Episode Details

Most small businesses will fail. According to StatisticBrain.com, 25% of businesses will fail in year one, by year five the failure rate is 55%, by year ten it's 71%. Why does this happen? There are many explanations being offered, from industry changes to economic environment.

My strong belief is that most of these so-called reasons are excuses. And when we get right down to the real reasons most businesses fail, it turns out the top 10 reasons are all within your control. In this episode I will explain what the 10 true reasons are, and how to control them and increase your odds of success.

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Following Jesus can be confusing sometimes. First of all, Jesus himself said some of the most puzzling things. And now, 2,000 years after he rose from the dead, there are many conflicting opinions about what he said and did.

How do you know who is telling the truth? Who really represents the Spirit of god, and who is a false teacher or false prophet? I think there are 5 distinguishing characteristics that should be warning signals of false teachers or doctrines. (For further reading, see 1 John.)

1. Claims to be the "one true way".
2. Promotes an "us against them" mindset.
3. Sets up one person as the "ultimate authority" who must be blindly obeyed.
4. Over-emphasizes one doctrine or scripture in a weird way.
5. Uses fear and manipulation to control followers.

Remember what Jesus himself said: "By this all people will know that you are my disciples, if you have love for one another." (John 13:35)

Most businesses do not close because of competition, the economy, regulation, or any of the other excuses businesses owners use to explain their failure. Most businesses that fail do so because of preventable mistakes on the part of the business owner. The most common reasons are:

1. Mediocre product, customer service.
2. No employee training system.
3. No marketing system.
4. No investment in business/staff improvement.
5. No clear objectives.
6. No testing and tracking.
7. Inefficiency.
8. Laziness.
9. No advisors.
10. No cash.

In the audio, I