Many of us hear the small business "anthem song" - Complete freedom, unlimited opportunities, dreams realized. But of those who answer it, most don't succeed. Why? What separates those who succeed from those who fail?
Knowledge of the business, sufficient capital, good experience, and a unique idea at the right time are just some of the characteristics of a successful business owner. Although there isn't any way that you can guarantee that you'll become a successful business owner, you can greatly improve your odds by becoming well-prepared for the task.
It is important that you should seriously consider what it really means to own your own business, from the sacrifices you'll have to make to the skills you'll need if you're to succeed.
As a small business owner, you need to:
So, what then is an entrepreneur? "An entrepreneur is one who creates a new business in the face of risk and uncertainty for the purpose of achieving profit and growth by identifying opportunities and assembling the necessary resources to capitalize on them."
Thursday, April 23, 2020
Workers facing distress due to the COVID-19 lockdown continue to find relief, thanks to the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF).
According to the Employment and Labour Department, the fund has made progress towards the COVID-19 Temporary Employer/Employee Relief Scheme (TERS) while ramping up normal benefits to ensure that workers are not inconvenienced during the lockdown.
Thursday, April 23, 2020
Finance Minister Tito Mboweni has provided more details on the second set of measures that are aimed at assisting individuals and businesses through the COVID-19 pandemic.
“There is a critical need for government interventions to assist with job retention and support businesses that may be experiencing significant distress,” the National Treasury said in a statement on Thursday.
Thursday, April 23, 2020
Life in South Africa will gradually begin to return to normal from next month, with government steadily easing the COVID-19 lockdown regulations, albeit under stringent stipulations.
From 1 May, government will implement a risk-adjusted strategy aimed at easing the current lockdown restrictions. The decision was taken during a National Coronavirus Command Council (NCCC) meeting on Thursday.
This was revealed by President Cyril Ramaphosa during an address to the nation on COVID-19, on Thursday evening.
Tuesday, April 21, 2020
A total of 606 462 employees who have lost their income as a result of the lockdown imposed to mitigate against the spread of COVID-19 will receive their benefit from the Unemployment Insurance Fund (UIF).
To date, the UIF has received just over 55 268 applications from employers representing about 1 601 767 employees. In total, the UIF has over 1 800 000 employers registered on its database representing more than 8 million workers.
Wednesday, April 8, 2020
National Treasury has called on compliant essential personal protective equipment (PPEs) suppliers to direct their offers to the department’s Project Management Office (PMO).
PPE is much-needed by government, as the State intensifies its effort to curb the spread of COVID-19.
In a statement on Wednesday, National Treasury, in support of the Department of Trade, Industry and Competition, said a support team, which is responsible for coordinating the process exclusively for the identified commodities, will assess the submissions.
Wednesday, April 8, 2020
The Parliamentary Committee on Small Business Development has called on all municipalities to assist eligible informal traders to comply with their COVID-19 trading regulations.
This follows the directions issued by Small Business Development Minister Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, which are in line with the amendments to the regulations on the COVID-19 lockdown. These were published in the Government Gazette by Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (COGTA) Minister, Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, on 2 April 2020.
Tuesday, April 7, 2020
The Department of Tourism has encouraged eligible businesses to apply for the COVID-19 Tourism Relief Fund.
The R200 million Tourism Relief Fund has been established as an intervention to mitigate against the impact of COVID-19 in the tourism sector.
“We acknowledge the difficulties experienced by businesses during this time, hence the need to support the industry and communities to cope with the negative effects of this pandemic.
Monday, April 6, 2020
The KwaZulu-Natal province has created a One -Stop Business Portal to assist entrepreneurs to weather the wrath of the Coronavirus on the economy.
The portal, which can be accessed on www.tikzn.co.za/support-desk, is an initiative of the Department of Economic Development, Tourism and Environmental Affairs (EDTEA) through its entity Trade and Industry KZN.
The portal seeks to assist entrepreneurs log enquiries about their business during the COVID-19 lockdown.
Sunday, March 29, 2020
Finance Minister Tito Mboweni on Sunday announced exceptional tax measures to counter the impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
“The Minister of Finance has announced the following exceptional tax measures as part of the fiscal package outlined by President Cyril Ramaphosa on 23 March 2020 in his speech on the Escalation of Measures to Combat COVID-19,” said the Ministry of Finance.
