http://www.faol-inc.com Start your Education Tue, 06 Jan 2009 00:19:37 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en If “The Most Wonderful Time of Year” is behind us, what does January bring?  For some, there are those nasty post-holiday blues.  But for many, we design our New Year’s Resolution chart to plaster around the house. For small business, you can do the same thing, too.  Let’s take 7 of ... http://www.faol-inc.com/2009/01/7-resolutions-for-small-business/ If you’ve been following our blog series on internationalizing your company, On Your Mark, Get Set, Go Global, you will have made considerable strides by now. You’ve considered the pros and cons of exporting, weighed your chances for success and learned the importance of choosing a promising product or ... http://www.faol-inc.com/2009/01/building-your-crack-export-dream-team/ It seems that everywhere you look today, companies are going out of business.  I believe that a lot of these business failures have to do with one thing … discipline, or more accurately, the lack of it. There are four areas where small business owners must have a high level of ... http://www.faol-inc.com/2009/01/discipline-is-the-key/ I have come to understand that the various social media tools can be used in both social and business cases. But I can’t help but wonder when some of the social tools will generate money? If you are not very familiar with social media, I recommend that you stop right ... http://www.faol-inc.com/2009/01/will-social-media-tools-be-monetized-in-2009/ They don’t call 2008 “The Year of the Rat” for nothing. Although some small businesses will emerge from 2008 relatively unscathed by the financial turmoil, it is likely that most will be affected negatively as we move ... http://www.faol-inc.com/2009/01/2008-was-the-year-of-the-rat-%e2%80%a6-on-to-2009/ Downsizing cuts costs for the moment, but it also can leave companies ill-prepared for gearing back up when the economic recovery arrives. So how can you know when downsizing is the right thing to do, and when it could cost you market share in the long run? Learn when layoffs make ... http://www.faol-inc.com/2008/12/audio-post-avoid-cutting-muscle-and-not-fat/ I think the conventional wisdom is wrong, and 2009 offers a lot of new possibilities. Yes, the landscape will be radically different — but there’s real opportunity mixed in with the challenges. We’re approaching the end of a year that we’ll always remember — but here’s my strategy for the ... http://www.faol-inc.com/2008/12/fear-is-easy-but-hope-is-smarter/ A few years ago, I wrote on my blog about an interesting dilemma at “The New York Daily News.” What is more commonly known in New York as the “Daily News” is one of the most popular NYC Subway papers. On a weekly basis, the Daily News holds a “scratch ... http://www.faol-inc.com/2008/12/knowing-when-to-run-with-errors/ Staying ahead of the bear is of little benefit if you keep running in blind panic and die of exhaustion a while later. Even in a downturn, a business also needs to plan to conserve resources and stay healthy relative to its competitors. Be prepared to sprint for ... http://www.faol-inc.com/2008/12/beating-competitors-in-the-long-run/ On this, the last day of 2008, I provide a list of ten tiny things that every small business owner should do in 2009—hopefully in early 2009. Don’t consider it a New Year’s resolution because there’s a whole psychology behind such things. Just do it. Act like a prospective customer and ... http://www.faol-inc.com/2008/12/ten-tiny-things-every-small-business-owner-should-do-in-2009/