According to the University of Scranton research, more than 40 percent of American’s make New Year’s resolutions. Despite good intentions, just 8 percent of these individuals go on to achieve their New Year’s goals.

Company culture is the personality of your business and defines the daily environment in which your employees work. Forming a positive company culture is the cornerstone of any successful, thriving business.

When you receive your business’ monthly financial statements, your focus more than likely goes straight to the bottom line of the income statement. After assessing your business’ profits, your gaze then shifts to the cash account on the balance sheet.

The cyclical nature of running a business sometimes requires borrowing money to meet a business’ short-term needs or goals. Whether you need funds to launch your startup or to expand your established small business, every business owner will experience their share of financial ups and downs.

Of the many challenges involved in running a small business, money management is one of the toughest, most time consuming aspects. Getting your customers to pay their invoices on time has proven to be one of the most difficult challenges. Slow payments can seriously hurt your business’ cash-flow.

It all starts with an amazing business idea. This entrepreneurial dream quickly grows into plans of starting a small business of your own. After assessing the risks, you are confident in your vision and ready to proceed.

The baby boomer generation has officially been surpassed as the largest generational demographic. The “millennial” generation has become the single largest group within the workforce, and are a quickly becoming the largest consumer group as well.

The main difference between those who own a thriving business and the ones who never bring their plans to fruition is fear. For your business venture to be successful, you need to address your fears proactively.

As summer comes to a close, the fourth quarter of 2017 is fast-approaching. Now is the time to start thinking about and preparing goals for your small business in the upcoming year. Thorough planning will provide your business with a road map for informed decision making.

After surviving the startup phase and successfully building a small business, your energy and focus will likely shift to expanding your business. Knowing what the next step in growing your business and expanding beyond its current status is paramount.