Remember, your mortgage shop is still a business and it needs to be operating on the same principles other businesses do. And there are many resources that will provide ideas for surviving and thriving that come from those in a similar situation in all sorts of business operations, not just mortgages.
At the start of the year, Discover Financial Services, through its Discover Small Business Watch Survey series provided a list of tips for small business owners in 2010. These tips are based on what survey respondents have gone through in the past year.
For example, it already the first week in March and if a business owner hasn't already started doing the suggestion in the first time - start preparing your taxes now (at the start of the year) - he or she is way behind the curve. Just under half of the small business owners who participate in the surveys said finding and organizing the documents needed to prepare their taxes is very or somewhat difficult. More than three quarters find the tax preparation process time consuming and takes away from attending to the bottom line.
The second tip is find ways to cut their personal expenses, as most small business owners believe their take-home pay will shrink this year. Tip No. 3 is to "think green."
The fourth tip is something that should have been considered even before the start of the year: having a long-term plan.
No. 5 is less of a tip and more of an attitude: "Don't focus on the money." The Discover Small Business Watch found that 12% of entrepreneurs said making more money was the top reason why they became a business owner. But 46% of them said having "more flexibility with their time" and "being their own boss" motivates them.
Use the Web is the sixth tip. Approximately one-third of small business owners believe their biggest benefit of social media is "getting new business leads." More importantly, almost half of the consumers surveyed said they are more likely to use a small business that has its own website.
Next is rely on yourself financially and don't overextend by borrowing too much. Only 36% of the respondents said they needed financial capital to start their business. Of those that did need money, almost half did rely on themselves - 45% said used the money from their personal savings. Meanwhile 16% said they borrowed from family and friends.
Approximately three in 10 small business owners admitted they are likely to borrow from family and friends in the next 12 months in order to stay in business.
Focusing on sales is the way for a business to stay on course. The survey found that business owners believe sales generation is the biggest issue facing them, followed by taxes, operation costs, health insurance, access to capital and inflation.
Finally, Discover suggested small business owners practice preventative medicine and take care of themselves, in light of survey results that found 65% said it is somewhat or very difficult to obtain affordable health care for themselves and their employees.
"Trial and error is a great learning tool, but the tolerance for mistakes by a small business owner in challenging times can be costly," said Ryan Scully, director of Discover's business credit card. "That's why it pays to learn from the past and use those lessons to succeed. The sooner America's small businesses are thriving again, the sooner we'll all be much better off."
