The Ridgewood Blog Brings a Free Market Laissez-faire Point of View to Local, New Jersey State and National Issues.
Starting your own business is an exciting adventure, but let’s be honest—it can also feel overwhelming. And while tips like standing in front of your vanity mirror, looking yourself in the eye, and saying, “I’ve got this. I am capable, creative, and resourceful” work, there are more practical tips you should consider.
Continue reading 3 Practical Tips for Managing Anxiety as a New Entrepreneur
Local businesses are the backbone of communities like Ridgewood. They provide unique products and personalized services and foster a sense of connection among residents. However, as the marketplace evolves, local entrepreneurs often face challenges that come with growth—whether it’s maintaining inventory, scaling up operations, or keeping up with customer demands. These obstacles can prevent small businesses from expanding and competing with larger companies.
In today’s competitive business landscape, securing funding for a new venture can be a challenging hurdle for entrepreneurs. Venture capital firms play a crucial role in providing the financial backing and strategic guidance necessary for a business to grow and succeed. However, connecting with venture capital firms can be a daunting task for many entrepreneurs. It requires a thorough understanding of the industry, as well as the ability to effectively communicate the value of your business proposition.
Continue reading How to Connect with Venture Capital Firms – Key Information You Should Know
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
The leaders of Fight For Freelancers USA, a nonpartisan, self-funded, ad hoc coalition of solopreneurs, small-business owners, freelancers and other independent contractors, filed a complaint today through Pacific Legal Foundation in federal court against the U.S. Department of Labor, acting secretary Julie Su, and Wage and Hour Division administrator Jessica Looman.
The New Jersey Business Action Center helps female entrepreneurs grow by assisting with certification registrations, grant funding and offering free expert-level business support
By Melanie Willoughby, Executive Director, The New Jersey Business Action Center
Trenton NJ, Women-owned businesses account for 39.6 percent of business ownership in New Jersey, which is above the national average of 20.9 percent, according to the 2021 U.S. SBA Small Business Profile Report.
Continue reading Women-Owned Companies Capitalize on State Resources to Grow
Anyone who has ever considered how to start a nightclub from the ground up understands that you will have to spend a big sum. As a result, this form of business is only suitable for entrepreneurs with considerable beginning capital.
Continue reading Where should I start if I want to open a nightclub?
Registering a Florida business allows you to gain access to one of the state’s most developed and attractive markets. Entrepreneurs interested in registering a business in the United States frequently choose to do so in Florida since the state provides favorable business circumstances, particularly for non-residents. The most important components of forming a corporation in the United States (Florida) and the most popular company structure variants are provided below.
Continue reading Benefits of company registration in Florida
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, two Ridgewood Highschool graduates (class of 2020), are offering a new power washing service at some very aggressive pricing . According to the two entrepreneurs the most popular services: * Garbage Can cleaning ($30 for 1, $50 for 2) * Walkway Powerwash * Sidewalk Powerwash * Deck Deepclean .
Continue reading Ridgewood High School Graduates Offering a New Power Washing Service
Entrepreneurship is one of the most challenging careers to undertake. There are many obstacles to be faced when starting and running a business. Not many succeed in entrepreneurship.
When it comes to a credit score rating, it can either be good or bad. Both aspects can either positively or negatively impact your business, respectively. There are many more business operations than just buying, selling, making profits, and pleasing clients. Maintaining a good credit score is another essential aspect.
Continue reading What is a Credit Score and Why Should Entrepreneurs Strive to Improve it?
One of the most important things in the life of any entrepreneur is filing for taxes. This procedure is seen as complex and stressful by the majority of people since not doing the paperwork properly can produce serious consequences and fines.
The forms you need to submit will depend on the type of business your run. However, whatever kind of services or products you provide to the customers, you want all your taxes paid in full and in time.
Here are some of the most important tax forms entrepreneurs should get to know and understand.
Continue reading The Most Important Tax Forms Entrepreneurs Must Submit
Every business should make changes to ensure sustainability and success. There are numerous strategies that you can embrace to improve that small business, such as using better marketing strategies and monitoring cash flow, enabling you to improve areas that have huge profit margins. Here are some six strategies that can enhance your small business this year.
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, If you’re young, and you have an entrepreneurial zeal, your single greatest asset is your age.What they fail to tell you in school is that being “older” doesn’t necessarily make you “better.” What it makes you is different.
Employers Will Have To Adjust To New Generation
April 8,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, There’s a new generation in town and it’s one that employers better get ready for, because it’s 23 million strong and will be flooding the workforce by the end of the decade.
Ladies and gentlemen, meet Generation Z; a confidence-filled group that doesn’t want to miss a thing, has the shortest attention span of any generation and isn’t quite as open as its predecessors – the millennials – from whom they learned that not everything needs to be shared online.
“If you try to treat those in Generation Z (born in the mid to late ‘90s, mostly to Generation X parents) like you treated Millennials (born in the early ‘80s to mid ‘90s, mostly to Baby Boomer parents), it will backfire on you,” says Matt Stewart, co-founder of College Works Painting (www.collegeworks.com). “This generation is unique. And now they are starting to enter the workforce.”
Thanks to his role at College Works Painting, which offers internships that help undergraduate students gain real-life business management experience, Stewart has gained a first-hand look at both the Millennials and Generation Z. And there certainly are differences between the two:
• According to best selling author and generations expert David Stillman, you won’t find those in Generation Z frequenting Facebook or Twitter as much as their predecessors. Keenly aware of software monitoring, they are more likely to share their worlds on apps such as Snapchat or Instagram. Often dubbed Digital Natives, Millennials are much more likely to share their lives in the open on platforms such as Facebook.
• Being culturally connected is more important to those in Generation Z than to Millennials, with many more Gen Zers suffering from FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) than Millennials.
• Stewart doesn’t see this as a hard and fast rule and says the experience Generation Z employees have at College Works Painting – and the impact they pride themselves on having – is much the opposite of FOMO. An example that Stewart says other companies can follow.
• Those in Generation Z have grown up with smart phones, tablets, 3-D, 4-D and 360-degree photography just to name a few of their norms. According to Stillman, keeping the attention of a Gen Zer is harder than ever. Their average attention span is eight seconds, compared to the 12-second attention span of Millennials.
• Millennials are driven to succeed by helicopter parents who watch their every move, while Generation Z finds encouragement from parents who encourage independent thinking, want them to achieve on their own and are fed up with not receiving equal pay for equal success at work.
• According to Forbes, social entrepreneurship is important to Generation Z, a group that is driven to volunteer and choose a career in which they can make a difference. On the other hand, there are those who hope the Millennials will become more civic-minded as they grow older, but it’s something that hasn’t been witnessed as of yet.
• Generation Z children were raised in classrooms that focused on diversity and collaboration. Despite this fact, they tend to be more private than Millennials, perhaps as a result of seeing many of the downfalls of previous generations in the Great Recession.
• Because those who are part of Generation Z feel pressure to gain corporate experience early, they are competing with Millennials who are more likely to wait to gain that same type of experience. The good news for Millennials, who are more likely to chase jobs in the corporate world, is that 72 percent of those in Generation Z wish to take what they learn and apply it to their own business, versus 64 percent of Millennials who have the same goal.
About Matt Stewart
Matt Stewart is co-founder of College Works Painting (www.collegeworks.com), which provides real-world business experience for thousands of college students each year. The award-winning program also offers high-quality house-painting services for homeowners.
February 17,2017
the staff of the Ridgewood blog
Ridgewood NJ, So, you’re a smart, imaginative, persuasive millennial and – contrary to the bad rap your generation usually gets – you’re willing to work REALLY hard. You’re just waiting for all those boomers and Xers to get the heck out of the way so you can have your turn at the brass ring.
But why wait?
You and your well-educated and connected friends are in a great position to create your own success – by creating your own business. Survey after survey finds that millennials have a true entrepreneurial mindset; you like flexibility and independence, and you’re determined to pursue your passions. And, thanks to the accomplishments of others before you (the young founders of Airbnb and Uber, Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg), you’re likely to get more support and less eye-rolling should you strike out on your own.
“With more resources available to start-up founders, and a new respect for what innovative thinkers can do, there’s no need to wait around for your corner office and executive title,” says Matt Stewart, an entrepreneur and co-founder of College Works Painting (www.collegeworks.com/about), an internship program that provides practical business experience for college students. “Why sit and dream about climbing the ladder at someone else’s business when you can create your own?”
The idea of building something from nothing is daunting but doable, says Stewart, who started his company with just four employees in 1993 and now operates nationwide. Here are some of his tips for getting started:
If the fear of failing is holding you back, Stewart says, remember that there’s no better time to take a risk than when you’re first starting out.
“Meanwhile, you’re gaining work experience, learning to be a leader, and doing it on your own terms,” he says.
About Matt Stewart
Matt Stewart is co-founder of College Works Painting (www.collegeworks.com/about), which provides business experience for thousands of college students each year. The award-winning program also offers high-quality house-painting services for homeowners.
