Stop Throwing Hail Marys

This past Sunday was an exciting game, but hidden behind all the action were lessons small businesses can learn from. Here are 3 insights that you could have picked up from watching Super Bowl 52:

1.       You have to take risks

In the first half, the Eagles ran a gusty trick play when they were 4th and 1 and secured a touchdown. This bold move gave them a huge advantage going into halftime and more importantly it demonstrated to the Patriots they were will to lay it all on the line.

Likewise, starting a business is a huge risk in and of itself. Once launched, you can’t suddenly become complacent and risk-averse. Always look to grow; one way of doing that is to take calculated risks.

2.       You can compete with anyone

The Eagles managed to win despite losing their starting QB when they played against the Patriots, a juggernaut who arguably had the greatest coach and player combo in history.

Small business can compete by capitalizing on local SEO, cultivating customer base through loyalty programs and great customer service, get customers to leave online reviews and refer family and friends

3.       Strategy is just as important as execution

The Patriots readjusted their strategy at halftime by forcing the ball to Rob Gronkowski who went on to finish with 116 yards and two touchdowns.

Small businesses need to plan a strategy that they can realign their efforts to when things go astray. The worst thing you can do is create a website, launch campaigns, and engage in other activities without an overarching strategy. Having a clear strategy will not only guide your actions, it will help your customers understand what your business is all about.

“And I’m Free, Free Falling” - the Market

Here’s the bad news, as of this Monday:

·       The S&P 500 index dropped over 4%, effectively erasing all gains for the year

·       The Dow Jones Industrial Average dropped over 1000 points, the largest point drop in history

·       Bond yields were down from a 4-year high

Here are some takeaways from Monday’s Stock Market Turbulence

It looks like a market correction is coming and it is way overdue. The Federal Reserve has also slowly raised interest rates, which is removing some support propping up the stock market.

1000 point drop is only because the DJIA is at it’s highest ever. It’s more important to look at the percentages instead of measuring by points. In percentage terms it dropped 4.6% which happened similarly in 2011.

It’s really returned to the levels of Mid December when the market was still doing well. Not to say it won’t keep declining but there is no need to freak out.

Live the dream - work from home without experience

Wouldn’t it be nice to work from home all the time? Wouldn’t it be nicer if you didn’t have to go into debt to pay for tuition and spend years of your life getting a degree that you probably won’t use? Well here are 5 of the hottest work from home jobs that don’t require experience:

1.       Translator $45,488 a year

2.       Sales $41,508 a year

3.       Tutor $34,442 a year

4.       Customer Service $36,254 a year

5.       Content Writer $41,508 a year