Evaluating A Business

Do Your Homework
The best time to do your market research is in advance. Here are some key ideas to help you make the right choice before you invest in a product, a service or a business.

Bootstrap Your Way To Success
One of the best ways to build a business is to start off on a bootstrap. This means that you start off with very little mo ney and you grow your business with the mo ney that you ear n in the business, rather than outside financing, borr owing, l oans from friends and so on.

Ask The Right Questions
The first thing to do is to research all competitors for the product or service and ask this: "Why would someone switch to buy from me?" If there's already a similar product or service in the market, why would someone leave a product or service that they're comfortable with for your product or service that they don't know anything about? Is your product or service better, or is your idea cheaper or of higher quality? And can you convince enough customers of this to stay in business?

Look For The Fatal Flaw
The second way to do fast, cheap market research is to be suspicious. Be wary. Develop a cyn ical, pessimistic attitude and accept nothing on faith. Look for the fatal flaw. Whenever I've done consulting for a corporation, especially when they've asked me to research an investment, I always look for the fatal flaw. I always look for the one thing that's wrong with this investment that could cost my client a lot of mo ney. And do you know something? In 99 out of 100 cases, I find the fatal flaw. I find something in a contract or a mor tgage agreement or something in the way the land is laid out or the way the distribution arrangements are designed.

Find Out Why It's For Sale
I often find something that is fatal, something that if it were not caught, would lead to the failure of the business. When you're thinking of getting into somebody else's business or if somebody else is trying to sell you an existing business, look for the reason. There's always a fatal flaw when someone is trying to sell you a successful mo ney -making opportunity. If you can't find the fatal flaw, only then should you go ahead with it.

Don't Lose Money
The third thing that you can do when considering a business that is for sale is find out why it's being sold. Very few people will try to sell you a successful business. Usually people who are selling a business are selling it because they're losing mo ney on it. Many people say they're selling a business because they want to concentrate on something else. No. The reason they're selling the business is that they're losing mo ney on it. And you must find out why a person would sell a successful business.

Think Long Term
Finally, number four, look at the business before you go into it as though you were going to be in it for 20 years. The long-term perspective sharpens short-term decision-making. If you look at any business venture, any product or service, as though you were going to be doing this 20 years from now, you'll find that you'll make much better decisions.

Action Ex ercises
Here are two things you can do immediately to put these ideas into action.

First, look for the fatal flaw in any investment that someone tells you is a good idea. Look for a critical weakness that could cause the business to fail.

Second, think about being in this business, or selling this product or service, for the next 20 years. When you think long-term about business decisions, you make much better decisions in the short-term.

How to Understand and Read a Financial Statement

A financial statement is a corporations annual report, it is made up four parts and it alot easier to read and understand when you understand what your are looking at. To find out what the four parts are read below.
Instructions
1The Balance sheet is the first thing your should find. You should be able to find what the assets, liabilities, and stockholders equity is from the balance sheet. This is usually broke down yearly and will be a review of the years financial position.
Step2The income (sometimes called Earnings) statement is made up of revenues, expenses, net profit and or losses, and net profit or loss per share during that particular period.
Step3The statement of stockholders equity is made up of the beginning and ending balances of all the accounts that are in the stockholders' s equity section of the balance sheet.
Step4Statement of Cash Flows has information about the cash inflows and overflows from the operating, financing, and investing activities during the period being reported.

How to Increase Your Cash Flow

Instructions

1Change Your Lifestyle*In order to increase your cash flow, there might be some changes in your lifestyle. The way you manage your Money and the things you buy.Or your eating habit might need some adjustments in order to save some.
Step2Save and Invest*Saving is a habit that needs to be practiced in our lives so that it will soon become a part of our system.You might be surprised on the amount you might have gathered after a long time of saving. You might even become a Millionaire just by compounded savings. There are some companies or Institutions that teach about Compounded Savings.You just have to be resourceful.You may use the Internet on that matter.Then you can now Invest what you have saved.
Step3Have a Financial Plan or a Budget System*Be a Financial Executive in your own right. Have a Financial Plan in your Daily,Weekly and Monthly Expenses. Start it by having a 60-day records on all your expenses. This may help you check on how much really is your monthly Expenses. Then put into two Columns the- NEEDS VS. WANTS. You may cut the Expenses on your wants then set aside that amount it may help you in your DEBT REDUCTION. That means you may use the saved amount to pay your Debts.Remember: " Decreasing Debts is Increasing Cash!"
Step4A-lways Be Open-MindedOpportunities come and go in our lives. Take some thought and grab some opportunities that will lead us to honestly earn some.

Small Business Loans and Grants

Federal, state and local governments provide access to a variety of financing programs to help small businesses, especially those that cannot qualify for traditional small business loans.
These programs include low-interest loans for starting and expanding operations; venture capital for hi-tech start-ups; and research and development grants.
Use our new Loans and Grants Search Tool to get a list of financing programs for which you may qualify, or visit the resources below to learn more about small business financing programs provided by the government, as well as select private equity and non-profit organizations: