Do You Have a Theme Song ?

You’ve got to get up every morning with a smile on your face
And show the world all the love in your heart
Then people gonna treat you better
You’re gonna find, yes, you will
That you’re beautiful as you feel
                        “Beautiful” by Carole King

Do you have a theme song? I do…it’s what charges me up in the morning.  I googled, “do you have a theme song” and I found a poll with 386 affirmative responses. Whew!!!  I’m not crazy.

It motivates me. Gets me going and gives me a positive spin on the day. Why, you may wonder, do we care?  Well, studies are showing that employees are not all that happy.  The following article from Right Management News & Events, gives us some insight.

Workers Are in a Bad Mood, Says Survey

PHILADEPHIA, PA – January 31, 2012 – Most employees say their job is unrewarding and saps their energy, according to a new survey by Right Management, the talent and career management experts within ManpowerGroup. Only one-in-five consider their job rewarding and gratifying…and the rest say they just want to enjoy their lives and that is why they work.

The survey was conducted in December and January and 438 North American workers responded to the question:

Which of the following best describes your present work situation?

• 21% My job is rewarding and gratifying.
• 30% I want to enjoy my life, so I work.
• 49% My job is unrewarding and saps my energy.

“The survey findings are like barometer that tells us something about the mood in today’s workplace,” said Michael Haid, Senior Vice President for Right Management, which provides talent development and outplacement services to Fortune 500 companies. “Employees are clearly in a grumpy mood, a trend we’ve tracked for more than a year. In better times we probably would have found just a minority complain that their energy is being sapped and so forth, but now it is almost a majority of employed North Americans who seem to be unhappy.”

The prevailing bad mood is related to workplace pressures that were building for the past three years, believes Haid. “In recent surveys Right Management found that fewer workers feel they may step away from their desk for a lunch break or even take all the vacation due them. And we learned that many feel trapped in their job or resent that they’re expected to respond to work emails on the weekend. Meanwhile, staffs are leaner and workloads bigger. Our new findings are consistent with this prior research and are an indicator of poor morale at most organizations.”

Unfortunately, the widespread disaffection stems from factors largely beyond the control of most employers, said Haid. “The job market is sluggish, job mobility is down, businesses aren’t expanding fast enough, yet every day the job has to get done. The good news, I suppose, is that so many workers are nevertheless engaged and productive, despite the pressures they face.”

Haid advises employers to develop proactive strategies to engage people in their work. “Some efforts may be simple or obvious, such as acknowledging that times are difficult. Sometime it’s just necessary to be seen trying to make a difference. And for larger organizations the engagement strategy needs to be more sophisticated, but genuine as well.”

I find that an unmotivated workforce will negatively impact productivity, cause high employee turnover, create a bad, even hostile atmosphere, and cause employee grievances.

Each of us is ultimately responsible for our moods and feelings.  So, why don’t YOU get up every morning with a smile on your face!

Donna J. Simpson
Consultant Manager
The University of Scranton SBDC

The University of Scranton SBDC – New Business Alert – Olmstead & Ruiz-Smith, LLC

From left, Keith Yurgosky, University of Scranton SBDC, Alma Ruiz-Smith and Doug Olmstead of Olmstead & Ruiz-Smith, LLC

The University of Scranton Small Business Development Center (SBDC) is proud to announce the opening of a new small business in Stroudsburg, PA. Olmstead & Ruiz-Smith, LLC, is a consulting firm owned by Doug Olmstead and Alma Ruiz-Smith. This new business will offer consulting services to land and real estate developers in the Poconos, by helping them cut through red tape while providing them the professional services they need to achieve their goals in timely and cost-effective manner. For more information, call 570-872-9899.

Superbowl Sunday and Small Business !!

Super Bowl Sunday has always been a “Big” day for “Small” businesses.  Many retailers have Super Bowl sales, and bars and restaurants use this day to make up for the normal after Christmas slowdown.

 

The problem comes when a small business that relies on Super Bowl Sunday sales fail to let their customers know about their big deals.  This happens when the business owner hasn’t done their homework to find out which form of advertising is best to reach their target market.

 

Mark Reino, CEO of MeritMile.com, feels small business owners can learn valuable lessons from the big-budget Super Bowl commercials that are almost as popular as the game itself.

 

“First and foremost take budget out of the equation while analyzing these advertisements.” What you should take away from these spots, he said, is the type of research that goes into creating them.

 

“These days, the industry is as much scientific as it is creative,” Reino said. “I think small businesses get around to marketing when it’s convenient. They invest in the media…and in creative aspects.”

However, no matter how creative this mix is, if a business isn’t measuring the impact of its campaigns on consumers, it’s not worth the investment.

 

Another lesson small businesses can take from big business can be found on Social Media. Doritos runs a contest on Youtube.com where people create their own Super Bowl commercials for Doritos and then fans vote on the winner which will appear on the Super Bowl.

 

So why can’t local mom and pop businesses do the same thing?  YouTube is the second largest search engine on the Internet.  Just by naming your video a Super Bowl Ad will give it added exposure by the millions of people searching YouTube for the latest Super Bowl advertisements.

 

For additional information on how to make your small businesses appear larger than life. Contact the University of Scranton Small Business Development Center at (570) 941-7588.

 

Enjoy the game !!

  

Keith Yurgosky

Manager of Internet Business

University of Scranton SBDC

Did you hear the one about……???

“On April 15th you count your blessings . . . and then send them to Washington.”

“America is the land of opportunity. Everybody can become a taxpayer.”

“About the time a man is cured of swearing, another income tax is due.”

It’s tax season, the time of year where visions of sugar plums are replaced with visions of tax forms and dollar signs, but should this land you in a state of panic?  No, there is help available straight from IRS.   Have you visited www.IRS.gov lately?

Let’s face it, no one really enjoys paying income tax, but it’s our Sixteenth Constitutional Amendment right. In this age of easy information access, I find the offerings of IRS to be extremely useful.

On their website they tell us the IRS is a bureau of the Department of the Treasury and one of the world’s most efficient tax administrators. In fiscal year 2010, the IRS collected more than $2.3 trillion in revenue and processed more than 230 million tax returns. Their mission is to provide America’s taxpayers top quality service by helping them understand and meet their tax responsibilities and enforce the law with integrity and fairness to all.

You can find information for individuals, businesses, employees, farmers and more. There are forms, some of which can be filled out and submitted right online. You can find Publications covering topics ranging from Publication 1, Your Rights as a Taxpayer to Publication 1546 The Taxpayer Advocate Service of the IRS – How to Get Help With Unresolved Tax Problems and more. If you need a form to file your income tax return, you can find it.

I could go on and on, but I’ll stop here and encourage you to visit the IRS website where you’ll find a wealth of information ready for taking.  And, don’t forget, the tax filing deadline is April 17^th this year.  Here’s a good place to start, www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=119092,00.html.

Remember, The University of Scranton Small Business Development Center is here to help guide you as you prepare to meet with your accounting professional.  To become a client, visit our website at www.scrantonsbdc.com.

Donna J. Simpson
Consultant Manager
The University of Scranton SBDC

Thinking about starting a business in Northeast Pennsylvania?

Thinking about starting a business? Not sure where to begin? Attend The University of Scranton SBDC’s – The First Step: Starting Your Business Seminar

Wednesdays – February 1, March 7, and April 4, 2012

5:00 to 8:00 p.m. at The University of Scranton.

The sessions are FREE of charge however Pre-Registration is required. http://www.scrantonsbdc.com/semsch.html

My Numbers Say What???

I’ve been working with business owners for many years, and it always surprises me how many only organize their financial data at tax time.  Your numbers tell you very important information about your business.  Knowing your numbers, right now, can make the difference between success and failure.

I know you’re probably thinking, NUMBERS?! I hate numbers!  I don’t know anything about accounting. I just want a numbers fairy to swoop into my businesses and take care of it for me.

Consider this – you write checks and make deposits. Maybe you collect enough information to pay your sales tax. You think your sales have been pretty decent because you have a few bucks left in the checkbook.  You just recently started working on a large contract and BAM!  You have no idea why you don’t have money for this week’s payroll.  What happened? Lack of planning is what happened. You must keep up with your business trends, cycles and, of course, cash flow to stay in the game.

In his book Small Business Management, Michael Ames gives the following reasons for small business failure:

1. Lack of experience
2. Insufficient capital (money)
3. Poor location
4. Poor inventory management
5. Over-investment in fixed assets
6. Poor credit arrangements
7. Personal use of business funds
8. Unexpected growth

With the exception of numbers 1 and 3, each of these reasons is related to the numbers.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has an easy to understand Beginners Guide to Financial Statements at www.sec.gov/investor/pubs/begfinstmtguide.htm.  It’s a quick easy read that provides basic accounting understanding.

There are many ways to stay on top of your numbers. You may decide to hire someone to do it for you. You can do it yourself using a manual system. The Dome System Products, found online or in office supply stores is one that is very easy to use and understand. There are several very user-friendly computer software products on the market, too.  Personally, I like QuickBooks®.  It’s intuitive and easy to use.

Remember – knowing your numbers can make the difference between success and failure.  Meet with an SBDC Consultant to talk about your numbers or sign up for one of our QuickBooks® workshops in 2012.

Donna J. Simpson
Consultant Manager
The University of Scranton SBDC

The University of Scranton SBDC – New Business Alert – The Disability Source

The University of Scranton Small Business Development Center (SBDC) is proud to announce the opening of a new small business, The Disability Source. Owned by SBDC client Ellen Van Buskirk, the business provides hands-on assistance to individuals going through the process of filing disability claims. The Disability Source assists attorneys and clients with social security, disability paperwork, medical malpractice, personal injury, and workers compensation matters. For more information, call 570-878-8363.

From left, Donna Simpson, Scranton SBDC Consultant; Ellen Van Buskirk, owner, The Disability Source; and Lisa Hall, Scranton SBDC Director.