Before starting a company, most future entrepreneurs wrestle with reasons they shouldn’t take the plunge. Of course losing money and having to drastically reduce personal time are on this list of fears for startup owners, but there’s another key factor that can prevent entrepreneurs from pursuing their dreams: age. Older people fear their time has passed, and they won’t have the energy to start a business. Middle-aged people feel more responsibility to provide for children and aging parents, and don’t think the risk of starting their own company is worth it. Young people worry they lack the experience and knowledge to run their own company. While all of these are valid concerns, we want to encourage those with solid business ideas to think instead about the positive aspects of their age over the negative. Not sure what those are? Read on. [Read more…]
Why Students Should Be Taught Entrepreneurship
In most fields, a lack of innovation usually results in a downward spiral of the entire industry, and the same is true of education. For too long, children have been taught their ABCs and 123s without enough education on how their knowledge will apply in the real world, and too many unique teens with different goals, talents and gifts have been forced down the same conventional path like it’s a one size fits all solution. While many things need to change to fix this problem, there’s one great place to start: teach entrepreneurship to students. Here’s why: [Read more…]
Arkansas Small Businesses to Watch
We’ve been celebrating Small Business Week at Arkansas Capital, and we can’t help but feel thankful we’ve gotten to play a part in many of the outstanding small businesses in central Arkansas. While we could probably write an entire book on incredible Arkansas businesses, we’ve managed to narrow down our list to three Arkansas small businesses to watch. [Read more…]
How To Write A Business Plan That Attracts Investors
It’s amazing how quickly an idea can come to you, and mostly when you aren’t even trying. Whoever came up with the shower caddy was just taking a shower and needed more space for his Old Spice collection. You’re in an everyday situation, a need appears, and you have this brilliant lightbulb moment where you figure out a way to fill that need – and the first seed of a business plan is planted. But that seed needs to be nourished in order to grow. There’s research to do, kinks to be worked out, money and resources to procure, people that need convincing. The list can get overwhelming after that initial creative jolt your brain just offered you dies down. It’s important to stay motivated! And to create a business plan that will get you noticed. [Read more…]
Top 3 Business Lessons Learned From Baseball
Baseball season is full swing! So why not mix work and play and bring out some of our favorite baseball-related business analogies to share with the world. [Read more…]
3 Ted Talks Every Entrepreneur Should Watch
The Internet has made the entrepreneurs of today some of the luckiest of all time. Not only is it now easier to run a business and promote products and services because of the web, but entrepreneurs also have a wealth of information from the world’s greatest minds right at their fingertips. What once would have required clearing out a spot on your calendar to attend a conference or speaking engagement, buying a ticket, and paying for travel costs such as gas, food and possibly a hotel, now only takes a click of a button. Arkansas entrepreneurs should be taking full advantage of this incredible learning opportunity, and TED Talks are a great way to get started. We have rounded up a few of our favorites below. [Read more…]
4 Myths About Startups Everyone Thinks Are True (But Aren’t)
For those who have spent their careers working for companies in traditional 9 to 5 roles, startups are shrouded in mystery. This often leads to the general public painting their own (and at times misinformed) pictures of what startup life must be like. While some of these common ideals may be accurate, a few couldn’t be further from the truth. Here, we’ve listed out 5 of the most common misconceptions about startups, and why they’re not true. [Read more…]
3 Office Personalities and The Apps They Need to Excel
It seems as if hundreds of apps are developed and placed on the App store every day. You know for a fact there’s some gold amongst all the clutter, but just like every other hard-working American you have no time to go digging for that perfect app that’s going to fit your specific needs. Technology was invented to provide efficiency and blogs were invented to inform and advise, so we think this combination was a match made in app heaven. Below is a list of helpful apps that will help make it feel like you magically were able to cram 28 hours into a 24 hour day. [Read more…]
The Best Small Business Hiring Practices
In a poll taken by SCORE.org, small business owners stated that hiring new employees was their biggest challenge of 2015 with growing revenues and increasing profits coming in at close second and third place, respectively. And there’s no guessing game as to why. The Department of Labor estimates employee turnover and bad hires could cost a company 30 percent of its yearly earnings (SBA.gov). Adding a new employee means adding a new paycheck amount to payroll, fringe and benefits, loss of time needed to mentor, train, and guide, etc. All of these things hit a small business owner’s wallet harder than that of a larger corporation, so it’s even more important to a small business that a new hire is a good fit, there for the long haul, and profitable. Of course, there is no perfect hiring guide. As a small business owner, there is rarely (if ever) free time to peruse the average 250 resumes a job post will receive, interview the top candidates, perform background checks, call references, and the list goes on. But there are smart practices to help you with the process and provide you with the best candidate for the job. [Read more…]
5 Ways to Spring Clean Your Business
Spring will be here in a matter of days, and the best way to embrace this sunny, green season is with some spring cleaning – and not just on your home. A little elbow grease can work wonders on your business as well! Here are a few ways you can dust off and freshen up your business so you can take on the rest of the year more organized and better prepared for whatever comes your way: [Read more…]
Top 7 Reasons People Don’t Start Their Dream Biz And Why They Should Reconsider
It’s estimated 25% of Americans have thought about starting a business, but due to a variety of reasons, decide not to. The results of a study conducted by Gallup, in which potential entrepreneurs were asked which of seven barriers was their main reason for not starting a business, indicates money is the top concern, with basic knowlegde and ability worries following. While we understand each of these concerns, we also love to answer them with ways potential entrepreneurs can overcome them to pursue their dreams. Here are the top seven reasons, and why we think you should reconsider letting them keep you from starting your own business: [Read more…]
Why Arkansas is the Perfect Startup State
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