Unlocking the Potential of Remote Teams: Things to Consider When Your Staff is Spread Out

As a small business owner, you may be considering enabling a remote work environment. With the rise of technology and the pandemic shifting the way we work, managing a remote team has become a popular option for business owners looking for new and unique ways to grow their business.  However, there are both benefits and drawbacks to consider before making the switch. We’ll start with the benefits. A larger talent…  Read more

5 Places You Are Wasting Money In Your Business

There are lots of ways businesses waste money. At BDG we have worked with a number of different businesses in varying industries, so we have seen it all! Usually, we start a business with the goal of making money or earning income, but with so many different responsibilities to juggle when running a business, some money can fall through the cracks.  So what money-wasters have we seen most often? We’ve…  Read more

4 Ways We Make A Business Audit Less Daunting

Everyone dreads the moment they receive a business audit letter from the CRA. Let’s face it, unless it’s a letter with a refund amount on it, a letter from the CRA is an unwelcome surprise. But it doesn’t have to be so nerve-racking!  We erase common worries like, the chances of getting audited by the CRA, or the common audit triggers and how to avoid them, and we let our…  Read more

5 Free and Fun Apps to Save You Money in Your Small Business

Saving money can be as fun as trying to get your office dog to stop tearing apart the office piñata you bought for your admin assistant’s birthday. But with these 5 free apps to save you money in your small business, saving money is about to get more exciting. Check them out here… 1. Wave Apps If you are a small business that writes invoices on Word, Excel or on…  Read more

Use these motivation styles for your employees to increase their productivity and happiness at work

Have you ever wondered why Shakira from work responds well to suggestions thanking you for your time, but Ricky on the other hand responds poorly to feedback and responds by staring blankly at the new office Nespresso machine? Well, according to Gretchin Rubin, New York Time Best Selling author of The Four Tendencies, we all respond to expectations differently. We all face two kinds of expectations: Outer expectations, such as…  Read more

Top 5 Products To Make Your Small Biz More Efficient!

If you’ve ever been in a meeting where the projector isn’t working, the coffee is cold, and you are extremely, extremely bored, you will appreciate the excitement a little efficiency can put in the air to make your office run more smoothly. Here are some snazzy products that will make your small business more efficient! 1. Miroir Mini Projector, $169.99 Throw your dusty projector out the window (or put it…  Read more

4 Top traits to look for In An Accountant

Accountants, like office coffee machines or sweaters for your office dog, can vary in quality from drab to fab. And in the same way you don’t want coffee machines or dog sweaters that break down in the first year, even though you were offered a free milk frother with them, you want to find an accountant who can work with you for the long haul and save you money. If…  Read more

How and Why to Keep Small Business Employees Engaged

  If you’ve ever been disengaged at a job, it can be a pretty empty feeling. It can vary in intensity from feeling bored, and not putting your maximum effort into a job, to feeling a pit in your stomach on Sunday evenings as you don’t want to go into a job the next day where what you do doesn’t serve your values. According to Gallup’s State of the Global…  Read more

How to Get Paid Quicker in Business

You’ve done it. You’ve produced _____ (fill in the blank here), and sold it to your client. They are happy. You are happy. Your office cactus is happy. And now it’s time to receive your cash so you can spend it on something wonderful like cloud accounting, hiring an intern, or ordering another office cactus. BUT, how do you know your client will pay? Have they remembered they owe you…  Read more

How business Contract Relationships are like Romantic Relationships – here’s who to say no to…

The office plants and moons have aligned: You’ve started a contracting business. Now it’s time to put away the office piñata and hide the broken vase from your office celebration party, because it’s time to respond to client requests. Very much like dating, when you are ready, you will get a wide gambit of potential suitors for your small business. The trick is to be selective about who you accept.…  Read more

How to build Mental Toughness like an Olympic Medalist for your Small Business

Have you ever wondered why some people can thrive after life’s dramatic challenges and others mentally collapse? According to Jim Loehr, a performance psychologist and Paul G. Stoltz, Chairman of the Global Resilience Institute, working in peak performance and maintaining resiliency needs to be practiced. For example the average professional athlete spends most of his or her time practicing and only a small percentage actually competing. However the typical executive…  Read more

How to Maintain a Work-Life Balance for Small Business Owners

Did you become an entrepreneur so that you can get away from the nine to five grind but are getting crushed by the 40-60 hours you’ve ended up working in your small business? We are here to help. It can be easy to feel overwhelmed by work. But with these tips, you can move your life-work balance into your favour… 1. Stop doing things you suck at As a small…  Read more

Steps to start a rad small business in Vancouver, Canada

Let’s say you want to start any small business – like making dog Christmas sweaters made out of organic cotton, kale and love. You are excited. Your middle-aged dog Andy and your neighbour Sue with the blonde, curly hair thinks it’s going to be a hit. But you don’t know where to start. Well my friends, here is a little handy dandy small business guide that will get you on…  Read more

How Federal Small Business Tax Changes Affect Canadian Business Owners

A lot of things have changed lately. The weather was awesome – now it’s rainy. Dogs and kids were running free – now they are in patterned raincoats. And the federal government had so-called loopholes for small biz owners. Now the rules may be changing. What are the proposed tax changes? Tax changes are being put in place for small businesses that are incorporated. In July, Finance Minister Bill Morneau announced…  Read more

9 Surprising Stats about Why Small Businesses Are a Big Deal in British Columbia

9 Surprising Stats about Why Small Businesses Are a Big Deal in British Columbia Take a stroll through Vancouver’s eclectic Gastown on a weekday and you’’ll see a number of fresh faced entrepreneurs meeting for coffee. Gastown – which is Vancouver’s latest hub for tech accelerators and start-ups is a bustling example of British Columbia’s biggest business – small business. So why are small businesses such a big deal in…  Read more

How BC’s new government will affect your small business

How BC’s New Government Will Affect your Small Business Summer is here. You’ve bought a new glow-in-the-dark BBQ. Your fluffy dog has been shaved. And the NDP and Green party have formed a minority government. If you are wondering how the new BC government will affect your small business, we’ve got the answers for you here…. Check out these 2017 BC Government changes that will affect your small business: 1.…  Read more

3 Ways To Be Authentic Like Oprah In Your Business

3 Ways To Be Authentic Like Oprah In Your Business Did you know we all have inbuilt BS detectors? We have mirror neurons in our brains that make us mimic other peoples’ body language. So if they don’t believe what they are saying – neither will you. For example – think of a time where you truly believed what a person was saying. It’s very likely the person’s words matched…  Read more

This one exercise will improve your emotional intelligence AND your bottom line…

This One Exercise will Improve your Emotional Intelligence AND your Bottom Line… Surprisingly, studies show that the biggest factor that influences a company’s bottom-line is the leader’s emotional intelligence (EI). This is their level of self-awareness, empathy and rapport with others. This makes sense. A leader’s mood, psychopathic or motivational, can sweep through an office like wildfire affecting productivity and turnover. For instance, according to HBR’s 10 Must Reads On…  Read more

What Jay Z Can Teach You About Succeeding in Business

What Jay Z Can Teach You About Succeeding in Business “You could be playing outside with your friends, having fun – then next thing you know men with uzis would be in the playground, and we had to run back inside.” This was a typical day for Jay Z in his youth growing up in one of the toughest project houses in New York. The entrepreneur, rapper and founder of…  Read more

Small Business Accounting Intentions to Help You Make Money in 2017

Small Business Accounting Intentions to Help You Make Money in 2017 You’ve made it through the hype of Christmas and the getting-back-into-work-mode of January. Now it’s go time. You want to accomplish suave goals and make this a 2017 full of grace and success. If you are looking for some motivation to make 2017 one of your most successful years yet, check out these intentions: 1. Focus On Quality over…  Read more

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