What is your biggest challenge in business?

[Chris Green]

If you are a Christian, what is your biggest challenge in business?

 

[DaisyDay]

What?

Perhaps you could reword your question to specify what one has to do with the other for what you want to know...that's pretty vague, Chris Green.

 

[Autumnleaf]

Tax evasion.

 

[bricklayer]

taxes, Taxes, TAXES

 

[SoccerCoach]

If you are a Christian, what is your biggest challenge in business?

Like any other... making enough profit.

 

[OldWiseGuy]

Not murdering the city assessor.

 

[AMOG]

Government. it goes WAY beyond taxes.

 

[EdwinWillers]

Regulations - OSHA, IRS, EPA, Local, State, and Federal
LEED - ("Least Economically Efficient Design") - and anything "green"

Another very troubling problem we have are the last two generations of workers coming into the job market - pitifully poor work ethics (for those that have a semblance of one), entitlement mentalities (short hours, easy work, great benefits....), and practically zero ambition or initiative.

Seriously - the workforce is rapidly losing people with strong work ethics, senses of responsibility and personal accountability. This is a HUGE problem we face every day.

 

[Sphinx777]

A business (also known as a company, enterprise, and firm) is a legally recognized organization designed to provide goods or services, or both, to consumers, businesses and governmental entities. Businesses are predominant in capitalist economies. Most businesses are privately owned. A business is typically formed to earn profit that will increase the wealth of its owners and grow the business itself. The owners and operators of a business have as one of their main objectives the receipt or generation of a financial return in exchange for work and acceptance of risk. Notable exceptions include cooperative enterprises and state-owned enterprises. Businesses can also be formed not-for-profit or be state-owned.

The etymology of "business" relates to the state of being busy either as an individual or society as a whole, doing commercially viable and profitable work. The term "business" has at least three usages, depending on the scope — the singular usage (above) to mean a particular company or corporation, the generalized usage to refer to a particular market sector, such as "the music business" and compound forms such as agribusiness, or the broadest meaning to include all activity by the community of suppliers of goods and services. However, the exact definition of business, like much else in the philosophy of business, is a matter of debate and complexity of meanings.

 

[MacFall]

Tax evasion.

That's not such a challenge. You can start by accepting bullion as payment.

 

[regibiz]

My biggest fear is to shut down because of losses!

Regie

 

[LadyMillionaire]

Starting up a business is difficult, but with the proper steps it can be done. The second thing is attracting customers. That's why I became a copywriter; to help small businesses attract customers—its not difficult, if you know exactly who you are trying to attract.

 

[DaisyDay]

Seriously - the workforce is rapidly losing people with strong work ethics, senses of responsibility and personal accountability. This is a HUGE problem we face every day.

Really? Where have they all gone?

 

[LadyMillionaire]

The 'good' workers has not vanished or changed, its the businesses that we work for that's changed. We no longer have the stability that a permanent full-time job had for grandma and granddad. Mom and Dad now is being laid off and their 'employee' retirement funds are being man-handled or snatched away from them. Trusting your employer to do the right thing by you, if things go Jeff to the left, went out the window years ago.

We as workers haven't lost our values or ethics; we must pay extra attention and start taking care of ourselves now. We are forced to handle our income better, to start businesses of our own, to invest wisely, and make sure that we have a retirement program in place (whether our employers have one in place or not). We have to be ready if our jobs slips from under us.

That's why I started working for myself a long time ago. To make that extra money, but to also prepare to face the changes that we are facing now.

 

[bricklayer]

I've been self-employed since 1985. It's been wonderful.
Apprenticing young men, watching their families grow, watching them teach the next generation, are the things that make it rich.

I have definitely noticed a difference in the young men that come to us now. For lack of a more accurate word, they're sissies.
There's no toughness, no work-hurt, no love for the brute physicality of it.

There is also an encumbering sense of entitlement these young men need to be dispossed of.

We had a 27yr old 1st yr man quit IN TEARS because the crew were razzing him for wanting to go home early behind breaking his little finger.
He quit a very good job over a right of passage. (finish the day hurt)
The man has a family, a mortgage, and there's 12.3% unemployment in this county. To me, that's a sissy.

 

[kevind]

My biggest fear would be to get hurt and not being able to provide for my family. March will be 5 yrs for me and boy it has been a learning experience.

 

[bricklayer]

5yrs sinse what?

 

[kevind]

5 years of being in business for myself

 

[bricklayer]

5 years of being in business for myself

You have past a milestone.
What do you do?

 

[jayem]

I'm an occupational healthcare provider. I treat work injuries, and advise my client on health and safety issues in the workplace, and on medical conditions in employees which may affect their performance and safety. A big part of my job is also reviewing workplace drug testing. The biggest issue is balancing the expectations of the employer and the worker. I make sure the employer (and the work comp carrier) knows that my highest priority is always given to the health and safety of an injured or ill employee. And I also make it clear to the worker that his treatment will include every medical intervention that he needs, but not necessarily everything that he wants.