Do you consider health care coverage important to your business? A recent survey about this subject has some surprising revelations. For one, male entrepreneurs are more concerned about health insurance to employees, compared with the female entrepreneurs. According to USA Today:

The American Express survey of 627 small-company owners and managers found that 67% of men vs. 59% of women feel such coverage is important. The results, out today, are surprising to authorities on female-owned firms who believe women put more emphasis on health benefits.

Moreover, the number of small businesses with health insurance has declined given the rising premiums. Here are some tips to help you minimize your health care expenses:

1. Know all your options. Compare the premiums and perks offered by different insurance companies to get the best deal possible. With so many competitors in this industry, you have a good a chance of getting lower rates. Search over the internet and ask other entrepreneurs in your area about their experience.
2. Be part of a group. If you have less than 10 employees, you can partner with other entrepreneurs to create a bigger group. As your group becomes bigger, your premiums will be significantly lower.
3. Have a wellness program. You should be proactive and create a comprehensive fitness program for your employees to follow. As they say, “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” It can also include a diet guide and disease management counseling for chronic diseases like hypertension, diabetes, and asthma.

Ever wonder why many families refer to Disneyland as “The Happiest Place on Earth”? Underneath this enchanting place, where fairy tales are real and many childhood dreams come alive, are some hidden treasures for entrepreneurs. If you have a chance, try to visit Disneyland and observe how they operate. Before the day ends, you will learn these things:

1. Find Your Passion. From Walt Disney’s simple ambition to make great cartoons, it expanded to Disney movies and theme parks. As they say, if you love what you’re doing, you don’t have to work for the rest of your life. In case your business is not your passion, Lifehack has an insightful guide on how to enjoy what you are doing no matter what.
2. Embrace technology. From silent short films in the 1920s to digitally-enhanced movies today, The Walt Disney Company constantly anticipates and adapts cutting edge technologies to their business.
3. Create Magical Moments. Give your beloved customers the fairy tale experience they deserve by giving them Disney style customer service - exceeding their expectations and being more responsive to their needs.

Even successful business owners eventually have to let go of their small business and transfer it to family members or sell to interested buyers. Should you decide to put your business up for sale, here are some things you need to prepare for:

Some entrepreneurs say that success is relative. Some small businesses are after market share while others focus more on profitability. Regardless of what your business objectives are, here are 3 helpful tips for succeeding in your endeavors.

Be Water My Friend

You should try to be flexible with your strategies and general direction of your business. If what you’re currently doing doesn’t seem to work, try another way. Learn how to react to new opportunities and adapt to future trends. In the words of the late martial artist, Bruce Lee:

Don’t get set into one form, adapt it and build your own, and let it grow, be like water. Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless — like water. Now you put water in a cup, it becomes the cup; You put water into a bottle it becomes the bottle; You put it into a teapot it becomes the teapot. Now, water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend.

Love Thy Employees

Don’t be like one of those rotten leaders who treat employees as slaves. There are different ways to instill a sense of ownership to all your employees such as having an employee recognition program or sharing a stake in your company through Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP). However, make sure you pay attention to your hiring policies to get those passionate and highly qualified employees.

Choose Your Customers Wisely

Don’t be a one-size-fits-all business to satisfy all people. Instead, take time to find your niche and learn more about your target customers. It’s all about your customers, so offer something they want and not what you want.

If you think project management is intended for engineers and architects only, think again. Although some entrepreneurs don’t have formal training in this area, many of us business owners are constantly juggling several projects, both in our personal lives and business ventures.

A project is defined as an undertaking that encompasses a set of tasks or activities having a definable starting point and well defined objectives. Whether you’re planning a vacation trip or launching a new product, you will need to manage a project. Keith Robinson provides a clear and comprehensive guide on project management.

The first step is planning a project. Here are some of the important questions you need to factor in your planning:

1. What’s the impact to the business? Assess if there is a value for doing this project. It can be reduction in cost, improvement of productivity, or increase in sales.
2. Who are the stakeholders or the group that will be affected by this project? It can be your business partners (if any), suppliers, customers, or employees.
3. What resources are needed? You should know how much money is needed to run this project and see if the benefits outweigh the expenses.
4. Who will be the team members? Usually the stakeholders compose the team because they have the interest, experience, and expertise in the area.
5. What is the timetable? A project has a termination period so you need to set deadlines and milestones.
6. What is your measure of success? Create a report to monitor your progress and document the entire project. This will help you track the problems encountered and see if there is any room for improvement. This might come in handy in your next projects to come.

Some starting entrepreneurs still use their personal credit cards to pay for business-related expenses. While this may be convenient during the early stages, it might do you more harm than good once your business expands. Perhaps it’s time for you to switch to a business credit card. Here are some of its advantages to your small business:

1. Easy monitoring. No need to go over every receipt just to separate your personal and business expenses at the end of each year. Many business credit cards provide itemized reports of your expenses for easy bookkeeping.
2. Establish your Business Credit. Regardless of what happens to your business, your personal credit score will not be affected if you use a business credit card. If you have a good business credit rating, it will also help you secure loans easily in case you want to expand your business.
3. More Perks. Many business credit card companies wooing small business owners offer numerous business-related rewards and discounts for office supplies, phone services, and business travel.

In case you’re having a tough time looking for the right business credit card for your company, Small Business Trends will guide you on how to choose a card while BusinessCreditCards.com presents a comprehensive comparison of different cards.

Sometimes, when we plan for new business strategies, we copy what the big companies are currently doing. On the other hand, big corporations worship Mr. Jack Welch, the legendary Chairman and CEO of GE, noted for having keen business acumen and leadership skills. Managers Realm highlights a lesson from Mr. Welch about being either number 1 or number 2 all the time.

But do you know that Mr. Welch is really a pro-entrepreneur guy and that we should also listen to his teachings? Need proof? I happen to unearth a more interesting lesson from Mr. Welch himself that will surely blow your mind. Are you ready? Really? Here we go. Jack Welch recommends we should:

Behave Like a Small Company. Small companies have huge competitive advantages. They “are uncluttered, simple, informal. They thrive on passion and ridicule bureaucracy. Small companies grow on good ideas - regardless of their source. They need everyone, involve everyone, and reward or remove people based on their contribution to winning. Small companies dream big dreams and set the bar high - increments and fractions don’t interest them.”

It’s very ironic that many entrepreneurs keep following the footsteps of the big players when in fact they envy us small business owners, and they should be following us. In this competitive landscape where niche markets and personal attention are becoming more and more important, the upper hand is on our side. We should learn how to maximize these opportunities before it’s too late.

SitePoint Newsletter and forums have an interesting discussion on clients who don’t respond or are slow to respond. Most businesses can count on running into clients who don’t respond or respond slowly.

A client wanted me to write his web content and we went back and forth on that. She asked for samples, I sent them. She asked questions. I replied. The next step was for her to get all info together that she has available and send that to me. Still waiting. In normal circumstances, I’d follow up with the client every couple of weeks. However, this isn’t a project high on my list so I haven’t pushed it. My choice. If the client follows up, I’ll be ready and willing.

Over the last few years, I’ve worked with a few web designers to get my web site updated. Almost every single one of them stopped following up in spite of my sending messages every few weeks. The job was theirs to lose. But perhaps, they felt the way I did about the aforementioned client… not a high priority project. That’s OK. Rather than leaving me on hold (since I was waiting on them), I’d appreciate their letting me know they can’t do the project so I can find someone else.

I read an article somewhere about a freelancer in the same boat. She continued to follow up and she continued to market with her email newsletter. Eventually, the client did call her and hire her. She stayed in his mind with her email newsletters. Sometimes the timing isn’t right. Keep your eyes open for business opportunities even when you have a full load because you never know when a great opportunity comes along. Besides, by the time the client is ready, you might have finished a couple of projects and have a lighter load.

Keep working, keep marketing, and keep following up.

About the author

Meryl K. Evans is the Content Maven behind meryl.net, helping companies build relationships with clients and prospects through content. She is the author of Brilliant Outlook Pocketbook.

A positive cash flow is very important to our daily operations. However, a major stumbling block to attain this is the collection of accounts receivables. There are different ways to handle collection, ranging from friendly calls, automated email reminders, warning letters, and referral to debt collection agencies.

Don’t let yourself run the risk of not getting paid. Use a more proactive approach. Below is a simple step-by-step guide to improve your cash flow and reduce uncollected debts:

Step 1. Know the payment policy of the other party. This will help you validate if this is acceptable on your part. Usually it is 30 to 60 days, but in some cases it takes as long as 90 days. Negotiate right away if the terms are not acceptable to you and propose a new one.

Step 2. Request for a deposit. Try to get the other side to make a partial or whole upfront payment. While the percentage varies from industry to industry, you should always try to bring up this matter to help minimize your overhead expenses and ease the stress of having to wait 45 to 60 days for payment.

Step 3. Put it in writing. Make your agreements formal by drafting a legal contract covering the details of any project. E.g., agreed price, delivery lead time. This will serve as your bible for the duration of such projects.

Step 4. Offer discounts for early payment. If you really need payment badly, to shore up cash flow, you could offer a small discount to your clients in return for earlier payment. Some customers might agree to pay sooner if they’re getting an enticing percentage discount.

Have you ever felt that your negative thoughts control you? Running our own business is a can, for some, be a rollercoaster ride filled with challenges, fear, and possibly depression. Some have risked all their savings only to end up in total dismay. Survival is an everyday test. If you find yourself filled with these thoughts, here are some tips to restore your courage:

Prepare and Repair

List the worst things that can happen to you once you failed in your venture. Common fears among us are bankruptcy, as well as putting the lives of our employees at risk. Once you have a list, start crafting your contingency plans. Knowing you are well prepared can help regain your courage.

Relax and See a Movie

Sometimes watching movies is a good courage booster for many entrepreneurs. For starters, try renting the movie 300. Filled with bloody action scenes, this box-office movie exemplifies courage against a seemingly formidable force. Imagine fighting thousands of an opposing force with only 300 well-trained soldiers! Other similar movies include The Gladiator, Braveheart, and The Patriot.

If movie is not your thing, try reading about different courageous personalities like Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King and the simple act of defiance by Rosa Parks.