It can be very easy to get “busy” at work. Every day, we’re inundated with emails, phone calls, messages, meetings—it’s very easy for the day to get away from us. However, being busy doesn’t always equate to being efficient or effective at our jobs. Indeed, sometimes the things that keep us “busiest” are the very things that prevent us from reaching our potential as productive employees. And it’s burning us out.

Your business is unique, and so are your clients. Instead of setting out a wide-reaching net, forget the idea that your product or service can be everything to everyone. Those successful with customer outreach and retention have a focused strategy to understand, track, and please a targeted consumer. By creating an ideal customer profile, your business can begin to build a community of clients that will bring you the most important thing: loyalty.

When you were young, you likely acted as most children do when a parent or a teacher said the word no—you protested, rebelled, or did whatever was forbidden anyway. That is because, according to Psychology Today, we live in a world of yes, in which we think of those who say “no” as negative, imperfect, or weak. However, those who learn how to say and hear no in business correctly are able to open up a new world of both freedom and opportunity.

Do you have a family recipe or amazing food idea that you would like to turn into a commercial food product? There is plenty of opportunity, but there are many steps that need to be taken to get it right. Knowing these steps prior to launching your food product will save you a lot of time and money.

Staffing is a pressing concern for all types of new business owners. The operations of your business depend on having a solid team that is able to execute deliverables consistently. Recruitment is a $20 billion industry in the United States for this reason.

As a new business owner, you will most likely keep your recruitment process in-house, so that those resources can be used for operations or development. For this reason, it is important to become as well-versed as possible in best practices for the interview process, in order to attract and select the best people for your team.

Some people just seem to be able to get along with anyone and can find common ground easily. But you don’t have to be naturally charming or charismatic to build great rapport. It’s actually possible to develop a positive personal connection in 60 seconds in any type of setting.

How many times have you worked on an important group project for work and found it difficult to complete due to poor communication, tasks that fell through the cracks, or inexperienced personnel? Or maybe things weren’t that bad but you know your time could have been used more effectively in getting the project to completion? 

Strong project management skills are essential to get projects (big and small) completed not only on time, but at the highest level of quality. Having the right skills, systems, and processes in place can help you effectively and efficiently manage a project 

In 2008, Diana Marsden made her dream a reality, and opened Aries Apparel, a sporting goods and apparel store just for women and girls.

Don’t let the office size fool you. Pacific Networks has big plans outside of the Portland Metro region. Nuon Suon started the company in 2006 providing telecommunication systems to businesses, but his plan has always been to export to his home country of Cambodia. Soon after Nuon hired Charles King as office manager, they formally started looking into exporting to Cambodia as a separate division of Pacific Networks.  The economy in Cambodia is booming and “they want American-made products,” Charles explains.

Nutcase Helmets’ story begins at the Oregon State and University of Oregon rivalry game. Michael Morrow, former creative director at Nike, wanted to properly cheer on his team, the Beavers; he took an old helmet and bolted rubber ducks with drawn-on uniform numbers and crossed out eyes. The reaction was overwhelmingly positive. Michael stumbled upon niche – helmets that are fun to wear and an outlet for self-expression. And so, with his wife Miriam Berman, Nutcase Helmets was born in 2000.