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Happy Holidays to all of you from everyone at
the Kutztown SBDC!
| What Gift Am I? by Tasha Zurich |
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* I can have an effect on performance, ever so
dramatically.
* I can be negative, positive or balanced when done
effectively.
* Without me one never knows what behaviors to
repeat or what to stop.
* But with me one can be very clear on how to make it
to the top.
* It is important how you wrap me, not too flashy, not
too much fluff.
* Just as important is to ensure that my contents are
not to rough.
* You dare not give me to just anybody that you
happen to see.
* You must choose wisely to provide me to someone
appropriately.
* I do not require any money to purchase, not even one
small dime.
* All I require is some thought and commitment of your
time.
* It is up to the receiver as to what to do with me.
I am a gift that if opened can be used very wisely.
So consider my importance as you search for the best
gift.
* Because if you are smart I will be at the very top of
your performance list!
Click here for info about Tasha. »
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| A Holiday Message by Janet Chambers |
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During the holidays is a good time to reflect on the
many benefits of living a great and prosperous life in the
United States. This really hit home for me recently
when I became involved in helping a Liberian family - 9
adults and 10 children ages 3 to 15 - who were
sponsored by our church from a refugee camp in
Ghana. Over the last year, I had helped restore a home
in Coatesville for this family who we hoped would come,
but had no guarantees that they would ever arrive.
When we found out that 19 were coming in late June,
we were overwhelmed! They arrived with no shoes and
only a few clothes....
Click here for the complete story and info about Janet. »
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| 5 Ways to Experience a Bountiful Holiday by Joanne Vitali |
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Since it's December, I'm offering you tips so that you
can experience the holidays well. They have an
underlying theme: Be More You. What do I mean by
that? "Be More You," means to be truer to yourself and
live your life more according to what you value. The
truer you are to yourself this holiday season, the better
you will feel, the more integrity you will have, the more
solid will be the foundation for your life.
"The challenge is to be yourself in a world that is trying
to make you like everyone else." - Anonymous
1. Make Decisions As Soon As You Can
You've probably heard this suggestion before for
minimizing the paper in your life: Handle each piece only
once. Apply this principle to your holiday decisions.
For instance, if you see a gift that might work for
someone, buy it. (Save the receipt, just in case.) You
probably won't come up with something more
appropriate and you risk it not being around even if you
have the time to go back for it. Trust your intuition.
Or, as soon as you can, settle the details of where
and how you spend the holidays. Delays on holiday
decisions add to your stress.
Finally, here are two tips for next year: 1.) Put
your outside Christmas lights up before Thanksgiving.
The weather is warmer and you can just flip them on
after Thanksgiving is over. 2.) Every year, the day
after Thanksgiving, put up your tree and/or holiday
décor. I used to think this was very early, but when my
second child was due to arrive Dec. 15th one year, I
had no choice but to give it a try. Even with a newborn
on my hands, I've never had such a relaxing holiday.
Getting the basics covered early allows you to
concentrate your time on other holiday-related details,
with the added bonus of furnishing you with the
momentum to get going with the rest.
Click here for the complete article and info on Joanne. »
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| Working Together: The Lancaster SCORE & Kutztown SBDC Alliance by Louis Davenport |
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Several years ago, an article in SCORE Today piqued
my interest in Small Business Development Centers
(SBDCs). Researching the subject, I learned that there
are 63 lead SBDCs nationwide with a network of more
than 1,100 service locations. SBDCs are located at
colleges, universities, community colleges, vocational
schools, chambers of commerce and economic
development corporations. SBDCs provide counseling
and workshop training to small business owners, similar
to SCORE. I thought, "Why aren't we working together
with our local SBDC to deliver our services to our target
market?"
Click here for the complete article. »
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| Kutztown SBDC News |
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Business Skills for Success Continues
with New Workshops
December 2, Exton: To the
delight
of those in attendance, Bill Foos introduced renowned
expert in the fields of tourism and terrorism prevention
Dr. Peter Tarlow for his workshop, Tourism &
Terrorism. With expertise gained from working with
the U.S. government in devising methods to protect
American landmarks from terrorist attack, such as
Hoover Dam, Tarlow explained how small businesses can
best prepare themselves for crises that may occur. In
exuberant fashion, Tarlow expounded the approaches
for developing a company system prepared for worst-
case scenarios, including dealing with such variables as
media relations and information gathering. One
attendee
expressed his satisfaction with the workshop stating, "I
could not find a better source for this information than
[Dr. Tarlow]". The business lunch event provided a
valuable networking opportunity for local businesses
and
offered a chance for questions to be addressed directly
to a world-renowned expert.
December 2, Hamburg: Judy
Swartley, managing partner at M-Arthur Consulting
Group, Inc., presented Developing a Strategic
Business Plan, a workshop developed to aid
existing
small businesses in developing a strategic business
plan.
Her hands-on approach to developing a roadmap for
small businesses emphasized using a five-part model:
develop a vision statement; develop a mission
statement; strategic analysis including SWOT; decide
on important issues; and determine implementation. The
workshop addressed small businesses requiring an
action
plan to become more effective and profitable. Workshop
attendees were able to employ the five-part model to
draw up plans for their business and discuss attributes
of them with other attendees during the workshop.
Upcoming Workshops
Hamburg:
January 13: The Basics of Public Relations
January 27: Leading at the Speed of Growth:
Changing Your Leadership to Keep Your Business
Growing
Exton:
January 15: Making of a Great Sales Team
January 22: Ratio Analysis for Small Business
January 29: The Three Big Challenges of People
Management: Hiring, Firing, and Performance
Improvement
Lancaster:
January 13: The Six Steps to Solid Sales Success
January 27: Your Competitive Advantage: How Do
You Beat Your Competition
Harrisburg:
January 12: The Six Steps to Solid Sales Success
January 20: Know More. Do More. (Market
Research)
January 21: Risk and Crisis Management for Your
Business (#1)
January 26: Seeing the Forst Through the
Trees
January 28: Security Risk Management in Business
(#2)
Write to the Success Connection!
SuccessConnection@kutztown.edu
Click here to register or for more info.
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