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February 26th through 28th, 2016, Kingonomics will convene in Atlanta, GA for its 4th Annual Access To Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Investment Conference. This year’s theme is “The Path To Wealth: Save. Start. Invest” and will focus on the intentional presentation of definitive tools and opportunities that everyone, minorities and under-represented communities in particular can access. Over a three (3) day period, we’ll engage with over 5,000 attendees live-in-person as we take them on an exciting journey of how to effectively create wealth by accessing expert knowledge, saving money, starting a viable business and investing to create individual, corporate and community wealth. Learn more about the conference: Click Here Blog Post - So there are some very good reasons why entrepreneurs should NEVER forget to celebrate Valentine's Day. I've listed 4 of the top reasons and brief explanations of each. Reason #1 - Your spouse or significant other is probably always used to you being busy.Building a business is no easy task. Entrepreneurs often find themselves working 10 times harder for themselves than they ever did working for someone else. This translates to long days and long nights. Days and nights in which your loved ones may feel as though they come second to your business endeavors. It's very important for you to always consider a healthy work/home balance. You are probably building your business for your family so don't work so hard that you drive them away. Show them that you appreciate their sacrifice while you're building your empire. Reason #2 - There are usually a lot of Valentines Day specials where you can save money on gifts.Let's face it. Many startups are strapped for cash. That is unless you've been blessed by some angel investor or started off with a truck load of cash. Being frugal as an entrepreneur is very important. Thinking ahead and researching Valentines Day deals can make a huge difference in your relationship AND your pocket. Buy gifts for your loved one when there are great deals going on. You can possibly even pick up a great birthday present during this time as well. The look on your loved one's face when they realize that you didn't forget about them... priceless. Reason #3 - You need to have a day to relax and simply enjoy the special people in your life.Stress is a big killer in our culture. The daily grind is real and many people are unfortunately, ticking time bombs. Recognizing special days like Valentines Day can get you to slow down and remember to enjoy the simple things in life. It's not all about world domination. Slow down, smile at the people that you love and enjoy a nice day celebrating love itself. Friends, family, co-workers, they all have feelings and you can make huge gains in your relationships by slowing down to show your appreciation. Reason #4 - It's a great day for commercialism.You didn't think that I was going to forget about business all together did you? Oh no. There are certain businesses that can get a significant bump during this holiday. Americans spend upwards of 18 billion dollars on Valentines Day gifts. Yep. You heard that right. So how much of those dollars are being spent in the Black community? As a business owner, you have a responsibility to look at spending trends and see how you can earn your share of that market. Don't forget to look at your yearly calendar and see how you can take advantage of big spending events like Valentines Day. It could make the difference in your business being in the black or being in the red. Summary
I hope that you have seen a few good reasons that you should get into the spirit of Valentines Day. Here is an article that discusses low cost and unconventional ways to celebrate. Click Here Do have any feedback on this blog post? Let me know in the comments. Thanks for reading. Make money, not excuses, Stephen Wicks - Founder of BlackBusinessList.Com
(BLOG POST) - Tax season is definitely already here. All across the country, there are thousands of companies gearing up to market their services to consumers who will have extra dollars in their pockets due to tax refunds given back from the government. Unfortunately there are many people who spend that tax refund money just as quickly as it arrives. Quite a few Americans, especially Black Americans, fall victim to consumerism and spend their precious tax refund dollars on shiny, new things and gadgets that most often won't have a long term effect on their financial health and stability. Black America's spending power is said to be over one Trillion dollars in 2015. How much of that do we use to build strong businesses in our own community?
WHAT YOU "COULD" DO WITH THAT CASH
Most Americans carry expensive debt. Paying off your smaller loans in order of how expensive they are to you is very important. Get it done. Period. Next, we will talk about how difficult Black people often find it to try to get start up funds for business ventures. Getting a sizable refund means that you could invest in your own business. Or maybe you could invest in a business that one of your friends or family is trying to get going. The fact is, that many African Americans do not qualify for loans that are being offered to the majority community. Statistically, we simply don't have the assets or collateral to get substantial loans that can be used to finance a new business venture. Most often, we find Black business owners trying to "bootstrap" their businesses. That means that they are trying to live and survive off of the sales they make and not from loans or investors. The fastest growing demographic for starting businesses is Black women. The majority of Black women are trying to raise families alone without a spouse and it's essential that we increase the number of successful business owners in our community. Of course giving to charity is also a very good thing to do. But, we must remember to give only a "portion" of our earnings to worthy causes. You have to take care of home first, then others right?
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BE A "SHARK" FOR YOURSELF OR YOUR FAMILY MEMBERS
Very few of us will make it to the hit TV show, The Shark Tank. We won't have an angel investor waiting to hear our business pitch then offer us millions of dollars to grow. It's a very tough road when you're trying to start and grow a businesses without financial backing. Finding a certified financial adviser or consulting with a financially successful family member is probably going to be your best bet. Think twice before going on that dream vacation or buying that new luxury item. You would be better served finding an investment or paying down expensive loans before spending your money on something frivolous. There are many things that you can do with your tax refund that can have a long term positive effect on your family's financial future. We have entrepreneurs who have started businesses but need help to keep them going. Make sure you offer help and assistance to those family members who may need it. THAT DOESN'T MEAN YOU JUST GIVE YOUR MONEY AWAY TO A "PIPE DREAM" Of course, everyone feels as though their business will become the next FaceBook, Google or Macy's. Maybe it will, but chances are it won't. So don't take a chance on businesses that you aren't familiar with. The saying goes, "a fool and his money will surely part." If you have a family member who is asking for your financial support, you have to make an educated decision on how you can assist them. Again, get some direction from a person that is already successful in business that you trust. If your family member really needs help, maybe you could pay for them to get some business consulting from a business expert so that the consultant can help them solve the issues in their business that may be holding them back. THE BOTTOM LINE IS, YOU HAVE MORE OPTIONS THAN SIMPLY SPENDING YOUR MONEY ON "THINGS" The ways that you can either start your own business, invest, or help existing Black business owners are numerous. All of them sound better to me than buying the next gadget that you probably don't really need or splurging on an expensive trip. Do your research and you may find that that wad of tax refund cash is something that can help your family get to the next level. I'm not a financial adviser. These are just my ideas regarding this topic. Do you have any ideas or thoughts regarding this issue? Let me know in the comments below. Make money, not excuses... Stephen Wicks, Founder BlackBusinessList.Com |
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