Local Business Talk

It's January 20th, 2020 and I have a scary question for you. Have you been sticking to your New Year's Resolutions? Have you been taking action towards your 2020 small business goals like you planned back in November/December? If you're like most people, the answer is NO! Most resolutions and goals do not make it past the second week of January. Today we discuss how you can add two easy actions to your day that will help you stay on track for your goals. Take a listen now!

The mental part of small business can be a challenging obstacle to overcome. It's not easy to stay positive when everything around you seems to go wrong! Em Ducharme joins us today to tell her story about staying positive and being mentally strong. These concepts help our business in many ways including building a team to support you during down times.

Can you describe the difference between branding marketing and selling? All three are important concepts to master in your small business if you want to drive growth and success. Today we discuss why it's important to understand each concept, where they overlap, and how to use each to your advantage in 2020!

Big and exciting changes are coming to Local Business Talk for 2020! We are taking a brief break for the holidays and will come back in January with exciting news.

Nobody likes talking about taxes. But it is absolutely necessary in small business to understand your numbers and where taxes comes from. Unemployment tax is often confused with insurance, but it's the only tax small business owners can control. Today we discuss what you need to know about this tax, how it's calculated each year, and what you can do to make sure you keep your rate low.

What if there was a new way to hire employees that would not only keep employees happy, but it would increase productivity in your organization? Hiring and retaining good, quality employees has long been one of the biggest challenge small businesses face. Today Jessica Charlsen joins us to discuss a new way to look at filling the roles in your business called job sharing.

Most small business owners do not want to think about the legal side of operating their business. But we can't bury our heads in the sand and pretend there are no threats to consider. Disputes over contracts, employee issues, landlords, and more all can cause huge issues if not handled the proper way. Jon Brown is Partner at Walentine O'Toole and joins us today to discuss the basics of protecting your small business.

Consistent results are not always common in small business. Our attention can be drawn to several areas every day and sometimes things fall through the cracks. Today we discuss the best way to limit this issue and how to be consistent inside your business so that you can build the business of your dreams!

Are you prepared for year end in your small business? December seemed to sneak up on us as always, but the good news is we have you covered! Today we discuss 5 things every small business needs as we approach 2020. These are simple and easy tasks that will make sure you finish this year on a high note! Click the link to listen to the full episode!

Do you have control of your thoughts? Or do you let your thoughts control you? It's a deep question that is important in our ongoing quest for growth and success. Today Paul Halpine joins us to discuss his book "A Disciplined Mind and a Plan to Achieve It."

What do you do when nothing goes your way? Is it possible to still be grateful even on your worst day? I experienced a day full of roadblocks and momentum stoppers and it was extremely frustrating. But by the end of the day I was grateful for what I experienced and what I have to look forward to next. Listen to the full story on this episode of Local Business Talk!

Imagine you are looking for a business partner. You need someone that will help guide your company for the next 20 years. You've interviewed hundreds of candidates and have narrowed your choices down to three potential hires. Now you must choose only ONE!  And your choices happen to be Patrick Swayze characters...Dalton from RoadHouse, Sam Wheat from Ghost, and Bodhie from Point Break! Each character brings some entrepreneurial traits to the table so we must decide who would make the best business partner in your small business. 

Do you know what your reputation is online? How can you control what comes up when someone searches your name or company without paying for an ad? These are topics we must be aware of in the digital world we live in. Dave Klein of AMP joins us today to discuss how we manage our internet reputation and how to increase traffic results organically without paid ads. Visit our website and subscribe! http://joesova.biz

Dovydas Viskelis has an entrepreneurship journey that has taken him all over the world. He's overcome cultural differences, changing expectations, and other obstacles to successfully own his own small business. Dov's story is an example to all of us about how fortunate we are to live in the land of opportunity.

Hollywood likes to give us feel good stories of a hero coming up to one final chance or one ultimate opportunity to win. That makes for a great 2 hour movie, but this is the opposite of how we should approach our small businesses. Today we discuss the value of being a scientist and experimenting with failure. Click the link to listen to the full episode!

Today we wrap up Veteran's week with an episode that gives perspective on the importance of military service. We get to work in our small businesses because of the sacrifices that our military men and woman make every day. Let's take a moment and thank them all for their service.

Veteran's week continues on the Local Business Talk Podcast with guest Roman Roberts. Roman is a US Army Veteran who uses his military experience to help small businesses streamline process, solve problems, and grow their bottom line. We discuss several areas of his military background and consulting experience.

We continue Veterans week on Local Business Talk with our guest Bob Fritz. Bob is an U.S. Army Veteran and operates two successful small businesses. The first business he started from scratch in the pet care industry and the second business is a home health care franchise. Bob has many lessons to share from his experience along the way.

We celebrate Veteran's Day today and honor all those that have served our great nation! Freedom is not free so thank you to all verterans who protect our country and allow us to operate our small businesses. Did you know you can earn a significant tax credit for hiring certain groups of veteran employees?

Burnout is real. You may not think it can hit you because you feel good right now, but the stress, overwhelm and non stop action of being a small business takes a physical and mental toll on EVERYBODY! Today I discuss how I learned to take a vacation and why it's a critical element of business success!