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The idea of sharing The opportunity to teach small business management came from two sources. When you have a century of your family's small business experience backing you there is a lot of experience that is at hand. That was simply having been born into the right family and deciding that I wanted to follow the foot steps of the three generations preceding me. The second source was a trusted advisor who first appeared as a sales representative at one of our businesses. He was encouraging and asked me to share the experiences and knowledge that I had.
When we first had the opportunity to teach professionally, I was disappointed with those who want to teach and then sell you something so you can use the information they initially shared. These people sell books, DVD, educational programs, boot camps and even charge if you just want to ask a question! There are even those who now think they are qualified to charge a person a sizable fee so that these new people can go out and teach. Apparently the qualification of having been a small business owner does not enter into the equation! Those are just some of the reasons we have created all the free tools that we have been sharing for many years. The Profits Plus website is the largest website created for small business owners. There are 47 calculators which will help a business owner make the decision that is exactly right for them as compared to utilizing some "rule of thumb". There are over 400 small business management articles for free on our website. Our monthly newsletter, Small Business News, is free as is our mid-month blurb, the Small Business Advisories. We have curated a suggested small business book list (along with a link to an independent book store), all of the Powerpoint presentations from the 40+ classes I teach, audio recordings of each, and a catalog of all our monthly podcasts for over 10 years. And yes, everytime we find someone trying to charge for something we believe they can, and should, easily share with small business owners, we go into action and work to create something of even more value to the owner without having the need to charge. We like to share. And we feel honored anytime some calls and asks if they can have a few minutes to talk about business. We wouldn't have it any other way.
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MAY 2024
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With over 25 years of frontline experience Tom Shay is America's leading Small Business Management Expert. He's a "Must Have" for your next event.
Small Business
The May Small Business Advisory is titled "Planning for a successful accountant" and is appropriate for many with the April 15 tax deadline having passed.
Did you work with your accountant? Or, did you just give them a bunch of papers and wait to receive a completed tax return?
Successfully working with an accountant requires a partnership. This month's Small Business Advisory gives suggestions of how to make this happen in 2024.
Small Business
We see that many small business owners have too much of a focus on the "top line" of their income statement.
Increasing revenue is great, but it is not a cure all for any challenges your business is facing. And sometimes, incresing revenue can create a challenge.
Who is your customer? Some small businesses have no focus. Their customer is whoever calls or walks in the door.
And some small businesses have determined which customers, in sufficient numbers, they should spend their efforts to attract.
The article of the month shares an old Southern rhyming couplet about business; "The bertter you niche, the more you get rich."
Lean Startup by Eric Reis is our suggested book for May.
As the title suggests, the reader of the book would be someone that is starting their business. However, we see more value than just that.
Perhaps you have been in business for many years. We think this book could give insight to items, and methods, that a small business owner should think about with their business today.
Yes, education is what I do for a living and I believe I am justly paid for my efforts. What I don't understand is why so may feel the desire or need to charge for everything they do. 
