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Tim Knox's Articles in General Business

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  • 6 Ways To Fund Your New Business
    Here are a few of the most common ways to finance a new business. All methods have pros and cons and some (or most) may not work for a specific situation. In any case one must always thoroughly investigate the ups and downs of any new venture before jumping in it with both feet.
  • A Christmas Of Good Intentions
    Christmas is that time of the year when we all rejoice and celebrate. However, along with Christmas comes a chore that is troublesome to some people - "shopping". This article relates just one such trip to avoid doing last minute shopping by going for it a full week in advance.
  • All The President's Women
    How does the nation take the allegations against President Bill Clinton? There have been national surveys and forecasts by amateurs and pundits alike. Here is an analysis of the whole episode as well as some advice for the President.
  • Are You Mentor Material?
    Typically, there are three things every good mentor should have: time, patience, and a genuine desire to help another person succeed without expecting anything in return. If you have an abundance of those things, then being a mentor can be a highly rewarding experience. If not, please see the rubber plant reference
  • Are You Willing To Do Whatever It Takes To Succeed In Business?
    There is a very simple reason some entrepreneurs do amazingly well in business while others do not. It has nothing to do with product or location or backing or education or street smarts or dumb luck. It has more to do with people willing to do whatever it takes for as long as it takes to succeed in business.
  • Armadillo On The Half Shell
    The origins of the human food menu is certainly a mystery that is yet unsolved. However, it seems that some amendments are certainly being made in these dietary standards today!
  • Be Careful What You Wish For
    Well, my friends, like the Terminator, politicians named Clinton, the ghosts from the movie Poltergeist, and that corn on the side of your big toe: I’m back. There are just some things that won’t go away. Sorry.
  • Beanie Babies Anonymous
    The Beanie Babies syndrome has really caught on with no end in sight. Read on to see some of the effects of this mania and some tips on how to cure it.
  • Companies Stifle Intrapreneurs At Their Own Risk
    I've noticed an interesting trend lately. Usually the e-mail I receive in response to this column comes from rookie entrepreneurs or established business owners seeking my input on startup matters, financing, employee relations, general management and leadership issues, policy matters, etc. Lately, however, many of the messages are coming from employees of medium-size and large companies who are growing frustrated at working in an environment that they deem (to quote one e-mail) "Intellectually
  • Dealing With Contractors Teaches Valuable Lessons About Business
    The experience of dealing with contractors and other entrepreneurs is an interesting one as it highlights some key business issues. Planning, scheduling, customer satisfaction and accurate budgeting are just some of the things that play an important role in ensuring a successfull business.
  • Do I Really Need A Business License and Tax ID?
    I've gotten quite a few emails recently from ebusiness owners who seem to think that just because their business is conducted online or from the comfort of home that the rules and regulations that govern brick and mortar businesses do not apply to them. The ebusiness questions I get most often do not involve building websites or conducting ecommerce
  • Do You Want Fries With That Management Style?
    The environment of any workplace is highly dependant on the type of manager and his/her management style. This article describes some of these management approaches.
  • Do Your Homework To Find The Best Location For Your Business
    This week our discussion on starting a brick and mortar business continues. We’ve already talked about creating a Startup Plan to manage the process and conducting market research to gauge the viability of your idea. If you missed those entries visit TimKnox.com and click the "Columns" tab.
  • Don’t Let Stress Run You Out Of Business
    Stress is business is a common phenomenon and every entrepreneur must know how to handle it and grow with it.
  • El Nino Made Me Do It!
    The changing climate certainly does pose a threat to our planet and eco-system. However, it also presents an opportunity for those who need to blame somethine
  • Expert Strategies For Hiring The Best Employees
    Hiring employees who can contribute to your business positively is a challenge for every entrepreneur. Here are some tips on how to go about this difficult and challenging task.
  • Getting "Yankee Naked"
    Nakedness is no longer a word that is self explanatory. There are just so many variations of this word with each having a different meaning that an explanation of the braod categories is necessary. This is just what this article sets out to do!
  • Ghosts Of Halloweens Past
    Times may have changed but the spirit of Halloween continues to live on. Children today have as much as they did in the past - and so do their parents!
  • Gimme A Head With Hair
    A man's hair are certainly one of his best assets and a matter of pride. For many their loss can cause depression and anxiety that must be taken care of by an expert psychotherapist - or better still by a sports car!
  • Growing Old In A Red Miata
    I just had another birthday and I'm not particularly happy about it. To me, that's like saying, "I'm another year closer to having my prostate removed! Somebody bake me a cake and let's party!"
  • Honey, Did You Take Your Pill?
    A birth control pill for men? As if remembering to take out the trash isn't enough pressure.
  • How Do You Keep Your Best Employees From Flying The Coup?
    There is not lack of jobs for good talent today and the best way to keep your best employees around is to provide them with incentives to stay on. The end result is of course the continued growth of your business.
  • How To Create Your Own eBay About Me Page
    Regular readers of this newsletter and my newspaper column know that I am a big fan of eBay's About Me Page feature. This is a special page you can create as part of your eBay account that is linked from your eBay ID (with a little About Me icon). You can use your eBay About Me Page as a sales tool. Customers can click on your About Me icon to get to your About Me page, which you can set up to include information about you, your interests, and
  • How To Make Big Money On eBay Selling Other People's Stuff
    Since eBay launched the Trading Assistant program last year, over 50,000 eBay sellers have registered as Trading Assistants to help other people sell their goods on eBay. As a result, eBay consignment businesses have sprung up all over the United States and are now starting to appear in Germany and the UK. This means opportunity for you...
  • How To Make Money As A Self-Improvement Guru
    As you know, I'm always on the look out for new and exciting products that will make you and me money. That's partly what this newsletter is all about: when I find new opportunities that show tremendous promise, I feel obligated to share them with you.
  • How To Really Get The Competitive Advantage Over Your Competition
    One of the hot catchphrases being bounced around a lot in business these days is “competitive advantage.”One of the cool things about being an entrepreneur and business author and speaker is that I get to use all kinds of big words and phrases that make me sound much smarter than I am.
  • I Hope You Kept The Receipt
    Will it be something from Victoria's Secret or another beefstick this year?
  • I Love You, You Love Me
    Barney The Dinosaur is suing The Famous San Diego Chicken for beating up a Barney lookalike during his act. Sounds like a clear case of costume envy to me.
  • I Was Rooting For
    Who was I rooting for in the Iron Bowl? Sorry, if I tell you, I'll have to kill you
  • If You Clone A Schizophrenic
    Scientists have successfully cloned a sheep and a cow. What's next? Dogs? Cats? Professional wrestlers? Me? And if you clone a schizophrenic, how many people do you get?
  • Is Business Ownership In Your Future?
    Anyone who wishes to start a business must first do a lot of self assessment and planning otherwise the business venture may flounder easily.
  • It’s Not All About Location, Location, Location
    Last time we met I brought you the tale of how I scouted for and eventually found what I considered to be the best retail location for my new retail gunshop in my hometown of Madison.
  • Learn To Avoid Ugly Baby Syndrome
    Last week we talked about creating a "Startup Plan" for your new business idea. To catch you up, a Startup Plan is a detailed list of tasks and subtasks that must be completed in order to get you from the initial idea stage to opening day and beyond.
  • Learn To Focus On What’s Important and Farm Out The Rest
    Outsourcing your mundane tasks to focus only on the essential tasks is the best way to organize your business. The results are great not just for you but also for your business.
  • Like Books, Entrepreneurs Are Always Judged By Their Covers
    Enterpreneurship requires not just hard work and knowledge of business but also a number of other things that are many times not considered too important. Grooming yourself to look good is just one of these things that enterpreneurs need to focus on.
  • Mastermind Your Way To Business Success
    While I’m a firm believer in goals, I’m not a big believer in New Year’s resolutions; mainly because it has been my experience that most resolutions are repeated year after year and forgotten by the time we sober up on January 2nd.
  • Never Say It Can’t Be Done
    In business one must never say or assume that something can't be done. With a little help from ingenuity and creativity any problem can be easily solved.
  • No Sale Like A Yardsale
    Remember, it's not how much you spend at a yardsale, but how much you talk them down
  • Operator Error Is Why Most Businesses Fail
    This is the column that probably gets me kicked out of the entrepreneurial chapter of the Priory of Scion. I look silly in those long robes anyway, so here goes. A thousand apologies to my entrepreneurial brothers and sisters, but. I think the more important question is: do businesses fail or does the entrepreneur in charge of them fail? I have to be honest and tell you that I think most business failures must be laid at the feet of the person in charge.
  • Pick On Somebody Your Own Size
    Mattel's redesigning Barbie to make her more realistic. Imagine Christy Brinkley going in, David Brinkley.
  • Please Don't Buy Anything From Me
    This week I had one customer threaten to hunt be down and shoot me like a dog. Another said that if she could get her hands around my neck she'd strangle the life out of me. And still another sincerely hoped that I "burn in Hell for all eternity." What did I do to deserve these threats
  • Show Me The Money
    The stock market could crash like a circus fat lady falling over a lawn chair and it wouldn't affect me in the least. All my money's tied up in bills; electric bill, phone bill, Visa bill etc.
  • Smoke 'em If You Can Afford 'em
    What's the difference between a $30 cigar and one that costs fifty cents. The answer begins with cow poop.
  • Some Guys Have All The Luck
    Recent studies claim that the less educated you are, the more sex you have, and the more sex you have, the longer you'll live. Sure gives new meaning to "Live long and prosper!"
  • Some People Will Eat Anything
    Most people are like Mikey, the old Life cereal kid. We are nondiscriminating carnivores who will eat anything -- especially if it can be made to taste like chicken
  • Sometimes Life Just Ain't Funny
    Alabama weather is about as predictable as watching The Jerry Springer Show. You know something's going to happen, you're just not sure what it will be.
  • St. Viagra's Dance
    The impotency drug Viagra has every old person I know talking about having sex again. All I have to say is, 'Folks, please, not in front of the children!
  • Staying Alive
    If someone offered you a pill that would add 50 years to your life, would you take it? Not me. At least not until I found out who'd be footing the bill for all that extra life.
  • The Dust Settles On Miss America
    The Miss America Pageant is taking its last breath. Will the mourners have to wear swimsuits to the funeral, or will evening gowns be enough?
  • The Entrepreneur's Checklist
    I was asked the other day what personality traits I thought were important to entrepreneurial success. I immediately gave my preprogrammed reply about passion and dedication and hard work. After taking some time later to ponder the question a little deeper (I normally operate in shallow waters), I came up with a more detailed checklist for entrepreneurial success.

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