Preparing for the start of a new year presents particular challenges this December. How do you make plans when the world is facing something that literally has not happened before? Well, to start with, you have to think about it differently than you did in previous years. Ordinarily I’d advise you to look at this […]
2020 is (Thankfully) Almost Over. Here’s How to Prepare for It.
Now is the time of year to be thinking about wrapping things up for 2020 and looking ahead to preparing for 2021. As with everything else about 2020, this end-of-the-year advice will look a little different. PPP Loans If you have a Payroll Protection Program (PPP) loan as part of the CARES act, be sure […]
Federal Government Help for Small Businesses
Recognizing that the pandemic and economic downturn has hurt small businesses, the federal government has a couple of programs designed to make life easier. But, as with all things involving the government, that doesn’t mean getting help is actually easy. Here are some tips for how you might get some government assistance. Paycheck Protection Program […]
What can you realistically accomplish by the end of the year?
“What can I realistically accomplish by the end of the year? “Now is the time to ask yourself that question. It’s only a couple more months until 2020 is over (thank goodness!). You’ve probably already given up on dreams that 2020 will be the year you make it big on Broadway or write a best-selling […]
Forecasting for Uncertainty: How To Do It Right – and Wrong
*Last Updated May 19, 2022 If there is one thing we have all learned through the pandemic, it is this: uncertainty is an absolute certainty. Yes, COVID-19 was a disruption of epic proportions but the truth is, life is more unpredictable than we’d like to admit. We don’t know what’s going to happen in the […]
Surviving 2020 intact: Making Holistic Home and Business Decisions
COVID-19 has caused everyone’s home and work lives to collide. A few months ago, we found ourselves suddenly juggling our work, kids trying to learn to divide fractions via Zoom, and a working spouse, all while worrying about aging parents. That door we had at the office? It isn’t there anymore. You might find yourself […]
Hope for the best. Prepare for the worst.
If your business made any plans for 2020, no doubt you’ve already thrown them in the trash bin (or recycling if you’re going green). The combination of a pandemic and an economic crisis has blown most business plans out of the water and made it difficult to even imagine planning for the rest of the […]
COVID-19 – Part V: Small Business Resources.
This is part five in our occasional series about applying for coronavirus-related loans. The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) took effect in early May. It states that companies with fewer than 500 employees have to offer paid medical leave after the employee takes 10 unpaid days. An employee is eligible if 1) that employee […]
Thriving in a Crisis
Unless you happen to sell disinfecting wipes or offer online meeting services, this is probably a tough time for your business. Whether business has slowed or your company is completely shut down, you’re probably struggling in some way. And the situation is made worse by the uncertainty; nobody knows when things will start to improve […]
Coronavirus is Affecting My Business. Now What do I do?
With the current crisis, we have all been thrust into uncharted waters. The past month has confronted businesses with an unprecedented situation—this has literally never happened before—that affects different businesses in different ways. Some are shut down, some are experiencing a slow down in business, and some are busier than ever. If your business is […]