Welcome to the October 2, 2007 edition of the

 

Carnival of Small Business Issues

.

For those of you unfamiliar with Blog Carnivals, a Blog Carnival is similar to a magazine, in that it is dedicated to a particular topic, and is published on a regular schedule.

This Carnival is published weekly and includes excellent posts that offer solutions to challenges that small businesses face:

Small businesses operate under a lot of constraints. While finance and human resource are the main ones, there are others that bog a small business owner down. A lot of theory and academia focus on large businesses – but they may not all apply to small businesses.

It is the purpose of this Carnival to focus on issues that affect small business.

The aggregation of posts in this carnival submitted by the excellent bloggers involved in the small business community offer a myriad of approaches and solutions to those issues.

Why would I include all of these blogger’s posts on my own blog? Because I don’t have all the answers. The more I learn, the more I realize what I don’t know.

• I’m not a prophet.
• I’m not an intellectual.
• I’m simply trying to learn and grow and do the best that I can each and every day – just like you.

I’d like to kick off this carnival of small business issues with my post:

Could a Wellness Program Keep Your Company Healthy?

 

Here are this week’s submissions:

Randy Nichols presents Fast Paced Success – Considering a Career in Business posted at Career Advice by Randy.

Randy says: “Whether you have relatives who have entered the field ahead of you or you are simply looking for a field that will always provide you with challenges, careers in business are definitely one way to go!”

Tupelo Kenyon presents Methods As Temporary Tools Instead of Lifetime Crutches posted at Tupelo Kenyon.

Tupelo offers this: “We are obsessed with our methods. We become attached to our particular way of doing things. The trouble comes when we cling to an old method that we have outgrown. We feel bogged down and then stuck when our personal development potential is being limited by an outdated method. If your method feels more like a crutch than a tool, it’s time to take an objective look at it. Is the method in question bringing you peace and joy? Is it helping your personal growth, or is it just a familiar and comfortable habit of thought? (Enjoy soothing instrumental music as you read plus songs with lyrics related to each article – all free.)”

Ravi Vora presents Warning: You may never want to work with a big client ever again posted at Ravi Vora.

Millionaire Mommy Next Door presents Productivity Tip: How to use a digital timer to get things done posted at Millionaire Mommy Next Door.

Millionaire Mommy says: “As a “work”-from-home mom of a two-year-old, I find it necessary to structure my writing and blogging time according to her schedule and push to GET IT DONE. I write when she’s sleeping in, napping, or enjoying one-on-one time with her daddy. Nothing can sideswipe my attention and redirect my efforts quite like the world-wide-web. The timer keeps me focused, motivated and targeted on the individual task at hand. Here’s how I use this simple tool.”

Finance

Warren Wong presents What Do You Actually Buy With Money? posted at Personal Development for INTJs.

Warren writes: “What do you actually purchase when you exchange money for some item? The answer isn’t as obvious as you may think!”

Christopher J. Brunner presents When to Consider Bankruptcy as an Option posted at GreatFX Business Cards.

Christopher offers this: “Unfortunately, there are often circumstances beyond our control, such as unexpected medical problems, which force us into a financial corner that, no matter how we try, we just can’t seem to get out of. If you’re in that corner, and haven’t consider bankruptcy as an option yet, maybe you should.”

HR

wilson ng presents Incompetent Bosses, Inutile Employees, Messed up Systems posted at Reflections of a BizDrivenLife.

Wilson writes: “What destroys company value faster? A system with established process/brand name but with a bad boss, or an excellent boss but bad systems. In many ocassions, there might be a limit on what a good CEO can do in the face of inutile processes.”

Rodney Burge – Marketing Strategies presents The Test of a Leader: Facing Our Fears posted at Diane Bolden – Leadership Training.

Rodney explains: “Leadership Training Expert Diane Bolden writes at her blog http://www.keyboard-culture-leadership-training.com that anytime you make a decision to go out of your comfort zone, to do something that is new or unusual for you, you will most likely experience a tinge of fear, hesitation, or anxiety. You may question your ability, your likelihood of succeeding, and the possibility of your demise – whatever that may mean for you. It is essential to realize that this fear is a part of your journey as a leader. It is not necessary to overcome this fear. The key is to use it in ways that serve you, rather than hold you back.”

Marketing

Gavin Ingham presents How to build confidence and close more sales posted at Gavin Ingham.

Liz Fuller presents Customer Loyalty – Yours for the Picking! posted at More Than WE Know.

Liz says: “Like Isaac Newton, I was inspired by the fall of an apple – and developed my 1st Law of Customer Loyalty – Customers feel more connected to your business when they help create the product or service.”

Gley Yahya presents How to Make Money Selling on Ebay posted at Work At Home Start Up Guide.

Gley writes: “Wondering how to make money selling on eBay? This Ebay start up guide provides free advice on how to make money on ebay, tips to sell on eBay, tricks and resources to help those starting out. Here you can learn how to make money selling on Ebay! Discover how you can open your FREE eBay account, and be earning profits by tomorrow! How to Find Cheap Merchandise to Sell.How to buy wholesale merchandise and sell it for a profit. How To Create a Great eBay Listings and much more.”

John Crickett presents Can You Afford To Pay Minimum Wage? posted at Business Opportunities And Ideas.

John offers this: “Is paying minimum wage hurting your business?”

Warren Wong presents Why You Should Show Appreciation posted at Personal Development for INTJs.

Warren writes: “Why you should show appreciation for the little things people do and how to go about doing it.”

Sonia Simone presents There are no magic beans posted at remarkable communication.

Sonia says: “There are a ton of slick salespeople trying to sell “magic beans” to small businesses. This article covers two marketing techniques that actually work for businesses of every size.”

Rodney Burge – Marketing Strategies presents How to Attract More Customers posted at KBC Movies.

Rodney shares this: “From his blog at www.keyboard-culture-marketing-strategies.com , Rodney Burge offers this great, free online movie “How to Attract More Customers.” Rodney answers the question, “Where do you begin when attracting more customers or clients is your goal?””

Rodney Burge – Marketing Strategies presents How Important are Blogs to the Media? posted at Lori Prokop – Keyboard Culture.

Rodney also offers the following: “Free publicity is a great way to get your message out to the world, attract new customers and make money online. To get free publicity for your blog, products or services, you need to get the media’s attention. In this blog post by Keyboard Culture Expert Lori Prokop at http://www.keyboard-culture.com it’s amazing to see how much the media is depending on blogs.”

Operations

Gustav S presents Top Secrets to Achieve Success, make Money or Whatever you Wish in Life, Part 1 posted at success-is-in-you.com.

Gustav writes: “Success is in its most part inside of you; do not look for success outside because success is the byproduct of what you are. The more you invest in yourself as a person in order to improve your qualities as a person the more successful you will be.”

Marco Richter presents Who Can Work At Home? posted at Work From Home Concepts.

Doris Chua presents Make A List of ‘Dont’s’ posted at A Meeting Place for All Home Office Women.

Tim King presents 7 Entrepreneurial Business Secrets of Survivorman posted at J. Timothy King’s Blog.

Tim says: “You may know Survivorman as a show in which Les Stroud strands himself in the wilderness for 7 days. But the way he approaches personal survival holds discoveries for how to approach business survival.”

Rodney Burge – Marketing Strategies presents Managing a Mutlicultural Workforce posted at Jinsoo Terry – Multicultural Education.

Rodney offers: “Multicultural Education Expert Jinsoo Terry gives five tips to become a more effective manager within a multicultural workforce.”

Anita Campbell presents Perfect Technology Tools: The 90% Rule posted at Small Business Trends.

Anita shares this: “In this guest post by Aaron Smith, we explore how your business can get value out of the free or low cost online tools available today — but only if you have reasonable expectations and can live with the “ninety percent” rule.”

That concludes this edition. I hope that you gained as much value from it as I did.

Submit your blog article to the next edition of Carnival of Small Business Issues using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

The next issue will be hosted by Pat B. Doyle.

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