Scaling starts with planning! Knowing what you think your business looks like is not really what your business is! I run into many owners/founders who say they want to scale when they really don't know or understand the complexity of the meaning of 'scaling' or the cost. It isn't just having a product or service you think everyone want or demands, it is about duplicating a process to produce a quality product on time at a profit. I hear 'I want to scale to have more revenue'. You may get more revenue from customers you don't want at the price you don't want, just to get enough momentum running through your company to establish a good process. Hmmm, you end up with no profit at the end.

So what gets in the way of scaling?

1. Deciding what are you going to STOP doing - you need momentum to provide energy to scale. You can't do everything, what is your laser focus on what you're going to scale. Remove all distractions.
2. Hiring the wrong people - we grow out of friends and family. Don't h
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Growing your company takes a strategic plan and a growth budget.  Funding your growth, businesses is one of the key obstacles to getting your company off to the next level.  

There are four primary reasons for seeking funding: 

1) Expand market share

2) Purchasing inventory

3) Hiring better people

4) Strengthening business processes

What approach to funding will best suit the intent and needs of your small business? Understanding what types of financing is available is a good first step in figuring that out.

There are two major categories of financing—debt and equity—and other options exist as well.

Debt Financing 

This involves borrowing money that you must repay (usually with interest) over a period of time. Generally, some or all assets of your business will be used to secure the loans. To protect them from default on a loan, lenders commonly require borrowers to personally guarantee repayment (i.e., to have a sufficient personal interest at stake).

Banks have been the maj...

You may be familiar with Gallup’s international bestseller, “Strengthfinder 2.0,” which has been helping professionals not only identify their strengths in the workplace but also how to further develop them. Not surprising, Gallup scientists have also been studying leadership and how a strengths approach to management can fuel the success of businesses.

The data shows that organizations that work from the strength of their people are more profitable, productive, and have a higher level of employee engagement.  A company is a living, breathing organism - it has a personality all its own which is made up of the people inside the company.  This gives you your competitive advantage - or holds you back and gets in the way of growth.

How might you approach growing your small business with a strengths-based approach?

Here are five simple, practical tips from Gallup to get you started:

• Take the assessment to learn your own strengths,  (i.e., the themes that are your natural strengths). *...

I owned a transportation company called Designated Driver for about 15 years. It was a 14 passenger mini bus and as the name implies, our target customers were the bachelor and bachelorette parties, or any other event that could be expected to involve consumption of adult beverages. Because these events were isolated primarily to Friday and Saturday evenings, the transportation service sought to fill the other days with a variety of customers including senior citizen recreation centers. 

One year during the lead up to Christmas, the program director of one of my most frequent senior center clients booked my services for their annual staff holiday dinner party. Because I knew the staff fairly well, I decided that I would be the driver so that I could personally wish the team a happy holiday. I arrived to the center at the scheduled time and stationed the vehicle for arriving guests to board. The first individual to approach was a young man that I had never met. By appearances, while he...

The adventure is here. And it’s in Italy!

This is so exciting and I’m thrilled to share the news with you. Are you sitting down? You should really sit down.

I’m opening the family home to Executive Team Retreats in the beautiful mountains of Pacentro, Italy.

Can you believe it? Pacentro, Italy! The Italian mountainside is in my soul and it’s only fitting that I start this new venture there. Pacentro is a secret that needs to be shared with the world. So get ready, World, because this experience in the family home is going to be incredible. With lush rolling hills as a backdrop, you can't help but find yourself in a beautiful utopia with something for everyone’s interests. Plus, the amenities and services offered are truly an experience you can only get while in the mountains of Italy. Contact us to plan your next transcendence retreat! 

This Italian haven is one that has been in my family for generations. Although Nonna is no longer with us on earth, I have no doubt she...