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AFS COACH ARCHIVE
Can A Credit Union Replace Your Bank?
Escalating bank fees and the difficulty of getting the loans have caused many people to go looking for a new financial partner. Credit unions are answering the call. If you're dissatisfied with your big bank, here are four areas where a credit union might do a better job of providing the financial products and services you need. Tax News You Can Use Keeping up with tax changes can be a full-time job for small-business owners as well as individuals. So here are just a few pieces of tax information that might come in handy as you complete your 2010 tax forms and plan for your taxes in 2011. Reduce Credit Card Risk: 5 Tips Credit cards can be a handy alternative to carrying cash around in your pocket—especially during the holidays. But, the convenience of plastic also comes with risk, and we’re not just talking about the risk of running up debt. Follow these 5 tips to help reduce your risk. Simple Vehicle Maintenance Saves You Money In an effort to save a few bucks, some people are putting off important maintenance on their cars and trucks. Don’t be penny-wise and pound-foolish. Performing preventive maintenance now can help you avoid costly repairs in the future. What The New Credit Card Rules Mean For You The provisions in the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure (CARD) Act that passed last year are now going into effect and should save consumers at least $10 billion a year, reports the Pew Foundation. The savings come from new rules governing the fees and penalties that credit card issuers can charge cardholders. How To Find A Better Bank Are you fed up with the fees and impersonal service you get from your bank? Are you fuming about the fact that big banks may have received billions of dollars in federal bailout funds? Then it might be time to start looking for an alternative. Watch Out for Product Recalls Unfortunately, there is no clear protocol for product recalls, and the system for handling them is complex and decentralized. That means it’s up to you to stay informed so you’ll know what to do when something you use is no longer safe. Here are five tips that will help make that job easier. How To Claim Energy Tax Credits If you thought the window closed in 2009 for getting a tax break on the purchase of energy efficient upgrades for your home, here’s some good news: You have until the end of this year to claim the tax credit. Here’s what you need to know to claim your tax credit. 6 Ways To Balance Work And Play Learn how to maximize the limited hours in each day with these tips, which have been designed to help you carve out time for both business and pleasure. Flu Prep For Small Businesses Representatives from numerous government agencies offered recommendations for helping small-business owners cope with an H1N1 outbreak. The bottom line? Prepare your business now. Here a few resources to help you get ready for a potential H1N1 outbreak. Answers About ARC Loans The goal of the ARC loan program is simple: Help small businesses survive and get their cash flowing again by providing temporary financial relief. But, of course, the details aren’t so simple. Here are answers to some of the most common questions being asked about ARC loans. 4 Easy Ways To Fight Stress The troubled economy has everyone worried, not just about sales or projections, but for their very livelihoods. Small-business owners bear the weight of this burden perhaps more than most. Here are a few painless steps you can take to set the right tone for everyone’s day, including your own. Fuel Your Motivation: 6 Tips Word-of-mouth referrals are a coveted form of advertising because they’re highly effective and free. Here are four ways you can fast-track word-of-mouth referrals and generate some buzz for your startup business. Time For A New Biz Plan? There’s no substitute for a written business plan, especially in these uncertain times. If you’ve never created a business plan or haven’t updated your plan recently, there’s no better time to do so than right now. Is Your Business Cash Safe? The growth and success of your small business is directly impacted by the quality of your employees. Whether you manage one employee or 10, you can become a better boss by following these guidelines. Improve Your Negotiation Skills "Everything’s negotiable." If you’ve been in business for any length of time, you’ve probably witnessed this truism at work. Here are 10 expert tips for how you can improve your negotiation skills and arrive at more win-win solutions. Do You Need A Financial Planner? For many small-business owners, the demands of running a business leave little time for managing their personal finances. This is why owners can often benefit from the advice and assistance of a personal financial planner.
Be A Better Boss
Tap Your Strengths In Tough Times
You can’t add more hours to your day. But you can work faster by tapping into these small-business resources.
Survive A Travel Crisis: 6 Tips
Last month, business travelers found themselves stranded at airports across the country as airline carriers grounded hundreds of planes for inspections. American Airlines alone cancelled more than 3,000 flights in a week’s time.
How To Survive An Ebbing Economy
Be A Voice Mail Hero
Tools To Help Your Business Grow
6 Resolutions For A Great 2008
Don’t Embarrass Yourself: Six Holiday Tips Many different factors figure into employees’ job satisfaction and loyalty. But there’s no denying that compensation is near the top of the list.
What To Do In A Cash Flow Crunch
Reduce Seasonal Sales Slumps
Train Yourself We’re half way through summer. Have you taken your vacation yet?
10 Small-Business Stress Busters
5 Web Site Must-Haves Your home-based business could be hit by neighborhood burglars or by a natural disaster. And chances are, you’re not covered for the all of the losses.
Avoid Dumb Advertising Decisions
Are You A Micromanager? Take The Quiz! For small-business owners, winter brings its own unique challenges. Colds and flu run rampant in small offices. Winter sports cause injuries and absenteeism. Dreary days give folks excuses to abandon their fitness routines.
Be A Leader. Listen Up.
By All Appearances...
Tax Planning Now Pays Off Later
Quick Guide To Setting Salaries
8 Tips To Better Business Writing
How To Be A Better Boss
4 Biz Books For Summer Reading
Negotiate Like A Pro: 11 Tips
Motivate Yourself
Polish Your Speaking Skills
Make Yourself Memorable
Get Organized In 2006
Get The Technical Training You Need
7 Business Card Blunders And How To Fix Them
Teamwork. How Project Management Software Can Help.
9 Cold-Calling Secrets Of The Pros
5 Rules To Be A Better Communicator
7 Ways to Say Thanks
Let’s Do Lunch
Improve Your Productivity. Get Some Sleep!
Get On The Fast Track
5 Success Basics For Service-Based Businesses
Retailers & Shoppers Differ On Service
If you want to be the best retailer on the block, you’d better listen to what your customers have to say about service.
8 Steps To Beat Burnout
The new year just started. So why do you already feel a bad case of burnout coming on?
How To Sell More
Quick! Name the most powerful selling tool for your small business.
Become A Top-Notch Employer: 9 Tips
As a small-business owner, you can’t compete with the expensive employee benefit plans that big corporations offer. But you can provide generous benefits that workers value.
5 Tips For Choosing A Workshop
A small-business workshop or specialized seminar might be just what you need to get those creative juices flowing again.
4 Tips To Get Referrals
Referrals can be the springboard for growing and expanding your small business. They can give your business a bounce by bringing in new clients and customers.
Goal Oriented: 4 Steps To Reaching Your Dreams
If your small business is in a stall, it might not be the fault of tightwad consumers. If your solo enterprise is floundering, you might not be able to blame the competition or the economy.
11 Profit Making Strategies
Successful businesses are profitable businesses. Profits mean a bigger paycheck for you and maybe even a bigger business in the years to come. If you’re looking for ways to squeeze more profits out of your small business, check out these 11 strategies:
Training Ground
Whether you’re a new entrepreneur or a veteran business owner, training can give you the competitive edge.
Tips To Create A Winning Customer Experience
The customer experience grows out of a thousand little details. By attending to the details, your small business will shine brighter than all of your competitors. Here are a few details that often get lost in the rush of doing business. Not vision. Not creativity. Not decisiveness. What employees want
most from their leaders are basic principles such as honesty,
integrity, ethics and caring, according to the results of a 2003
survey conducted by Philadelphia-based Right Management Consultants,
one of the worlds largest organizational consulting firms.
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