Academy Courses

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Academy 100

Academy 100 courses are very basic courses that address issues and questions that first-time entrepreneurs need to know before they start a business.  The lessons in this course contain critical information that every entrepreneur needs.

• 101:  Ethics & Alignment: Includes topics of ethics, morality and alignment in the context of building a business.
  • Why Morals & Ethics Matter in Business
  • Universal Principles
  • Core Values
  • The Power of Basic Beliefs
  • Moral Competency
  • Goal Setting
• 102: Finding Your Niche: Breaks down the process of finding your niche into individual components that you can develop separately, that make your new business unique and valuable.
  • Identifying Your Abilities and Talents
  • Counting Your Accomplishments
  • Finding  Your Passion
  • What Will People Pay For?
• 103: Building a Bullet-Proof Business: Covers aspects of business risk and basic asset protection for business owners.
  • Identifying Your Business Risk
  • Why Sole Proprietorship is a Huge Mistake
  • Choosing the Right Business Entity
  • Selecting the Right Business Jurisdiction
  • Why Compliance Counts
  • About Business Insurance
  • Creating  Financial Controls
• 104: Start Up Details (COMING SOON): Explains the details of actually starting up your business.
  • Your Federal Tax Identification Number
  • Sales Tax
  • State & Local Business Taxes
  • Business Licenses
  • Employment Insurance
  • Your Banking Relationship
  • Merchant Processing Accounts
  • Health Insurance
  • Accounting Considerations
  • Tax Nexus
• 105: Planning the Entrepreneurs Estate (COMING SOON): Discusses estate planning issues.
  • Common Estate Planning Issues for Entrepreneurs
  • The Living Trust
  • Durable Powers of Attorney
  • Transferring Assets
  • Retaining Control
• 106: The Company Secretary: Covers all the details and formalities related to maintaining a business entity.
  • Introduction to the Incorporation Process
  • Officers, Directors, Managers & Bylaws
  • Holding & Recording Company Meetings
  • Resolutions & Records
  • Maintaining Ownership Records
• 107: Insurance: Discusses the aspects of getting the right business coverage.
  • Types of coverage
  • Bidding out premiums
  • How much is enough?
  • Controlling costs by controlling claims.
  • Preparing for audits
  • Deductibles & Co-Pays
  • Using Health Savings Accounts
• 108:  Understanding Your Books
  • Introduction to Business Accounting
  • Your General Ledger
  • How entries are made
  • Your Chart of Accounts

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Academy 200

Academy 200 courses take you past the initial organizational phase of your business and into some of the more hands-on aspects of building and operating your business.

• 201: Building Your Brand from Day 1: Deals with business names, logos, trademarks, web, and other issues related to communicating your brand.
  • Choosing a Name
  • Your Web Address
  • Protecting Your Trademarks
  • Logos
  • Your Mission Statement
• 202: Your Four Focus Points: What you always need to keep your eye on.
  • Why Passion is Critical to Business Vitality
  • Identifying Your “Blue Ribbon” Offering
  • Knowing Your Critical Number
  • Defining and Understanding Your Core Customer
• 203: One Page Scorecards: How to use targeted scorecards to measure the performance metrics you need to know.
• 204: Your Three Critical Financial Reports: Know your Financial Statement, Balance Sheet, and Cash-Flow report.
• 205: Building Your Team: Finding the right legal counsel, accountant, advisors, and key personnel.
  • Finding Your Legal Sherpa
  • Finding an Accountant You Can Work With
  • The Problem With Partners
  • Getting Value From Your MasterMind Group
  • Leaning Into Your Coach
  • Outsourcing
• 206: Employees: Issues related to hiring, promoting, paying, disciplining and firing.
  • Payroll
  • Hiring Late
  • Firing Early
  • The Interview
  • Providing Benefits
  • Employment Law
  • Compensation Systems
  • TopGrading Strategies
  • The Employee Handbook
  • Handling Reviews & Evaluations
  • Correction & Reward Strategies
  • Employees vs. Independent Contractors
  • Non-Compete Agreements
  • Job Descriptions
• 207: Building the Business Plan
• 208: Budgeting

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Academy 300

These courses deal with more advanced business challenges.

• 301: Thinking Big – Thinking Ahead.
  • Scalability & Repeatability
  • Standard Operating Procedures
  • Training Programs
• 302: Growing and Nurturing an Intentional Culture
• 303: Building Business Credit
• 304: Maslow’s Pyramid and Your Business
• 305: Customer Service
• 306: Landlords & Leases
• 307: Intellectual Property
• 308: Your Emergency Plan

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Academy 400

These courses are all about building the sales and marketing machine for your business.

• 401: Testing
• 402: Building a Powerful Sales Force
• 403: Marketing Magic
  • Email Marketing
  • Using Radio
  • Pay Per Click
  • Search Engine Optimization
  • Guerilla Public Relations
• 404: Launching Your Website
  • What is Web 2.o?
  • Finding a Hosting Service
  • Choosing a Content Management System
  • Identifying the Mission of Your Site
  • WordPress Basics
• 405: Blogging for Business
• 406: Social Media
• 407: Referral Marketing
• 408: Effective Sales Copy
• 409: Using Surveys

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Academy 500

These courses deal with challenges of leadership and management in your business

• 501: Leadership
• 502: Managing Projects
• 503: Managing Teams
• 504: Managing Crisis & Change

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Inspiration Academy

These courses are designed to help you refill your tank – and as the title implies, “inspire” you to new heights.

• Inspiration
• The Ascent
  
• The Law of Increasing Returns
• The Foundation of Success
• The Sequence of Growth