For the love of your business

Articles to LIFT Your Life and Business

The GDPR—What It Is, Who It Impacts, and How to Comply

Like everyone else, you’ve probably been getting a ton of emails and online notices announcing that companies are updating their privacy policies and/or website tracking tools. Although businesses do this from time to time as part of routine updates, practically all of the latest notices are aimed at complying with a new European Union (EU) […]

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Should I get a business credit card?

Q: Should I get a business credit card? -Wondering A: Dear Wondering: Business credit cards come with numerous advantages, along with significant risks. But when used wisely, these cards can be a valuable source of short-term investment capital. Advantages of business cards include high credit limits of $50,000+ and rewards like airline miles, gas rebates, […]

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3 Unparalleled Advantages of Family-Owned Businesses

Nike, Anheuser-Busch, Walmart, Porsche—what do these companies have in common? Outside of being globally recognized brands and generating billions in revenue, they’re also family-owned businesses. Though family businesses definitely aren’t for everyone and come with some unique challenges, for those who are able to make them work, they offer an array of benefits that simply […]

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5 Steps for Defusing Workplace Drama and Managing Staff Conflict

One of the most challenging aspects of running a business is effectively managing staff conflict. Dealing with people and personalities is vastly different than most of your other duties, where the goal is comparatively straightforward and simply requires talent and time to achieve. Though good management can go a long way toward preventing many disputes, […]

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3 Steps to Avoid Getting Taxed or Sued for Misclassifying Your Independent Contractors

With the rapid rise of the “gig economy,” which primarily relies on independent contractors instead of W2 employees, there’s been an equally steady climb in the number of Independent Contractor (IC)  misclassification cases filed against businesses. Most misclassifications are not the result of intentional violations of federal and state law, but rather, unintentional mistakes made […]

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Protect Your Intellectual Property With Copyrights

Just about every business owner—whether they know it or not—has created some form of intellectual property (IP) during the life of their company. IP is an extremely important part of your business. Indeed, valuation experts estimate that IP makes up 40% to 90% of the total value of some companies. When it comes to IP […]

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Do I need trademark protection?

Q: Do I need trademark protection? —Concerned Business Owner A: Dear Concerned: As a business owner, it’s vital to not only protect your tangible assets—office space, equipment, and finances—but also your intangible assets—inventions, branding materials, and written documents.   These creative works are known as intellectual property (IP), and to protect IP from being stolen […]

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The Ins and Outs of Chapter 7 Bankruptcy for Small Business Owners

It’s a simple fact of entrepreneurship: Small businesses fail all the time and for many different reasons, some of which are outside of the owner’s control. If you’re falling deeper and deeper into debt by keeping your company open, sometimes the best business decision you can make is to shut down the business and cut […]

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4 Things You Need to Know About Business Succession Planning

As a small business owner, you’ve likely spent plenty of time working with your business plan. But have you dedicated the same amount of time to planning for the continued success of your company after you retire? Or if you were to suddenly die or become incapacitated? If you’re like most business owners, the answer […]

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Corporations and LLCs Don’t Always Provide Personal Liability Protection

One of the primary reasons business owners set up corporations and limited liability companies (LLC) is to shield their personal assets from debts and other liabilities incurred by the business. Indeed, corporations and LLCs exist as separate legal entities from their owners, meaning the business itself can acquire assets, enter into contracts, and take on […]

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5 Essential Tips for Starting Your Own Business

These days, you’ll find all sorts of advice about how best to launch a business. But with so much information out there, it’s hard to know what you should heed and what you can ignore. To make things simple, we’ve compiled a list of five fundamental tips for starting a business that you can’t afford […]

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