It's common to assume that everyone who is part of your team is on the same page and is equally aligned to the business. You very quickly come to realize that everyone wants what's in their best interest - employees want, customers want, investors want, board members want, friends and family want. With so many competing priorities, you assume that when you're making decisions left and right, it's in the company's best interest. However, unless you have made that very clear with all constituents of the company, you will be constantly battling the wants and needs of everyone else except the interests of the business.

In addition to the functions you must perform, you also must be three things: unemotional, deliberate and thoughtful—all while in the midst of the chaos that comes with entrepreneurial ventures. The ability to keep your head when things around you are going wrong or not making sense is a true skill, but one you must master.

Maximizing your scarce resources is a key function of the entrepreneur. Using independent contractors is one way to manage your people costs without the commitment and cost of a full time employee. Independent contractors give you the flexibility to respond quickly and not to make the more significant commitment required for a full-time employee. But with these benefits come some risks. Here are some of the advantages and disadvantages of employees versus independent contractors.

There are certain behaviors that are indicative of well-run organizations and teams. Certain of these core behaviors - trust, candor, accountability and teamwork - are fundamental to success, especially in the dynamic environment of an entrepreneurial venture. Companies talk about instilling these behaviors but don't know how.

Keeping track of the activities of a company seems impossible. You feel disorganized every day but you aren’t really sure how to change that. Many entrepreneurs are unaware of the available tools to manage this issue. I was sitting next to an entrepreneur who was keeping track of her many to-dos in a notebook. I asked her how long that took each day and she said about an hour. She was completely unaware of the numerous new tools, applications, and software designs that automate your to-do list and track agendas in an economy of time. These tools are mostly free and are designed for both larger companies and the one-woman show.

It doesn't necessarily take a lot of money to make a lot of money, but it does take some. To beat the odds and avoid running out of money, successful entrepreneurs prepare by developing rigorous financial plans that forecast essential information such as how much money it'll take to get off the ground and what to expect in the first few years so they can best allocate resources. Smart financial planning is crucial, but actually developing a reliable plan can feel impossible.

I started working with a first-time entrepreneur who felt she was drowning. I told her she need some structure and process to run the business. I told her she could benefit from regular meetings, set schedules and standard operating procedures that didn't require scrambling every time the company had an issue or met with investors, customers, vendors and other resources. Basic stuff. The stuff that mature businesses use as the foundation for running their business. Her reaction? She looked at me like I was crazy. She believed that her latest issue was simply a "personnel issue" that had to be handled and not indicative of a lack of process. The next day it was the product. The next it was investors. The next it was the marketing plan.

Your problems are not unique. The first time someone told me this I thought they were insane, but it’s true! Every startup shares the same problems. First and foremost, we all suffer from the issues endemic to new and developing businesses- lack of capital, lack of qualified team members and lack of time to execute across all parts of the company. You are faced with creating the building blocks of a business, building a business model, gaining market acceptance, creating operational capacity and to build the functional areas of a company- sales, marketing, finance, operations, technology, human resources, and the list goes on. This is true whether you are opening a pizza store, launching a clothing line, building an online store or selling jewelry. The same problems exist in virtually every newly launched venture.

If you’re thinking ahead to the day when you’ll no longer run your business, think about these five exit strategies now so you’ll be prepared for your future. Entrepreneurs live for the struggle of launching their business. But one thing they often forget is that decisions made on day one can have huge implications down the road. You see, it’s not enough to build a business worth a fortune; you have to make sure you have an exit strategy, a way to get the money back out. Here are five primary exit strategies for those of you who like to plan ahead and for those of you who don’t, but should.

Failure to understand your cash position, as well as your current and future cash needs, will result in disaster. The sad truth is that cash-flow surprises kill many startups. According to Dunn & Bradstreet, 90 percent of small-business failures are caused by poor cash flow. To prevent becoming part of that 90percent, you’ll need to maintain a focus on cash. When it comes to the financial management of a growing company, always remember that cash is KING.

The importance of prospecting in sales - how to define who your real customer is, and why targeting fewer, better prospects converts more than casting wide.

Crowdfunding websites, or platforms, allows individuals and business owners to raise funds for any kind of project by accessing a large number of potential backers. Many people are compelled to use well-known crowdfunding platforms, such as Kickstarter and GoFundMe. While these sites may have a loyal base of backers, the competition for views is fierce. Those seeking support should consider the differences between platforms so they can choose the site that will connect them with interested backers that will provide a strong level of support.

It’s in our blood to strive for perfection. We want to create the perfect product, the perfect service, the perfect business. But more often that not, we don’t have the resources or capital to deliver the perfect product or service. What if I told you that even if you did, no one would notice? Well, it’s true. The specifics or features aren’t the things that stand out- it’s the positioning of the product or service in the mind of the customer.

When asked whether their goal was to be the CEO of a company, many entrepreneurs would say no. Instead, they will say that what motivated them was their passion, their niche, their product, their idea. In fact, many may not have thoroughly considered the “company” part of being an entrepreneur. Think of the doctor, the jewelry maker, or the fashion designer. They see a way for their unique product or service to come to life but they rarely think about offices, finances, organizational structure, team management, and so on.

In the chaos of an entrepreneurial venture, you might find yourself saying, doing and allowing things that would be taboo in a normal business environment. For example, if every entrepreneurial venture had a “curse jar” that required a five-dollar “donation” for every curse we might be able to solve the national deficit pretty quickly. However, there are certain inappropriate behaviors that have a lasting effect that can set poor standards, establish values contrary to the interests of the company and create a toxic culture that can be hard to clean up. You must establish a set of ideals and perspectives that are non-negotiable for everyone.

Taking time away from your business to raise money seems like a distraction from the business. But, in fact, getting your company the capital it needs can be the most important thing that you do. However, when we undertake the effort, it often seems that we hear different feedback from every investor and that each investor meeting is like starting from scratch.

It is really hard for us entrepreneurs to understand on a daily basis how everyone on the planet (and maybe even other planets) aren't toiling day and night. After all, doesn't everyone out there know that were are trying to bring our business to life. There is no lunch hour. There are no days off. What is a vacation? This is how we normally think about the world on a day to day basis. But what happens when we hit August and the winter holidays?

As entrepreneurs, we often lack the capital and resources we need to move our business forward. What we do not lack is the ability to think differently about problems and solutions. When my company almost collapsed in the financial crisis of 2008, it was only my ability to come up with solutions when none existed that helped us bounce back. There are so many times that you will be faced with a problem that seems like it is insurmountable.

Communication is key. As an entrepreneur, you are the leader of your organization, which means you set the tone. That means that every little thing you say will have an effect on your team, whether you realize it or not. The fast pace and intensity of each day leaves little time to worry about your tone of voice, but what you say and how you say it makes all the difference. Here are a few Do’s and Don’ts to sharpen your communication skills:

With the advent of technology and the amount of capital floating around, you get competition from anywhere. So when you are talking to a potential partner or investor, how do you protect your idea? Certainly taking some basic steps can help. This includes signing a mutual non-disclosure agreement and filing for trademarks and patents. But if someone really wants to steal your idea, even these vehicles can fall short.

Communication is key. As an entrepreneur, you are the leader of your organization, which means you set the tone. That means that every little thing you say will have an effect on your team, whether you realize it or not. The fast pace and intensity of each day leaves little time to worry about your tone of voice, but what you say and how you say it makes all the difference. Here are a few Do’s and Don’ts to sharpen your communication skills:

Every entrepreneur faces an overwhelming set of tasks to be accomplished. The list is endless. Strategy. Technology. Team. Business models. Plans. Tactics. Functional areas. Branding. Staff. Money management. Offices. Fundraising. For every ten hours of time, there are one hundred hours of work. Put aside the passion, energy, emotion and pressure and think of all the things that need to get done.

We lose perspective as entrepreneurs. I want to help people recognize this and manage our teams and ourselves through it. We lose sight of the fact that the rest of the world does not wake up with the passion, determination and focus that we do. Something has spurred us to take this wild journey to create our venture. Our heart and soul are in it. Our business life and personal life (if you have one) are intimately intermingled. We think about it twenty-four hours per day and our dreams are not of sipping piña coladas or a relaxing day at the spa, but rather having our first real paying customers. It is unlikely anyone else is losing sleep, shunning their personal lives, or investing their heart and soul.

What happens when we have team members who are not used to the pace or the pressure of an entrepreneurial venture? I'll give you an example: I was driving to a meeting with ADP  with one of our female sales reps and we were late. I’ve been known to put the pedal to the metal and we were buzzing through the streets of New Jersey trying to get to there on time. I was also talking on my phone. In the midst of casual  conversation with her, she said,  “Can  you pull over for a second?” She opened the door, stuck her head out the window  and threw up. She leaned back in the car with a look of horror on her face. This  is when the ridiculousness of an entrepreneurial mind takes over.

For all of us that have become entrepreneurs, we believe that what we're doing is unique. We put our heart and soul into our idea but sometimes our obsession clouds our judgement. Let's say that you are about to start a meatball restaurant, and your friends say to you - "there are already tons of meatball restaurants." Event though that's true, you are likely to say - "but you've never tasted my meatballs."