and many bank become member of these credit card associations. The known associations are VISA, MASTERCARD,DISCOVER, AMERICAN EXPRESS etc.Electronic transaction processing network, which allow electronic transaction to work through secure system. Following are few companies which are in this business. NDC Atlanta, Nova, Cardnet, Nabanco, Omaha, Paymentech, Vital, VisaNet and Concord EFSnet.Secure credit card: Some credit card companies issues secure credit card after applicant has deposited 10% of credit limit into his/her account. This type of account is for new users with very little credit history to show.Pre-Paid Credit Card: This is not really a credit card, because no amount is borrowed from lender. This type of credit card is used by students when their parents deposit required amount into account for their shopping. This type of credit card comes with VISA/MASTECARD logo thus is called pre-paid credit cardSecurity of credit card is dependent upon the number on credit card. Few merchants will allow certain types of sale by just getting credit card number. Ensure you don’t compromise security of credit card.You can also withdraw money through credit card at ATM’s using your secure pin number
Annual percentage rate (APR): Learn what is APR and how it is calculated.The annual percentage rate is the interest you will be paying on borrowed money to lender.The APR rate applicable to your account will differ from the rate which was given as introductory, partly because of few month introduction rate and other fees get added to final interest calculation.In simple terms APR is monthly interest multiplied by 12 months will result in annual APR rate. This assumes there is no other fees involved.Balance transfer: Why would you transfer debit amount in your credit card to other card. the reason could be better interest rate and terms. some of the credit card companies give introductory offers such as no interest on balance transfer for 6 months to 2 years.These offers are good when you are paying high interest rate or you have high balance on credit cards and you are looking for cooling period to fix your debits.How important is to protect your Credit CardThis small plastic card which you carry in your wallet is very precious more than your jewelry you wear on your body. The security of credit card should be taken very seriously. Once your credit card is stolen, your account information is known to others, it will take good time before you will get those charged removed from your account.Meanwhile your credit rating will take hit if there is big charge on your credit card and you are not able to settle those charges. take every effort to safe guard security of your on-line identity and security of credit card.Few security tips: Always keep your credit card in secure place when not using. Never reveal your credit card numbers to others.Try to avoid giving your credit card information on phone.Any loss of credit card should be immediately informed to issuing credit card company.If you are using on-line access to check your credit card account, please use secure methods to protect your identity and credit card etails.Install “fire wall” and good virus and spyware scanner on your computer.Change your on-line account passwords periodically.Never use public computers to access on-line accounts.
Smart Personal Finance Leads To Smart Business Finances
The financial world may be a mystery to us when we are children but we get a crash course in it as adults. When we venture out on our own, there is no one to help us create and maintain a budget or pay our bills. If we eventually tire of working for someone else and decide to start our own business, business-related finances supplement our personal finance dealings. Without some knowledge or guidance, the world can become very confusing.One of the best ways to get a strong foundation regarding finances is to read. There are plenty of paper and eBooks dealing with business and personal finance. Entrepreneurs can also find prepackaged systems for starting an online business that includes tutorials regarding the financial aspect of a company. With this subject, it is much wiser to look before you leap, so read, read, read.Whether they are offered online or at a local college, finance classes will also be helpful. Many cover the ins and outs of the global financial sector, while others have a personal or business focus. Learning how to manage personal finances will only help with managing those for the business. Many of the concepts are applicable to both areas of life so do not hesitate to take every class that can be found. When the courses are required for a new career, they are often deductable on income taxes, an added bonus.Retaining a finance advisor is a smart move for anyone managing a substantial financial portfolio. The world of investing and money management is complex, so it helps to have professional assistance. This person may also be able to offer insight into business matters, providing twice the return on the investment. Some of the most well-known entrepreneurs credit their success to great advice regarding finances. Never hesitate to ask the advisor questions because that is the only way to learn.A finance calculator is a tool used for financial matters in addition to basic mathematics. People use this device so they do not need to remember and perform complex calculations by hand. It saves them time and money when calculating present value, future value, payments, cash flows, and other terms for loans, mortgages, investments, and business endeavors. Business owners should keep one of these handy because it will be needed throughout the years.Just as a financial advisor is a go-to resource regarding investments and other money matters, an entrepreneurial mentor can be invaluable for business matters. It helps to learn from the best, so business owners should seek out a successful entrepreneur with time to spare and learn everything there is to know about running a company.Finance is as crucial an aspect in the business world as it is in our personal lives. By taking the time to educate ourselves, obtaining the proper tools, and consulting with the most knowledgeable people, we can successfully manage both work and personal finances. This will make our lives much easier, allowing us to focus on enhancing our quality of living.