Small Business/Entrepreneur History

Small Business Definitions Vary Historically & By Government Agency

October 10, 2012 By Jan Triplett Leave a Comment

The small business definition by the government isn’t simple. It has changed over the years. It changes by agency or federal program. Sometimes a small business is defined as a “mouse”. Really!

Your small business definition is probably very different. If you are one, you may be surprised at who else is included.

Small business wasn’t small until Eisenhower said so

Until the creation of the Small Business Administration (SBA) in 1953 by President Eisenhower with the signing of the Small Business Act, there was no difference. A business was a business and some were smaller than others. The beginning of a small business definition starts here.

How the SBA Office of Advocacy defines small business is a matter of history

In the 1970′s, during another economic downturn, those who looked at the economy saw that there was a group of businesses doing better than others and creating jobs. The federal SBA Office of Advocacy was born at that time to identify, track, report, and make recommendations to government agencies on how to keep this momentum going. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Government Legislation, Legal, Research, Small Business Advocacy, Small Business Designation, Small Business/Entrepreneur History Tagged With: Angel Investors, Micro business, NAICS, President Dwight Eisenhower, SBDP, Small Business Act of 1953, Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy, Small Business and Labor Law, Small Business Candidate, Small Business Designation, Small Business Impact Statement, Small Business Regulation, Venture Capitalist, Vote

Overcoming 5 Business Challenges in Tough Times

September 9, 2011 By Jan Triplett Leave a Comment

Business Challenges: What Goes Up Must Come Down

Sir Isaac Newton statue from Trinity Chapel. Photo by Harlequeen

Sir Isaac Newton proved it. David Clayton-Thomas wrote about it in the “Spinning Wheel” song. BS&T (Blood, Sweat & Tears) and Dame Shirley Bassey covered it in their albums.

Songwriter & singer Dame Shirley Bassey

How many ups and downs has your business experienced? Since we started our business, we have been through seven ups and downs – oil, banking, real estate, savings and loans, dot.com, Wall Street, and now real estate again. It has caused us to refine and redefine our business at least that many times.

If it’s a part life, it does not make sense just to try to survive this one. Another wave is coming. If you own a business, the wave that could take you under could be something global like this “Great Recession” or something unique to you and your business. So be watchful; be prepared for those business challenges that are out there.

Being Able to Visualize is a Mixed Blessing

January 29, 2011 By Jan Triplett 2 Comments

Posts can be very personal. This one is.

Visualizing the needs & concerns Egyptian small business owners, their families and their employees like this man. Photo by Julie Gomoll.

I have a friend, Rasha, who is from Egypt and who has family there. My thoughts are with her and the wonderful people I met through the eyes, words, and pictures of another friend, Julie Gomoll.

Sometimes we say, “I can’t imagine” what it’s like. But I think business owners and other creatives can imagine in huge detail. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Business Management, Planning & Vision, Small Business/Entrepreneur History Tagged With: 911, Austin, business owner, Creative Staff, Egypt, Empathy, Employees, Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Rita, Julie Gomoll, Middle East Crisis, Mixed Blessing, Off Balance, Overwhelmed, small business, Upper Crust, Upper Crust Bakery, Visualization

Why Lefties Make Better Salespeople

January 10, 2011 By Jan Triplett 4 Comments

My brother gave me a copy of A Left-Handed History of the World by Ed Wright for Christmas. As my husband, Daniel, said, that’s much better than a previous gift of 101 Uses for a Dead Cat by Simon Bond. Others found it amusing, as a cat lover, I did not.

I am left-handed. It was interesting to read about other prominent lefties. Some of my favorites include: Queen Victoria, Charlie Chaplin, Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, Madame Curie, Henry Ford, Ramses the Great, and Joan of Arc. Several US presidents (Reagan, Ford, George W. Bush, and Clinton) were on the left – when it comes to hands at least. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Business Management, Marketing Strategy, Planning & Vision, Sales, Small Business/Entrepreneur History Tagged With: 101 Uses of a Dead Cat, A Left-Handed History of the World, Ambition, Connections, Customer-oriented, Ed Wright, Empathy, Fantasist, Good Salespeople, Hiring Sales Staff, Iconoclastic, Intuition, Lateral Thinking, Left-Handed, Percentage of Left-Handers, Prominent Left-handed People, Right-handed, Risk Takers, Sales, Simon Bond, Solitary, Spatial Ability, Successful Sales

10 Ways You Can Be a Platinum Customer™

November 17, 2010 By Jan Triplett Leave a Comment

Austin’s finest

I love Upper Crust Bakery on Burnet Road in Austin. Great birthday cakes, eclairs and great service. They always know what I want and make me feel special. A few weeks ago, one of their terrific staff told me I was a great customer. Wow!

That got me thinking. What can customers do to give great “business service”? This would help businesses have better sales and create more Platinum Customers™. It’s just what our economy needs: all of us to play a positive role and take responsibility. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Business Management, Financials, Marketing Strategy, Planning & Vision, Pricing, Sales, Small Business/Entrepreneur History Tagged With: Advice, Austin, Budget, Business Management, Business Survival, Costs, Customer Dissatisfaction, independent business, Platinum Customer, Platinum Customer Profile™, Pricing, Quality Control, Referrals, Responsibilibies of a customer, Texas, total solution, Upper Crust Bakery, US Economy, value

Getting Real About Who’s a Small Business

September 23, 2010 By Jan Triplett Leave a Comment

I’ve said for years there’s a problem. The issue of the Bush tax cuts just points this out in spades.

I saw Keith Olbermann’s Countdown program, “Small in Name Only” on MSNBC on September 22, 2010, about the “kooky” (their word not mine) definition of small business. It isn’t weird, it’s just flexible as the Small Business Act intended it to be. Maybe it needs work. I certainly think so.

This is what the SBA (Small Business Administration) says on the FAQs page of their website. You can check me out on this.

“Size standards define the maximum size that a firm, including all of its affiliates, may be to participate in federal government programs that are reserved for small businesses. The Small Business Act states that in determining what constitutes a small business, the definition will vary from industry to industry to reflect industry differences accurately.” [Read more...]

Filed Under: Community Activism, Government Legislation, Research, Small Business Advocacy, Small Business/Entrepreneur History Tagged With: Austin, Bush Tax Cuts, Countdown, Definition, IRS, Keith Olbermann, legal entity, NAICS Codes, SBA, SBIR, Small Business Act, Small Business Size Standards, Small Business Sizes, Standards, Statistics, taxes, Texas, Texas Workforce Commission, Vernon's Civil Statutes

The Networker Magazine Remembered: Overtime Roach Article Reprised

August 3, 2010 By Jan Triplett Leave a Comment

Austin, Texas’ small business and entrepreneurial history is long and full. There were special support meetings called “Satellite Network Meetings” all over town and even in Round Rock long before there were Meetups and Bootstrap groups.

Masthead banner from The Networker 1981, originally sponsored by the Commission on the Status of Women, City of Austin

And, there was The Networker, a small monthly publication especially for women. From June 1980 to its last issue in August 1987, I wrote, managed or was its editor. We covered politics, interesting women, events around town, the arts, business, sports, education, healthcare, and jobs. We covered issues from the ERA to “Should women fear computers?” And, yes, that was the title of an article. We covered women magicians like Judy Wilkes and Valerie Cordell, early aviators like Pearle Ragsdale, truck racer Shawna Robinson, women firefighters and women at war. Young and old, of all colors, creeds, and backgrounds were included in our news. We even did some interesting articles about men including Cactus Pryor and cartoonist Ben Sargent. [Read more...]

Filed Under: Community Activism, Networking, Small Business/Entrepreneur History Tagged With: Austin, Austin Commission on the Status of Wmoen, Ben Sargent, Bootstgrap Austin, Cactus Pryor, Developing Entrepreneurs, Dorothy Hartshorne, Eleanor Richards, entrepreneur, Helen Handley, Jane Dinsmoor, Judy Brown, Lu Russell, Mary Margaret Navar, Mayor Ron Mullen, Meetups, Meg Wilson, Nadea Gizelbach, Network Satelllite Meetings, Networking, Networking Day Proclamation, Overtime, Pearle Ragsdale, Small Business History, Texas, The Networker Magazine, Women Magicians, Women's Conference, Women's Network Brunch

Small Business Definitions Vary Historically & By Government Agency

Small business wasn’t small until Eisenhower said so

How the SBA Office of Advocacy defines small business is a matter of history

Overcoming 5 Business Challenges in Tough Times

[Read more...]

Being Able to Visualize is a Mixed Blessing

Why Lefties Make Better Salespeople

10 Ways You Can Be a Platinum Customer™

Getting Real About Who’s a Small Business

The Networker Magazine Remembered: Overtime Roach Article Reprised

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