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Archive for June, 2009

Entrepreneurs Can Still Thrive Online Despite the Economic Downturn

Wednesday, June 24th, 2009

Remember- Fortunes are built during the bad times and cashed in during the good. If you think a recession is a bad time to start a business, think again. An entrepreneur is adaptable and is always looking for opportunities. There are many logical reasons why this is a good time to start your own online venture. Your capital maybe limited and you feel the pressure of a recession that looks like it’s not going away anytime soon so let’s get serious and look at your options.

An online business, done correctly, can be your ticket to not merely surviving tough times but thriving. They can actually provide more income than a regular 9 to 5 job allowing you to escape being a wage slave or if you’re a little older and that early retirement may have to wait a few more years this may be perfect for you.

Think about it. Now more than ever, people and companies are more conscious of their spending habits and are turning to the internet to save cash and get value for their hard earned money. This doesn’t mean that any online business will make you rich. You’ll still need to learn how to set yourself apart from the competition and determine ways to streamline your operations just like any other business.

One huge plus, especially if your 401k has taken a beating and there’s no equity in your home to borrow against an online businesses normally doesn’t need as much start-up capital compared to a traditional brick-and-mortar business, but usually requires a steep learning curve. If your currently unemployed this should present no problem but if you are hanging onto your job it might take a little longer to get up to speed. There are no shortcuts and like any business, certain skills are required to make it worth your time.

Just like any other entrepreneurial endeavor a half hearted attempt at being an online entrepreneur will get you nowhere. Before you decide to delve into this avenue of business, consider how much time you can devote to your online business. Also consider what type of business suits you best. Your personality and skill set are great tools to use in making this assessment. Look deep within yourself. Take a long hard, objective look. Keep in mind you’ll be putting a whole lot of time and effort into the new venture.

Eventually, you’ll have to decide which online business is best for you and for most people that usually means deciding which business will generate the most income.

Now let’s take a quick look at some of the top online business opportunities that await you online…

Blogging – A blog (short for web log) is a website maintained by an individual with content (text, pictures, art, videos, music, podcasts, etc). Consider it your particular take on anything and everything. Be warned. The internet is already supersaturated with blogs, so if you’re thinking of adding another, try to do some sort of business blog to help attract interested advertisers. A well constructed, well written, popular blog can attract advertisers or become part of an affiliate marketing network.

Affiliate Marketing – Basically, affiliate marketing is a marketing technique where revenue sharing occurs between advertisers/merchants and online publishers (you). Choose a search engine optimization friendly domain name, and create a website around it. Add content, drive traffic to it, and look for merchants with affiliate programs or try joining an affiliate marketing network that will link your site to related merchant sites. Create more websites. This is probably the most labor-intensive and technical online business opportunity out there but there’s considerable income for those with the technical skills to make it worth their efforts.

Online Auction / E-commerce- One man’s trash is another man’s treasure, especially in the online marketplace. You might begin by auctioning personal items online from your attic or garage. When you’ve depleted these items, you may want to sell merchandise that you have obtained cheaply from local sources, for example, to interested buyers from around the world. You could also manufacture your own uniquely marketable items like handcrafted jewelry and other arts and crafts projects. Then again, be sure you stand out from the crowd because, as many people have discovered, there are a LOT of people selling the same type of products and merchandise online.

VA (Virtual Assistant) – As more companies downsize, support services begin to shift from the real world to the virtual world. Providing administrative and business support to other business owners might not make you rich but it might be worth doing if you’re unemployed or a stay at home parent.

Freelance Services- Provide professional services like copywriting, web design, photography and illustration. These jobs are truly skill based. Therefore, learn and exceed in the necessary skills to attract and maintain your client base. An impressive portfolio will take you much farther than an impressive resume in this line of online business. So be sure to make your published work speak volumes about your skills. This online business requires a considerable amount of talent and knowledge to make it feasible as a significant source of income.

Financial Solutions Marketing and Training – Of all the online business opportunities available, the most lucrative and most rewarding appears to be that involved with internet marketing and financial education and wealth management. This business allows one to make a substantial amount of money, and allows one to teach other people how to make money. Helping other people achieve their fondest dreams of obtaining a wealthy lifestyle can be a truly rewarding experience in more ways than one. You too can learn to create wealth by using the right mindset, the proper tools and a fair amount of initiative.

In summary, do some soul searching and prepare yourself to make a big commitment. Don’t do it “half-way”; go the distance and give it your best shot possible. Whether you succeed or fail you always know you did your best and that’s what counts. If you require additional professional guidance you may want to review the mentoring and business coaching services of Ethos Mentor (www.ethos360.com).

The Entrepreneur’s Ultimate One Stop Shop for How to Start and Grow a Business

Wednesday, June 17th, 2009

Ethos 360 has released the cutting edge killer solution to the entrepreneur’s biggest problems; from getting started to getting funded. From Point A, to Point B and so on. Nobody has ever put such a complete set of services and funding solutions under one umbrella along with the personalized attention of a handpicked Mentor to work one on one with each Member. You gain from their experiences and learn from their mistakes. Furthermore this is done at a price that can’t be beat.

Ethos 360 provides entrepreneurs with affordable one on one mentoring, business coaching and capital raising services so they can launch and grow their businesses. They help business owners at every stage, from how to start a business, start-up and growth stage, to established firms seeking large capital funding and expansion. Most importantly, Ethos 360’s decades of experience helps entrepreneurs avoid making costly mistakes and their affordable services assist them navigating through the often treacherous waters of on-line and off-line service providers who (sometimes not so nicely) target entrepreneurs.

The Total Package

The key ingredients of our service our: 1. Every Member gets their own Mentor to work one on one with, 2. Business coaching, document preparation and strategy development i.e. “laying the groundwork”, 3. We raise capital for you, 4. Business credit building program, 5. Unlimited angel/private investor leads, 6. Advice on corporate structure and formation, 7. Pitch Coaching, 8. Investor relations. There’s even more, visit the “Services” page here- www.ethos360.com/solutions/.

Ethos 360 takes you step by step from start to finish whether you have a new concept and don’t know what to do next or you’re looking for your third round of financing from a venture capital or private equity firm. Do you want to sell shares of your company in a private offering or get introduced to the right investment banker to underwrite your IPO they’ll open up their rolodex to help you with that also.

They’ll analyze your unique situation to find you the perfect financing solution. For example: 1. Bank loans/SBA, 2. Angel/private investor leads, 3. Venture capital, 4. Angel groups, 5. Private equity, 6. Private lenders, 7. Lines of credit, 8. Bridge and construction loans, 9. Commercial financing including factoring, accounts receivables, purchase order financing, equipment leasing, 10. Build business credit.

We have more sources of capital in one spot than anyone else, visit the “Solutions” page here- http://www.ethos360.com/solutions/#funding.

Putting Their Money and Credibility Where Their Mouth Is.

All Members receive a Lifetime Membership so if your first business doesn’t work out, you’re a serial entrepreneur or you discover a better venture they’re there to help. They stand behind their services offering a 100% Satisfaction Guarantee or a full refund if you’re not happy for any reason. Perfect “A” rating with the Better Business Bureau. Too good to be true, not really, YOU have to be motivated and realistic; willing to take the necessary steps to get to where you want to be. There’s no magic to what they do; just good old fashioned hard work, experience, creativity and the ability to put together a workable strategy custom tailored for your situation. Lazy unmotivated people do not apply.

What follows are the personal experiences of the owner of Ethos 360 derived from years of pursuing her own entrepreneurial dreams. She’s sharing her mistakes so you don’t have to live them yourself. She’s walked the walk not just talked the talk.

A New Concept Born Out of Necessity.

“While starting and growing my own businesses I found myself in many situations where I needed objective third party advice and found that there wasn’t a company that could take me through the process of starting and growing my business from point A to point B to point C and so on,” stated Ellisa Brenneman president of Ethos 360, “I found out that something even as supposedly simple as traditional bank or Small Business Administration (SBA) financing can be confusing since I had never applied for a business loan before. Who IS the SBA anyway? Where are they located?  Are they a lender? In addition I find a lot of “too good to be true” websites full of big promises but bad reputations.”

“I felt confused, frustrated and lost. What began as an exciting adventure was rapidly turning into an expensive nightmare. Instead of focusing on what I was good at and bringing my vision to fruition,” shares Ellisa Brenneman, “I was burning the midnight oil trying to learn about every aspect of how to start a business and being an entrepreneur. More often than not the information I received was contradictory and came from someone trying to sell me something making me skeptical and more confused than ever.”

The People and Companies That Prey on Entrepreneurs.

Small business entrepreneurs desperate for help and in need of financing will soon discover there’s no shortage of predators to be victimized by. For example, as soon as you post online on a capital raising site the feeding frenzy starts. You’ll be electronically attacked by swarms of unlicensed middlemen willing to find you money for a “small” monthly stipend ranging from $500 to a whopping $10,000! “When I mentioned that it would seem more fair to pay them a commission (even twice the amount they wanted initially) once money was actually raised I never heard from them again,” Ellisa Brenneman explained, “Just the day before they were so excited about my deal and supposedly already had the investors all lined up. I was born at night, just not last night. The first red flag came when I could never get a straight answer to a simple question; please show me proof that you’ve raised capital for someone directly because of your efforts. I asked to speak to a couple of clients who they raised money for in the past. You think they’d be motivated to promote their successes publically, like real funding groups, to capture new business.”

Another favorite is business credit building services guaranteeing huge sums of money if you just spend $4250 to learn their “secrets”. They are so accommodating that they even have monthly payment programs. “I called one such company”, said Ellisa Brenneman, “for the second time to ask the sales representative a few more questions only to find that their phone was disconnected. Wow. This recession must be real tough since their website said they’ve been in business ten years. Then the thought occurred to me, their own tried and true “secret” techniques must not have been very effective or they would still be in business!”

Many entrepreneurs sign up for business plan posting websites supposedly full of anxious investors ready to write them a check, from 2000 miles away none the less, and to their initial surprise they’re contacted right away, not by just one but several investors, extremely pumped up about their business concept and clamoring to invest. The money’s in sight, almost in your hands, they promise, just as soon as you send them $8500 for a “commitment fee”.  And to think you only have to pay $99 a month for a “Premium Listing” on a business plan posting website, for several other “quality” offers just like it!

Traps Set to Snare the Uninformed.

From attorneys charging $1500 to incorporate a business, investment banking advisors who state that you also need a $15,000 Private Placement Memorandum (PPM) before any financier will even seriously look at your project. Executive business coaching that is available for a paltry $1000 a day (with a 3 day minimum), loan brokers who want $850 upfront to “package” a loan request, and we saved the best for last…. the grant finding services. For a hefty fee they’ll search the same databases that you could for free except they’ll do it for you. And within a matter of days they’ll find you a “special grant program” that supposedly only they have access to. All you had to do is pay up to a $6,000 fee upfront and the grant money is yours for the taking! Free money! You don’t have to pay it back either!

You’re already daydreaming thinking about the beautiful office you’re going to rent and luxuriously furnish with all that free government money. Bad news, at the last minute they forgot to mention the 120 page 40 section business plan and written grant proposal you were supposed to already have prepared and the cutoff date was 3 days away. But wait, good news, they have just found a better grant program but you have to pay another $1,000 for “processing”. Wash, rinse, repeat. There are more stories, first hand, of entrepreneurs who kept falling for this over and over to the tune of $20,000 or more lost, down the drain.

More Scared and Confused than Ever?

You’re not alone. A great number of entrepreneurs end up mislead, abused and broke. They end up giving up on their dreams before they even “get into the game” because of these types of tactics. Everything described above has happened to almost all entrepreneurs at one time or another. Some entrepreneurs quit before they ever get started; they were never entrepreneurs to begin with. Others try their whole lives, never make it big but had a blast going for it and would do it all over again. Others get lucky and hit a home run during their first or second time at bat. You simply never know till you try, and luck and timing play a larger role than you can ever imagine. Most entrepreneurs are burdened with too many questions and often given only expensive and ineffective answers. More often than not, each answer is tied to a price tag that few can afford during the beginning stages of their business when every dollar counts the most.

From the Ashes a Solution Blooms.

The idea for Ethos 360 was born from the altruistic desire of Ellisa Brenneman to make sure entrepreneurs don’t repeat the same mistakes she did. Those mistakes are outlined above. There’s a lot more but this press release would have morphed into a short story. Ellisa Brenneman created Ethos 360 not to get rich (she doesn’t charge enough for the Lifetime Membership to do that) but to help other entrepreneurs benefit from her lessons learned and, fulfill their entrepreneurial dreams at a price point anyone can afford.

Ethos 360- Gain knowledge, Gain capital. Attain your dream.

Ethos 360, located in Portland, Oregon, offers a very unique value proposition for aspiring entrepreneurs as well as successful business owners. To their knowledge there hasn’t been any organization, group or business that provided one on one mentoring, business coaching and raising capital services, at an affordable flat fee, until now. The team at Ethos 360 helps business owners regardless of what industry or stage of growth they are at, including concept and seed stage businesses along with complete start-ups.

The owner of Ethos 360, Ellisa Brenneman, recognized that what entrepreneurs needed was a one stop shop that offered all the services an entrepreneur needs under one roof. The core of the concept is that each Lifetime Member is paired with their own personal Mentor to coach, motivate and guide them through the entrepreneurial process.

Everything You Need to be Successful in One Easy to Follow Program

Many companies offer ad hoc services but no company tied them altogether into a cohesive affordable program.  Ethos 360 can help the first time entrepreneur by holding their hand through the start-up process from laying the ground work all the way to funding. The grizzled, battle hardened serial entrepreneur can benefit from objective advice from a Mentor that’s stood in their shoes many times before, offering unlimited angel/private investor leads, warm venture capital introductions and even direct public offerings of the shares of their company. Visit www.Ethos360.com or call 503-501-2444 to get started fulfilling your dream today.

Ethos 360 charges a flat fee of $499 for their mentoring service plus Lifetime Membership including a 100% satisfaction guarantee. No more being nickel and dimed to death. No more sales people pushing unnecessary services at you. No more empty promises. Your Mentor is always there to help you step by step, sharing their knowledge and offering real world guidance in a motivational manner.

How to Start an Online Business for the At Home Entrepreneur

Wednesday, June 17th, 2009
Any entrepreneur who’s surfed the internet for 5 minutes has seen the ads. “Make Money on the Internet Working 30 Minutes a day?” “Want to Earn 6 Figures in 6 Months?” “Start Your Online Business and The Only Work you’ll ever have to do Again is Cashing Checks”. Some of them are laughable yet naive entrepreneurs fall for them all the time. There wouldn’t be hundreds of these ads on the internet if they didn’t work. And I mean, make money for the person selling you the e-book, website, home business start-up kit or Multi-Level Marketing Scheme not for you.

Let’s Get Real.

Some people believe it easy to start an online home business, but without having a handle on what is needed to make money online, they will fail like the rest of the 99% that try building a home business on the internet. There are things you must know and ‘tricks of the trade’ that will make the difference between success and failure. This is what we’re going to discuss; how YOU can follow a step by step process to build your own small business and be one of the 1% that are successful.

The Best Part is you don’t Need a Ton of Money to Start the Business.

You don’t need an investor or venture capitalist and you probably don’t even need a loan. You can do it full time or start part time and gradually move to full time as you replace your current income. How much money you make is based upon a little luck, a lot of determination and your desire to succeed. If you didn’t have the desire you probably wouldn’t be reading this right now. The fact that only around 1% of those that start an online business succeeds should be indication enough that there is more to it than just the will. There is also the attitude, information and knowledge. Let’s have a look at each of these. Attitude is Important.Your online home business is a business, not a hobby, and it should be treated as such. You have to discipline yourself to work towards a set plan and achieve your goals: set monthly, weekly and daily targets, and if you take time off for a lunch with a friend, or to watch an episode of Lost, then work later until you have met your targets. Set reasonable expectations. Don’t aim to high or you’ll burn out before you ever really get going. Remember, this is a marathon not a sprint. Targets should be set so that you achieve so much in a certain time, and when you meet them all, your business is that much stronger and on course for success. Newcomers to internet business will most likely need some help with that to start with, but you should quickly get into the swing and be able to formulate your own online business plan and set targets to achieve it. Don’t look upon your income as spare cash: look on it as your income, even if you still have a regular job. Most that are still learning about what is needed to make money online have a day job, although quite a few are unemployed. That’s why they are trying to use the internet to make a living especially now with the current economic climate. Think positive. Fortunes are built during the bad times and cashed in during the good times.Knowledge Is Only As Good as the Source it’s From.

There is a lot of information online, but information is no good on its own with knowing what information is useful and what is not. You must also know how to use the information provided to you. Simply being told that keyword research is essential for the success of your website will not help you to carry out that research properly, and arrive at the right keywords for which each page on your site should be optimized. You have to be told how to carry it out and how to apply it to your online home business. Not only that, but too much information can be just as bad as insufficient. You can suffer what is referred to as ‘information overload’. You have all the information you need to be successful, but there is so much of it, and how do you put it all together to formulate a coherent business plan? Check the resource where the information came from. Seek out experts. Find their blocks and subscribe to the RSS feeds. Listen to people who’ve been successful doing what you are doing. You’ll find they all share common characteristics. Don’t forget to research, research, research.Knowledge Comes From Information.

There are a lot of intelligent people that start an online home business, but fail because they have no idea of what is needed to make money online. There is a lot to learn, and most of the currently successful internet marketers have spent a great period of time devoted to learning their craft. Many had to learn and improvise as they went, because internet marketing was new when they started, and they set the standards and level of knowledge of their day. Now, however, there is a lot of information available online but you have to know what you are looking for before you know what to search for! How do you get a website started up? There are several steps, including:

· Decide how you are going to make money: by selling a product, providing a service or some other way.
· What form will that product or service take? Do you have to create it yourself or sell, on commission?
· How do you choose a domain name?
· You have found out that you should carry out keyword research but how do you do that properly?
· How do you buy and register a domain name, and then use it on your website?
· How do you start up a website?
· How should your website be designed?
· How do you go about designing and constructing it?
· How do you advertise your website? How do you get your site listed on Google and other search engines?
Take Your Time. Step by Step.

We have barely scratched the surface with the above basics. Without that knowledge, however, you don’t have any hope of succeeding with an online home business, and you will be like the 99% others that fail to make money online. The best way for most people to learn, and the way that most appear to prefer, is just like being at school. You are not given the entire alphabet to learn at once: you learn a letter at a time. The same with learning how to start an online home business and make money online:

1. How to choose a money-making or internet marketing technique.
2. Find out how to formulate a plan, and set regular targets.
3. How to choose the right product.
4. How to get a website started up.
5. How to get your products on the site, and how to set your site up to collect payments and deliver the product.
6. How to promote your product and website.
7. How to set everything on autopilot and get onto your next project.
That is just one of a good sequence of events, whereby you are provided the information in easily digestible pieces that come together to provide you with a viable online home business that will not only help you to make money online, but also work as the basis for a massive internet empire that could one day see you earning 7 figures online.

All of the above can be achieved by taking the time to learn at your own pace, lay the foundation, stay motivated, achieve your goals step by step and launch your start-up small business. It is recommended, and money well spent, to hire a mentor or business coach to assist you with your new endeavor. Visit www.Ethos360.com to review their services. Not only can hiring an experienced mentor save you time and headaches but also money as well by keeping you from making the mistakes and falling into the failure traps of the other 99%.

Happy hunting and go make some money!

Financing 101 for Entrepreneurs – Debt vs. Equity or Both?

Wednesday, June 17th, 2009
Small business owners can choose from two basic types of financing- debt and equity. There are advantages and disadvantages of each type that may be used for different purposes.

Before you seek start-up capital, organize your records as follows;
· Gather you’re financial business records including tax returns
· Speak with business partners or family members about the sometimes uncomfortable option of giving up partial control of the business to potential investors
· Request copies of your personal and any business credit reports

Entrepreneurs who seek financing face a fundamental choice: Should they borrow funds or take in new investment capital? Since debt and equity are accounted for differently, each has a different impact on earnings, cash flow, and taxes. Each also has a different effect on leverage, dilution, and a host of other metrics by which businesses are measured. The planned use of funds will also affect the choice of financing, with one option more appropriate for certain uses than the other.

Debt can be a loan, line of credit, bond, or even an IOU — any promise to repay borrowed amounts over a certain time with a specified interest rate and other terms. Debt is accounted for as a liability of the company, and interest payments are deductible business expenses. In the event of bankruptcy or insolvency, debt holders take priority over equity holders.

For a small business, debt financing has both advantages and disadvantages. On the plus side, debt can be relatively simple to secure through a bank or other financial institution and is available with a broad range of terms, allowing you to customize the debt to meet your specific needs. And since most debt entails regularly scheduled payments of interest and often principal as well, debt is easy to plan around. Perhaps most important, debt, unlike equity, will not dilute your ownership interest in your company.

On the minus side, however, financing with debt can be more expensive, and you will have to meet scheduled interest and principal payments regardless of your cash flow. Although loan terms can be negotiated to build in flexibility, ultimately the money must be paid back.

Debt is most often used to fund a specific project or initiative that has an identifiable implementation time frame. It’s also used as a cash flow backup in the form of a revolving line of credit. To attract lenders, you will need to have a good personal and business credit history, sufficient cash flow to repay the loan, and/or sufficient collateral to offer as a second source of loan repayment.

Equity differs from debt in that it represents a permanent ownership stake in the company. When you finance with equity, you are giving up a portion of your ownership interest in — and control of — the company in exchange for cash. Equity investors may demand dividends or a portion of annual profits. But most investors in small businesses seek long-term capital gains on their investment, meaning that at some point these investors may look to opt out. This can mean the eventual sale of the business or the need to bring in replacement investors in the future.

The most common sources of equity financing for start-up entrepreneurs are personal savings or contributions from family, friends, and business associates. Many successful entrepreneurs find start-up money, grants and loans using all inclusive support centers such as Ethos360.com , BusinessFinance.com or the Small Business Association (SBA.gov).

Venture or seed capital companies can also be sources of new capital, although they generally deal in larger financings. If your business is incorporated, anyone contributing equity capital would receive shares in the business. If it is a sole proprietorship or a partnership, they would receive an ownership share of the business.

While equity financing can be used for many different purposes, it is usually used for long-term general funding and not tied to specific projects or time frames. The major disadvantage to equity financing is the dilution of your ownership interest and the possible loss of control. Moreover, equity investors in smaller businesses generally look for high returns over time to compensate for the risk.
In practice, most businesses use a combination of debt and equity financing. The concern is getting the right balance. If you have too much debt, you may overextend your ability to service the debt and can be vulnerable to business downturns and changes in interest rates. On the other hand, too much equity dilutes your ownership interest and can expose you to outside control. For more information visit http://www.ethos360.com/.

How to Fund a Small Business- The Entrepreneur Start-Up Money Hunt

Wednesday, June 17th, 2009
From the person who wants to start a landscaping service to the Harvard graduate that is going after their own commercial consulting firm. Young and mature entrepreneurs alike, often get creative in finding money to start their own small business.

As the economy continues its historic crisis, many people look to get rich by starting their own business, two questions usually come up. How can I do it and how much business start-up capital do I need? A typical small business can get started on anything from no money down knocking on doors for work to less than $2,500. For example, try handing out printed business cards at local community trade shows or events. You may also want Internet access with email or cell phone services. Many Fortune 1,000 CEOs launched their businesses with $10,000 or less. And more than a third of those CEO bootstrappers started with less than $1,000.

If presently, business start-up money is not an option for you. Do not fear as there are several steps you can follow to ensure that whatever business start-up money you do have, no matter how small, is able to stretch. Finding money may be as simple as asking mentors in your community for work. Many successful entrepreneurs find start-up money, grants and loans using all inclusive support centers such as Ethos360.com , ibank.com or the Small Business Association (SBA.gov).

It is also important for you to cut back on expenses in your personal life. In the beginning you will have to make sacrifices. Write out your monthly personal budget and cut out non-essentials, such as going to the movies, eating out or buying the unnecessary new shoes.

Did you know the average person that uses coupons saves 12% on their family food budget? So if you are spending $600 a month on groceries and household items by using coupons, it saves you $78 per month. Cutting back on coffee drinks saves the average person $28 per month while cutting costs for spa salon visits and beauty products saves over $45 per month. That’s a combined total savings over $150 per month to invest in your home-based business more than enough to get the word out by securing a web domain name and creating an online business presence with any of the website hosting services.

During the first year of business, it may be appropriate to ask close family, friends, local organizations, and wealthy individual “angel” investors in your community such as lawyers, doctors, professors or established business owners to come onboard as partners in order to raise more money to invest in building your business.

Financing your business on credit cards may save time and allow you to keep business expenses separate from personal ones. But without careful management, credit cards can quickly put your start-up on the sidelines. Half of all start-ups are financed with credit cards. But be careful: Sky-high interest rates could bury you for years. Plastic can jump-start any business, but use it wisely.

Inevitably as your business begins to grow, in order to raise significant capital it is valuable to write a business plan. Your business plan must address a real market need clearly demonstrating a realistic path to profitability building real assets on the balance sheet. Keep it straight forward and less than 20 pages with factual graphics. Learn to take advantage of FREE community library resources including standard computer software courses such as Microsoft WORD and Excel both excellent tools for writing your business plan. Include full historical and projected financials within the body of your business plan. If you lack the requisite skill sets or need third-party objectivity you may want to hire a professional business plan writer to do it for you.

Remember more than half of the world’s self-made millionaires are entrepreneurs or self-employed professionals. Historically, small businesses have always been the engine of growth in the economy with entrepreneurs who saw a need, met it and made a fortune in the process. Stay organized, keep a focused positive attitude. For more information visit www.Ethos360.com