A small business owner is only as good as his or her employees. If you run a one-person website or affiliate marketing business and have no employees, then there you go—you are your only employee. But most small business owners have employees, perhaps even a small team, and they are dependent upon them in order [...]

More people are using debit cards than ever before and it seems only inevitable that at some point in the future electronic swiping will completely replace cash. This reality can’t come soon enough for banks, who frequently hike fees on debit and credit cards, account balances, and transaction fees to garner larger profits. Yes, don’t [...]

We are now in the second decade of the 21st century and launching a small business presents new challenges and new opportunities. The economy is still in rough shape but there are fresh tools and venues at your disposal. So unpack the boxes you’ve hidden away at StorageMart, move into a small office, hire some [...]

Last week while I was in Austin for SXSW, I met Kari Hayden.  She told me about this documentary, “To Catch A Dollar”.  On March 31st, there were a special screening in several cities in the United States. To Catch a Dollar, a 2010 Sundance Film Festival selection, documents the birth of Grameen America and [...]

I found this helpful tip from an article on NPR.org. If you are self-employed, then hire your spouse for health insurance. There’s another option and it’s based on the premise that there’s strength in numbers. If individual business owners bring their spouse or another person on board as an employee, insurers may have to issue [...]

SwipeGood:  Want to donate to your favorite charity while shopping?! SwipeGood rounds up all of your credit card purchases to the nearest dollar and allows you to donate the difference to the charity of your choice. To fulfill the LLC publishing requirement: In Brooklyn, it is recommended to use the Brooklyn Daily Eagle and the [...]

 Get tax credits:  Make sure you can take advantage of applicable tax credits before the end of the year. In the latest issue of Oprah, Suze Orman advises that you pay for everything in cash/debit card for the month of  December. Take your credit cards out of your wallet for the rest of the month. [...]

I was listening to NPR yesterday and hear a report about how banks are charging higher fees for basic checking accounts. Free checking is becoming extinct as the big banks need more revenue streams. Thank goodness you can still find free checking. I myself use ING Direct and Ally, but there are more options if [...]

New York First is a business-focused portal to the wealth of incentives, programs and resources available to companies –large  and small – within New York State and those that choose to relocate here. The site is administered by Empire State Development, but dozens of other agencies are represented. We are confident that the financial incentives and technical expertise [...]

Smarty Pig going to help one lucky contestant “Race Out of Debt” with a cash prize of $4,951 to put toward his or her credit card bills, holiday gifts, a much-needed vacation or whatever they choose! The process is simple, the reward large, and both new and existing customers are eligible. The contest officially began [...]

I have often asked myself this question “How did they get the funding for their business?” especially when hearing about start-up businesses that have been around less than a year or two and have no discernible revenue model.  Since I have work to do and have no time to “keep up with the Jones”,  I [...]

I was listening to NPR this morning while at the grocery and was intrigued by this story about footballers and financial literacy. This summer, Gibbs partnered with Strayer University to offer Redskins players a primer on financial basics, from credit cards to maintaining a household budget. He uses his own life as an example of [...]

What’s “The New American Dream”? The old American Dream is not so clear cut any more. Funny how I love watching “Mad Men” so much.  With all its secrets and decadent plotlines, Mad Men is pretty quaint and nostalgic. The show documents how the American Dream of owning your own home, getting a college education [...]

I just read this blog post from Carole at Freelance Fact File about keeping clients happy.  She gives eight tips, but when I read them, I thought that some didn’t sound like fun but more like drudgery. If that’s the case, then I would be back to working in a cubicle. Below are the tips [...]