Don Proudfoot believes business owners need to get out of the office to think.

“Brain power is free,” Proudfoot, director of the Small Business Development Center in Tyler, said. “It only takes time.”

Proudfoot talked to about 50 people during the Tyler Area Chamber of Commerce Small Business Breakfast at Three Z Azian Cuizine on Wednesday, giving them tips and talking about small business trends.

He said owners need to spend time away from their business every week to be by themselves and have time to think.

“If you don’t have time to get away, you will miss opportunities,” he said. “That’s when you come up with audacious goals.”

It is important to have a goal “way bigger than yourself,” Proudfoot said, adding that everyone should set audacious goals they don’t really think they’re capable of.

He said business owners need to spend time thinking about how they can differentiate their business from competitors and how to make their business better.

The Small Business Development Center counsels small business owners and those trying to become entrepreneurs. The organization has several events coming up in Tyler.

On Feb. 24, it will host the 17th annual Women Entrepreneurs Conference from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Green Acres Baptist Church CrossWalk Conference Center. Proudfoot started the conference 17 years ago to help support women-owned businesses, which he has said make up 40 percent of their clients.

This year’s event will include workshops by Donna Spann, owner of Capstone College and Career Advising, about how to start a business; and Ramona Butler, CPA, on how to “rethink your business.” Dawn Franks, president of Your Philanthropy, will be the keynote speaker during the luncheon, which also will include a fashion show and an award for the 2015 Emerging Women Entrepreneur of the Year. Tickets are $30 and can be purchased at www.tylers bdc.com.

The Small Business Development Center is also hosting the 2015 Small Business Management Seminar from 6 to 8:30 p.m. April 16, 23 and 30, and May 7, 14, 21 and 28.

Local business professionals will instruct participants on business planning, legal considerations, financing a business, business insurance, strategic planning, business advertising and accounting and taxes.

It will offer interactive sessions providing the opportunity to “ask the professional your business questions.”

The event costs $99 and will be held at Tyler Junior College West Campus. For more information, call 903-510-2900 or visit www.tylersbdc.com.

 

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