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Here’s a Checklist to Open Your Small Business

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Congratulations on taking the bold step to start a new business! All things considered, creating your own business allows you to achieve a work-life balance. However, it is sometimes easier said than done. Because of the challenges involved, many business owners agree that the first year is challenging. Nevertheless, that shouldn’t discourage you from starting.

With this in mind, this guide acts as your checklist to open a small business. It’ll help you prepare thoroughly at the start and build your brand along the way to enhance your success rates.

1. Choose Your Business Idea

The first thing in your checklist to open a small business is to decide what you want to do with your business. What services or products do you want to offer your target audience? Additionally, ask yourself if the idea is profitable and whether it’ll keep you in business for long. 

2. Conduct a Feasibility Test

Undoubtedly, the best way to find out the viability of your business idea is to do a feasibility study. In other words, you need to do market research to gather facts and figures. These will come in handy in helping you make an informed decision depending on the following:

  • Industry: What is happening in the entire world of the particular type of business you want to start?
  • Market: Determine the total population of consumers or businesses currently using the product or service you hope to offer.
  • Customers: Who will be your clients to buy your product or service?
  • Competition: How many other companies sell the same product or service? Why would customers choose your business over others?

3. Write Your Business Plan

Create a business plan once you have your facts and figures on paper. It’s a map that helps you determine the direction your business will take, how to overcome difficulties, and what to do to sustain the business. While 70% of business owners recommend drafting a business plan, 13% of entrepreneurs think it’s unnecessary, but this isn’t true. Indeed, creating a business plan can be a daunting task. Nonetheless, the good thing is that you’ve already captured most items in the steps above.

Remember that your first business plan isn’t the final copy. You’ll need to keep revising it as your business grows and learn more about your market.

4. Determine How Much Money You Need to Start

The next thing in your checklist to open a small business is startup costs. Whether you’re self-funding your business or working with investors, you need to determine your startup costs. Therefore, you need to map out all your anticipated costs like hiring and setting up the business premise. Further, consider the expenses of stocking up your business, hiring employees, and getting the right office equipment.

You also must establish how your cash flow should look each month to keep the business running. Think of the salaries, workers’ compensation insurance, health insurance, liability insurance, and other finance-related business needs like utilities and business taxes. 

5. Create and Register a Business Name

Once you’re sure you have the funds to start you off, choose an appropriate business name and register it, depending on whether it’s valid. For example, it should not be similar to an existing and registered business name and should fall within the parameters of a business name in your region.

An expert can help you choose a business name, decide the business structure, create a logo, and register the business. Registration requirements vary depending on whether it’s a sole proprietorship, partnership, or a limited liability company. 

With the business name registered, you’re ready to set up your business in the desired location and hire employees. Equally, you must get a business bank account, and set up your accounting systems. Also, apply for a social security number, buy business insurance, and get an employer identification number. 

Similarly, don’t forget to apply for business permits and licenses as determined by your zoning laws. The Small Business Administration (SBA) can help you acquire business licenses and permits.

6. Brand Yourself and Get the Word Out

At this juncture, you want to attract customers and start doing business. Thus, your startup checklist isn’t complete without a marketing plan. Every business should have a website where it promotes its products and services. However, beyond having a website, consider other forms of marketing, including:

  • Online ads on popular websites and social media platforms like LinkedIn
  • Print advertising on magazines, newspapers, or business cards
  • Networking with like-minded small business owners or attending business events in your community
  • Digital signage advertising that allows you to communicate directly with your target audience. Your options include setting up digital kiosks, video walls, LED walls, and LED billboards.
  • Asking for referrals from your customers through social media or word of mouth.  

Final Thoughts

Putting up a business is no easy feat, but that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. A lot goes into it to ensure you do it right. The above checklist to open a small business gives you valuable tips to get you started. We hope it helps you find your way to building a successful business.

 

The idea of Bigtime Daily landed this engineer cum journalist from a multi-national company to the digital avenue. Matthew brought life to this idea and rendered all that was necessary to create an interactive and attractive platform for the readers. Apart from managing the platform, he also contributes his expertise in business niche.

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Business

The Ultimate Guide to the Essential Social Skills in Business

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Effective communication and strong relationships are essential for success in the workplace. One factor that can greatly influence these qualities is emotional intelligence, often abbreviated as EQ. EQ refers to the ability to identify, understand, and manage one’s own emotions, as well as the emotions of others. Research has shown that individuals with high levels of EQ are better equipped to handle stress, communicate effectively, and work collaboratively with others (Chamorro-Premuzic & Sanger, 2016).

Research has consistently shown that emotional intelligence (EQ) is an important predictor of job performance and success in the workplace. EQ is comprised of a set of skills that allow individuals to recognize, understand, and regulate their own emotions, as well as the emotions of others. In addition, individuals with high EQ are better able to communicate effectively, build relationships, and navigate complex social situations. As a result, they are often viewed as effective leaders and collaborators, and are more likely to achieve their personal and professional goals.

In fact, a number of studies have demonstrated the significant impact that EQ has on job performance and success. For example, one study of 85 upper-level managers found that those with higher EQ scores were rated as more effective leaders by their subordinates (Law, Wong, & Song, 2004). Another study of 151 employees found that those with higher EQ were more likely to be promoted within their organization over a five-year period (Carmeli, Brueller, & Dutton, 2009). These findings highlight the importance of EQ in the workplace and suggest that developing these skills can lead to significant benefits for both individuals and organizations.

According to a study conducted by TalentSmart, a leading provider of EQ assessments, EQ is responsible for 58% of success in all job types (Bradberry & Greaves, 2009). In contrast, IQ only accounts for about 4% of success in the workplace. This suggests that EQ is a crucial skill set for individuals in any professional field. Fortunately, EQ is a skill that can be developed and honed over time with practice and awareness.

There are several key components of EQ that are particularly important for success in the workplace. These include: 

Self-Regulation: This refers to your capacity to recognize and control your emotions. Sometimes treating them when they arise may be necessary. Understanding how to manage your anger is essential. However, it can also cover how to control the feelings you’ll experience.

Self-Awareness: This implies recognizing and understanding your own feelings. Do noisy places make you nervous? Do other people talking over you make you angry? Knowing these truths about yourself shows that you are working on your self-awareness. Being conscious of yourself is necessary for this phase, which can be more complex than it sounds.

Socialization: This category focuses on your capacity to manage social interactions and direct relationships. It doesn’t entail dominating others but knowing how to work with others to achieve your goals. This could entail presenting your ideas to coworkers, leading a team, or resolving a personal disagreement.

Motivation: Strong motivators include external forces like money, status, or suffering. Internal motivation, however, plays a significant role in Goleman’s concept. By doing so, you demonstrate your ability to control your cause and initiate or continue initiatives of your own volition rather than in response to external demands.

Empathy: It’s equally critical to be sensitive to others’ feelings. This may entail learning to identify different emotional states in individuals — for example, can you tell the difference between someone at ease and someone anxious? — but it also requires comprehension of how other people may react to their current situation. Empathy is one of the essential traits in business and business leadership.

A thought leader in this space, Michael Ventura has built a career advising organizations on the importance of emotional intelligence in the workplace. In his book, Applied Empathy, Ventura highlights the value of empathy in business and provides strategies for developing and applying this skill set. With two decades of experience as a leader, facilitator, and educator, Ventura’s work has made impact in with prestigious institutions such as Princeton University and the United Nations as well as corporate clients such as Google and Nike.

Through his work, Ventura advises leaders to focus on the development of EQ in order to help individuals improve their communication, collaboration, and leadership skills, ultimately leading to greater success in the workplace. Experts like Ventura continue to support the growing body of research on the value of EQ in business, and the evidence that organizations who invest in the EQ of their teams help to create a more empathetic and successful professional environment.

And it’s worth noting that EQ isn’t just important for individual success in the workplace, but also for overall organizational success. A study by the Center for Creative Leadership found that EQ was a better predictor of success than IQ or technical skills in the workplace, and that teams with higher levels of EQ tend to be more effective and productive (Boyatzis, Goleman, & Rhee, 1999). By cultivating a culture of empathy and emotional intelligence, organizations can improve their overall performance and create a more positive work environment for their employees.

In conclusion, emotional intelligence is a crucial component of success in the workplace, and individuals and organizations alike should prioritize the development of these skills. The ones that do not only develop a leading edge in their category, but also become a meaningful place to work for their teams. And in today’s rapidly changing talent landscape, the retention of highly capable, emotionally intelligent leaders is one of the greatest keys to unlocking success.

References:

Boyatzis, R. E., Goleman, D., & Rhee, K. S. (1999). Clustering competence in emotional intelligence: Insights from the emotional competence inventory (ECI). In R. Bar-On & J. D. A. Parker (Eds.), Handbook of emotional intelligence (pp. 343-362). Jossey-Bass.

Bradberry, T., & Greaves, J. (2009). Emotional intelligence 2.0. TalentSmart.

Chamorro-Premuzic, T., & Sanger, M. N. (2016). Does employee happiness matter? Journal of Organizational Effectiveness: People and Performance, 3(2), 168-191.

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