I help entrepreneurs leapfrog over the typical potholes that derail most small businesses with inspiration, motivation, education, and support across a wide range of business topics drawn from over a decade of running my own business, teaching entrepreneurship for the City of New York, and coaching and consulting privately with dozens of women and minority small business owners. Honestly, why go it alone when help is an email away?
In Good Company
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This week I want to talk about something kind of boring. Or, at least that’s what everyone often thinks when it comes to Human Resources (HR) and compliance. And, if you’re a company of one, like me, it’s oh so easy to just tune out and think—this doesn’t apply to me at all. Can you relate? If so, then, like me, you might also be surprised to learn how wrong we are. I can’t tell you how many stories I’ve heard lately from entrepreneurs hit with big bills and penalties because they failed to comply with one or another new HR regulation passed over the last few years. So, just ignoring this stuff can be costly and ignorance is no defense. For instance, just this week my friend Denise Smith, founder of HRthePartner, sent me a note about the New York State HERO Act that was recently passed and goes into effect in two weeks, on June 3rd. As part of this new law, companies with as few as one employee are required to have an Infectious Disease Exposure Prevention Plan (IDEPP). Yikes, that doesn't sound like an easy thing to put together on the fly or within 2 weeks! Get more info about New York's HERO Act and how to prepare and stay compliant in Denise's newsletter. Even if you don't live in New York State or aren't an S-Corp or C-Corp and therefore considered an employee of your own company, you're not off the hook. Lots of LLCs and sole proprietors are falling afoul of the new stricter definitions of 1099 employees. If you get it wrong, you'll face significant penalties. So, HR and compliance may be kind of boring, but, man, are they important and potentially costly if not dealt with in a timely and knowledgeable manner. If you think you need some help, or even just someone to talk to, I recommend you take Denise up on her offer of a complimentary consultation. She can help you figure out what relates to you and how to be and stay on top of it all. Until next week, stay well and go outside and play :-). |
Easily Said & Done
I help entrepreneurs leapfrog over the typical potholes that derail most small businesses with inspiration, motivation, education, and support across a wide range of business topics drawn from over a decade of running my own business, teaching entrepreneurship for the City of New York, and coaching and consulting privately with dozens of women and minority small business owners. Honestly, why go it alone when help is an email away?
Hi Reader, I have had a bunch of conversations lately with entrepreneurs who are struggling with one thing or another, which all track back in some way to a question of worth. Just to be clear, worth and value are NOT interchangeable. Worth is inherent. It does not change based on external factors such as market conditions, customer perceptions, length in business, or even audience demand. Your worth, in other words, is not determined by other people's evaluation of you, your products or...
Back in the early days of the online learning platform Coursera, I took a class in gamification offered by the Wharton School of Business. The ubiquitous application of game design elements across so many areas and sectors of business was in its infancy, and I was intrigued. One of the most fascinating things I learned about is the Goal Gradient Hypothesis, which basically posits that the closer one gets to completing a goal, the more motivated they become. If you've ever watched a marathon...
I was planning to write one of those typical messages about getting back into a business mindset now that Labor Day is in the rearview and we’re heading into the busiest time of year for many of us. But, when I sit down to write, I don’t feel the usual back-to-school energy that’s typical for me during the first week of September. Instead, I’m reflecting on my mixed bag of a summer and wishing it weren’t, in everything but name, over. I had such momentum coming into the season and then life...