Where can I get loans for my small business?Funding for small businesses is often done through loans and equity. Equity is that part of the capital or money required for the business that you put up from your own pockets and the rest you take from outsiders in the form of loans. There are various sources like banks, venture capitalists, insurance companies, private individuals and organizations like US Small Business Administration that provides you loans for your small business.What are the banks going to ask me?Getting loans is not always easy and there are a host of questions to which you must provide answers before being considered by a bank or any other financial institution for a loan.10 questions that the banks will ask before lending you money:1.Can the business that you are considering to enter into generate enough money to pay off the interest on the loan?2.If the business fails then do you have the capacity to pay off the interest yourself?3.What is the history of the business? The lending institutions will be interested in how the business has evolved over the years and how well it has been performing in the past. The past is considered to be a good indicator of the future and chances are that if your business has done well in the past you will find it easier to obtain the loan.4.What is the background and history of the managers and how committed are they to the business? The one criteria that makes or breaks a business is whether the management is committed and capable enough to steer the business in the right direction.5.Are the sales growing? It is important for any business to grow its sales and especially a small business where the base is smaller and the lenders are certainly going to pay attention to the growth rate of the past few years and the future outlook.6.How profitable is the business? While you may think that the lenders are only interested in getting their repayments their success is dependent upon your success and to that extent the profitability of your business is crucial.7.What is the competition like? Lenders would not like to loan out to a small business which has bigger and more intense competitors with deeper pockets.8.Is the industry itself growing? If you are operating in a profitable and growing industry then the chances of your getting a loan also increase that much.9.Is the cash flow smooth? Cash flow is to business what blood is to the body and you should have a smooth cash flow to pay all your bills on time, pay your employees and keep the ball rolling.10.The banks will also look at your past credit history and how you have performed with the loans that you may have taken in the past.What are the things for which I will get the loan?There are many aspects to a business even a small one and you get different types of loans tailored to suit each kind of need. For instance you get loans for working capital, buying capital equipment, expansion programs, installing new machinery and computerization etc. You get loans for almost any type of needs that arise provided you have a good case for it.What is the amount and rate of interest of the loan?Different institutions have different ways of evaluating the amount that they will pay you. Indeed in cases of venture capitalists entire 100% is also funded for your small business. If possible it is always better to have as much equity as possible in your business for two reasons. One is when the prospective lenders themselves see that you are putting your money in the business their confidence in you increases and secondly your interest outgo also reduces making your profitability that much more as your interest expense is lowered. The interest rate hovers but if you take the loan from the US Small Business Administration it will range somewhere between 8 and 13%.There are various means and ways of getting loans for your small business and you must persevere at getting the right loans that suits your needs and gives you the best interest rates and repayment terms.
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Choosing the Right Tutor Will Make a Difference in Your Child’s Educational Career
For many parents, choosing a tutor can be a difficult and stressful process, complete with resistant child, unfulfilled expectations, and wasted money. With summer winding to a close, one can almost hear the words “I don’t want to do my homework!” Fear not parents, because chances are, there is a tutor out there that can help make a difference in you child’s success in school. A tutor can help spark the imagination of a kindergartner or help a teenager work through that pesky geometry problem. The right tutor can help eliminate student and family stress and help develop a self sufficient life long learner. Even if your child does well in school, a little extra help under the supervision of a professional can ensure your child stays ahead in school and keeps them challenged.Keep in mind there are many types of educational resources. Understanding what your child’s learning difficulties are will ensure you choose the right program. Consider speaking to your child’s teacher to see what they feel is the best course of action. A visit to your child’s pediatrician can help you determine or eliminate any learning disability concerns. They may be able to help you categorize the type of help your child needs. Here are a few of the categories:1. Foundational Learning: Mastering basic skills and concepts.
2. Cognitive Learning: Mastering the techniques of learning.
3. Life Skills Development Program: Creating a self sufficient and motivated learner.
4. Enrichment: Continuing the learning process to stay ahead.
5. Homework Help: Supplemental help to eliminate homework hassles and prepare for tests.Access to a tutor or tutoring program is varied too. Here are a few options available to you.1. In-home tutor.
2. In-center tutor.
3. In-school tutoring.
4. Online tutoring. (This is the latest innovation in tutoring. The number of programs are limited but it is really catching on with students and busy families).Be sure to ask the tutor or educational professional the following questions:1. What techniques or methods do they use?
2. Is there an assessment?
3. Is it one- on- one or group tutoring?
4. How often do you meet?
5. Where do you meet?
6. Do you need to purchase courseware or supplies?
7. How much does it cost?
8. Is there an up front fee and hourly fee?
9. How long will it take to fix the problem?
10. Is there a guarantee?
11. Do we need to sign a contract?
12. What type of updates and reports will we receive?
13. What are the teacher’s credentials?Ask about training, experience, and references and ask to sit in on a tutoring session. Make sure to take your child along to visit the teacher or center because a child that is included in the process will be more open to accepting the help.Be especially concerned if a tutor or tutoring center requests that you prepay for months up front. You will have no recourse should you be dissatisfied. Another red flag are programs that claim they can help you determine if your child has any learning disabilities and then provides you with a program that they say will eliminate the problem. These programs can be into the thousands of dollars. Leave that to your doctor and the learning program to teachers.As you can see, selecting the right program and professional to help your child may require a little homework on your part. But making the right choice now will make all the difference in the choices and success your child has in his or her educational career.
Network Marketing – Do I Have What it Takes to Start a Network Marketing Business?
Have you been contacted by someone that has the coolest new thing that they say you need to see and they invite you to come over to their home or check something out on the internet? Has a networker tried to sell you something?I love it! If you said no, you do not fall for them because they are all scams, let me tell you that is two lies! Are there scams out there? YES, but there are also legitimate businesses too! Now, your saying ok, this guy wants me to get into something, and the answer is no! The reason I said you have been sold on something by a network marketer, let me show you exactly why I know you have. Maybe you even were a network marketer and you did not even think about it. Actually, if you have to think about network marketing, then you are not working with the right things.Today, I was talking to some college students here in the heart of Texas. Most of the people I talked with said they could tell a network marketer from miles away and would never buy something they were pitching. I told them, they were good, because, I rarely spot them. So we continued to talk about the economy and how corporations need to open up more job openings to reduce the unemployment statistics. We talked about the health care system and how the government wants to have a national health care plan. Now, this is where I wanted to teach the students not to be negative about something they may not fully understand. It was along morning of our meeting and I was hungry. So I said, “Let us break for lunch, where did everyone want to go?”. I got a couple of normal responses to fast food and some of the national chain restaurants. I decided to slide a little lesson in at this time. I told everyone that my wife and I had tried out a new Italian restaurant that just opened, the prices were reasonable, maybe $7 for lunch including a beverage. I added in that my wife loved the stuffed mushrooms and Canneloni. I told them I loved the Stromboli and since I loved spicy food, I had them add Jalapenos into it and it was awesome. I told them that the deserts were also to die for. So we talked a bit more of other options and I told them, we do not have to all go to the same place! So there were 30 of us and 16 people went with me to the Italian restaurant, and the other 14 went to a Thai restaurant that a young lady suggested.We got back after lunch and we were beginning to start our discussion back on network marketers. I asked everyone that had said that they could spot network marketers, I asked when the last time they were sold on a network marketing opportunity or at least been invited to look into a business by someone. The students were all saying it was weeks and some months. Now, I told everyone that they are walking with blinders on or they really could not tell a networker from an average Joe. Now I had their attention! I said they were marketed to in the last hour several times over.Who were the marketers?
Everyone that gave an opinion on where to eat
The waiter or waitress with all the options as they sat at the table
They were marketed to by my suggestions of what I liked at the italian restaurant
A network marketer is only sharing information with you to solve a Need, Want or Desire! Notice that you never saw a word in here that a network marketer is to get you into their business! Now, if you are a business owner and you are trying to increase you income, sure you need to get those people into your business. Caution when reading this, because I am not saying to be a business partner or investor in your business! At our lunch, did I bring someone into my business? No! But the day I went into the restaurant, they enrolled me into their business as a network marketer, but I would not have to pay them to be able to do it, and second, I would also not be paid for working as their network marketer! So, as a lesson to them and a lesson to my readers of my articles, everyone is a network marketer, for the good and the bad! Let me show you how I could be a network marketer for the bad. Now, our city has public health services check out restaurants to make sure they are good and clean. They get a report card rating. What If when I was at the restaurant I saw the rating and it was a C- or a D? Upon seeing that, I told my wife let us go somewhere else, and the next day when someone said they saw the restaurant was open and asked if anyone wanted to try it out? I would instantly say No we do not want to go there, it is dirty and the restaurant has a bad rating by public health services. Did I boost the business for the restaurant? No, In fact, probably triggered a few more negative network marketers on the business.So, lesson to be learned is that we all are network marketers! Some network marketer have businesses and they market at same time. Personally, I will share with you that most of the MLM and Network Marketing companies will tell you I am wrong, and my approach would not work, but I will share with you that it does. I have done it in three separate businesses and I will continue to do it. If you are network marketing to people, and maybe I owned the restaurant…. was I looking for the students to open other restaurants in the area? No, I was getting them into the business to become a customer and to eat. As I said, I do not own the restaurant, but I would be doing my best to insure those people were happy as customers so they could go out and network market my business.So Can You Be A Network Marketer? The answer is YES! Anyone can be, but I will caution you, some men and some women have the outgoing spouses and sometimes they can not get a word in. It is that the spouse that is outgoing is a stronger networker that may not care what the person they are talking about thinks of them for their recommendations. They will say what they feel and will not care how others receive the information.Now, if your already in a networking business and you are struggling, do not think that you are a bad network marketer. The question really should be, are you passionate about the products and services? If not, you are in the wrong business. Find something that makes someone money and you love and go for it. There are thousands of companies out there, select one for you!Now, some people love the products, but the issue is they do not have enough people to talk to about it. THAT IS A LIE. There are thousands of people that would love your product, but you care too much on what the others think! Get training on how to add hundreds into your business.