If there was only one piece of advice I could give a business owner, this is it: Find a mentor who has been in a similar business situation before (though not necessarily in the same industry), with whom you have good personal chemistry, and with whom you can communicate effectively. The reason for this is [...]
Something many businesses struggle with in their early days is finding a name which identifies them. Sole proprietors may have it easy, since they can name it after themselves. However, as soon as additional people join the business, using your name to identify the business may not be the best idea. However, there are certainly [...]
Something advocated by most advisers for business owners, which I’ve promoted here as well many times, is that you find a mentor – someone who can advise you in regard to your specific issues, and help you navigate the world of business from having been in your shoes before. The value of such a person [...]
There is a known pair of sayings from Albert Einstein: No problem can be solved from the same level of consciousness that created it. We can’t solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them. This can be explained as once you see the solution to a problem, the [...]
One of the best resources that a business owner can get is a mentor. I am not referring to a coach per se, but a mentor, and the distinction is important. A mentor can help a new business owner gain experience without the pain of making mistakes (or at least, reducing the pain and frequency [...]
What do you think are some of the differences between online and face-to-face networking?
I’ve been working on an idea over the last few weeks to develop a new product along with several other people. As the instigator of this project, I have been learning a lot about how an idea moves from concept to production, from burning money to profitability, from unheard of to world famous. I have [...]
I was reading some material to prepare for a contract yesterday, and came across a set of statements which seemed to make sense the way they were written, but for some reason, didn’t add up. Most people can relate to such a scenario at some level, perhaps a friend telling you a story about their [...]
Elie Kochman is the author of Advice for Small Business Owners and the founder of Optimal Upgrade Consulting. Using his experience working in the corporate world along with his exposure to the world of small businesses, he writes these articles to assist others avoiding common pitfalls of growing a business. His experience in the corporate world, building his own business, and working directly with other growing businesses has given him some perspective on the trials and pains of running a business.
