How to boost Small Business Saturday with 9 strategies

Success follows intentional effort. Be intentional in your community. So, yes, yes to this: "...to really harness the power of Small Business Saturday, it’s important to implement a plan, engage with resources, and learn from the successes of other communities. Drawing from successful initiatives across Main Street America's network of communities, here are 9 strategies that community leaders can implement to maximize Small Business Saturday's impact in their communities..." #mainstreets #smallbusiness

Your business shouldn’t achieve your lifestyle. It should enable it. Want to spend more time with your kids? Don’t buy a daycare or a private school to spend time with them at recess. Buy something that runs without you, so you can actually be with them. Want to lead others? Maybe don’t buy a business with 50 employees. Instead, buy time and use it to lead in your community, not just your company. The most successful entrepreneurs I know aren’t buying or starting “fun” businesses. They’re owners of good businesses - ones that solve real problems and make real money...which then funds the time and cost to have fun outside of "work." Don't buy a business to have fun. Buy a business to fund fun :)

Everyone’s chasing flexibility right now. The dream of running a business from a laptop on the beach or from wherever life takes you. And truthfully, there are franchise models that make that possible. But here’s what many don’t realize: the ability to work from anywhere usually comes after you’ve built the foundation. Your first year in business is about structure, systems, and local connections, not isolation. The strongest owners start by planting roots, building a team, and earning trust in their community before they step back. Once your business is running smoothly, then you can take it anytime and anywhere. So before you focus on where you’ll work from, start thinking about how you’ll build something that can eventually run without YOU. That’s real freedom, not just a change in scenery. 🌍

A business is like a child. I recently heard this comparison and, at first, I brushed it off. But the more I thought about it, the more it resonated. Starting a business is like raising a child — it needs constant care and attention. You wouldn’t take a break from parenting for a week to “focus on something else,” and the same goes for building a business. Early on, every small step matters. Think about it: With a child, people ask “Are they crawling yet? Walking? Saying their first words?” Each milestone is a huge deal. It’s the same in business: “Do you have your first client?” “Did you make your first sale?” These are the moments that build the foundation. But often, people skip past these wins and ask: “Is it profitable yet?” “How much are you making?” They miss the fact that profitability doesn’t happen without the early care, the long nights, and the constant showing up. Celebrate the small wins. That’s where real growth begins.

𝘞𝘩𝘺 “𝘛𝘰𝘰 𝘚𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘭” 𝘉𝘶𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘖𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘯 𝘖𝘶𝘵𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘉𝘪𝘨 𝘎𝘶𝘺𝘴 My team has worked with businesses that spend six figures on ads… and others that spend six hours a week improving their content. Guess which ones see steadier growth? It’s rarely the ones shouting the loudest. It’s the ones showing up consistently... speaking with clarity, empathy, and trust. Visibility isn’t about budget. It’s about belief. When a small business tells its story with heart, it becomes magnetic... and people 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 the difference between a brand chasing clicks and one genuinely serving its community. I’ve watched local entrepreneurs outrank corporations simply because they understood one thing:  𝘁𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝗻’𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁... 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗯𝘂𝗶𝗹𝘁. Have you ever chosen a smaller business simply because you trusted them more?

Small Business Week is October 19 – October 25! 📊   This week, we’re chatting with Downtown Paris BIA businesses about their journey as small business owners and their advice for aspiring entrepreneurs.   ❓️ Did you know? 98% of businesses in Canada have fewer than 100 employees, and 6 out of 10 Canadians working in the private sector are employed by a small or medium-sized business (SME).   Let’s take this week to recognize and celebrate the incredible small businesses that make our communities thrive!   To view the Downtown Paris business directory, visit brant.ca/DowntownDig

He stopped networking — and his business grew faster. It sounds counterintuitive, right? Like telling a farmer to stop planting seeds. But for Sarah, it was the only way. She’d spent years at the endless conferences, the awkward small talk, the business card swaps. All the “networking” left her drained. It was exhausting. Doubt crept in. Was she even cut out for this? Maybe entrepreneurship wasn’t for her. Then, a quiet voice inside her said: *Focus on the work, not the noise.* She started saying no. No to the events, the meetings, the pitches. Instead, she dove deep into her craft. She obsessed over her product. She found her *tribe* online. Slowly, something shifted. Her business, which had been stagnant, began to breathe. The quality of her work improved because she had the space to focus. Her online community became a source of invaluable support and real connections. She built relationships with people who *believed* in her. Not the ones who just wanted something from her. Today, her company is thriving. All because she stopped chasing the “right” people and started building the *right* business. Consistency beats talent when talent gets comfortable. What would you have done in their place?

Building a business can be lonely. It's overthinking decisions, staying up late, wondering if you’re doing it right and pretending you’re fine when you’re not. That’s why communities like For the Founders matter. Because entrepreneurship isn’t just about resilience, it’s about connection. You don’t have to earn your seat before you belong. You belong now. 🎧 This week on Proof of Life I sat down with Samantha Hamlin, founder of For the Founders. We're talking about how to build a community, take the cringe out of networking, and grow your business through human connection. 👉 Link in the comments.

If your business falls apart when you take a day off, you don’t run a business — you run a dependency. A lot of entrepreneurs confuse hustle with ownership. But here’s the difference: A business that relies on you for every email, decision, approval, update, and follow-up isn’t a business. It’s a self-built trap with a logo. Working nonstop isn’t a flex when: ➡️ clients wait on you for everything ➡️ you can’t go offline without panicking ➡️ growth stalls the minute your energy dips ➡️ your calendar looks like a cry for help Delegation isn’t about getting help — it’s about building something that can grow without you holding every piece together. If you’re exhausted, it’s not because you’re “crushing it.” It’s because you’re functioning as the entire infrastructure. The founders who scale don’t work harder. They step out of the middle. If you disappeared for 48 hours, would your business run — or stop moving? If that question stings, it’s probably time to fix it.

Some of the smartest businesses don’t solve problems. They create ones you didn’t know you had, then offer the fix. You didn’t need a perfectly organized drawer… until you saw one. You didn’t care about clean ingredients… until someone showed you what wasn’t clean. This isn’t trickery. It’s vision. The best strategy? Don’t just meet demand. Shape it. Show people a better way, then hand them the first step to get there. #business #entrepreneuership #smartbusinesses