Growth and Scaling—The Difference

Recently, a new business owner asked: “How do I scale a new business?”Here’s our answer to that:A brand new business shouldn’t focus on scaling just yet. It’s only once you have some traction, growth, and product-market fit should you focus on...

Why LinkedIn is Critical to Small Business Owners

LinkedIn is a great platform, yet highly underutilized for most small business owners.  There’s an assumption that everyone on there is either a large corporation or a job seeker.  While there is no shortage of either, there’s certainly a variety of people and...

New Entrepreneurs Ask This Question the Most

THE QUESTION New entrepreneurs OR those who have just founded a new company from an idea, consistently ask this question:  “Where do I find customers?” WHY MOST ENTREPRENEURS ARE ASKING THIS QUESTION When you first have the idea for a business, you think you have it...

Conquer Business Planning for Tech Startups

In today’s startup frenzy, although business planning is most important, we understand the pressures many entrepreneurs are under to move fast and show what they’ve accomplished to attract investors and talent.  We know from first-hand experience many of the pitfalls...

Consulting is All About People

It’s All About People Consulting is all about people.  Good consultants are great listeners and naturals at building genuine relationships with others.  Most began consulting because they had a skill set or specific knowledge that is useful to others and enjoy sharing...

Let’s Grab Some Coffee

“Hey friend!  Let’s grab some coffee next week.  How’s Wednesday morning?”Maybe it stops at “Let’s grab some coffee?” and the ending is not included, but you soon find out the part about “…to pick your brain” once you get to Starbucks.How many...

Why They Should Buy From You

As a business owner, it is your responsibility to tell people why they should buy from you.  People must know how you provide value to them and why it’s worth paying for.  If that isn’t done well in both your communications, sales, and marketing efforts,...

It’s Not Scalable? What Do You Mean?

This article was written by Monique Mills, CEO of TPM FocusLet’s talk about scalability. As a startup and SMB consultant for new and innovative products, I hear a lot of great business ideas. A lot. I also hear a lot of great business ideas that will be more...

No One Wants to Steal Your Business Idea

Seriously, no one. It might be a great business idea. It could be an idea that’s going to make someone a LOT of money. It may be an idea that seems simple enough to implement, that you think someone else can easily do it. But in reality, the idea could be great, but...

Why Hire Consultants?

Top 7 Reasons Why Entrepreneurs Hire Consultants Consultants: Provide objectivity Can act as a change catalyst Can identify problems as an outsider looking in Have the right expertise when you need it Can be hired to create new businesses Can be hired to influence...

Are Business Plans Out of Style?

What is a Business Plan? Business plans can be defined as: a document, usually 10-20 pages long, that describes the opportunity, product, context, strategy, team, required resources, financial forecasts and expected returns of a business venture. Are Business Plans...

It’s Not Possible for EVERYONE To Be Your Customer

Despite how useful your product or service is to the world, it’s not possible for EVERYONE to be your customer–unless you’re selling water (something everyone needs to survive).  When many new entrepreneurs are first getting started with a fresh idea...

When to Act on Your Business Idea

Everything is just so uncertain when you first start a business or even when you have an idea that you think you want to execute on. Yes, the thought of it gets you excited and nervous all at the same time. It’s completely normal and EVERYONE (regardless of how...

Just Say “No” And Forget FOMO

Just say “No” to the1 millionth startup pitch competitionRandom coffee meeting request to “pick your brain”100th entrepreneur networking event of the month……and get back to work on your startup! This may seem like harsh words, but there will always be...