SMALL BUSINESS TRUISIMS
A different brand of advice for small business owners from George Cloutier, who is founder and chief executive officer of American Management Services, an Orlando-based financial turnaround firm.
Here are some of his more provocative "small business truisms."
1. Most small businesses do not want to make a profit. (They tend to focus on the top line, or sales, and not on the bottom line.)
2. To be successful, small business owners need to love their business as much as they love their families. (This is the commitment level needed to operate a successful business.)
3. Golf is one of the most destructive forces in small business, not a networking opportunity. (If business owners spent as much time thinking about and "playing" with their business, not their friends, small business would be far more profitable.)
4. The Internet and e-commerce are not solutions for small business. (You want to have an Internet function, but do not depend on it for bringing business in your door every day)
5. Businesses cannot finance their way out of problems. Throwing more money at the problem is not always the answer. (The average business thinks it can borrow itself out of problems. You have to manage your way out of problems).
