In this week's newsletter:

• Department of Labor Issues Final Rule on Independent Contractors
• Small Business Tax Preparation Checklist 2024
• 5 Biggest Ways Startups Waste Money (and What to Do Instead)
• 5 Employment Law Changes Business Owners Need to Know About in 2024
• Upcoming Small Biz Education: Workplace Conflict Toolkit
• Tip of the Week: How to Have Difficult Conversations with Employees 
• Leadership Resource: Paid Social Ads Made Easy - Budget Tips & Tricks

SPECIAL ALERT:

Ice Storm Impact Information Requested

The following message is distributed on behalf of the Oregon Department of Emergency Management and the Small Business Administration. The Clatsop Small Business Development Center would like to ensure every eligible entity receives and opportunity to apply for this important funding assistance.

Business and Private Industry partners,

As our region faces the impact of ice/snowstorms, we recognize the critical need to assess the economic damage suffered by local businesses. To determine eligibility for Small Business Administration (SBA) assistance, we are requesting that all financially affected private businesses submit an initial economic damage assessment.

The SBA provides vital support to businesses affected by disasters and economic crises, offering low-interest disaster loans and other forms of assistance to help with recovery and rebuilding efforts. To determine whether our region qualifies for an SBA disaster declaration, we must gather accurate and comprehensive data regarding the economic impact on local businesses.

We ask that your business complete the Economic Injury Worksheet by February 2, 2024. On this online form, please select the business option and economic injury for reporting these critical impacts.

Please be assured that all information provided will be treated with the utmost confidentiality and will be used solely to assess the economic impact on our local business community and determine what other programs might qualify to assist with your business needs.

Your prompt cooperation in submitting this initial assessment is crucial in helping us determine the extent of the economic harm suffered by our businesses and the potential need for SBA assistance.

This is not a guarantee of loan acceptance or even an SBA declaration. This is to verify our region suffered enough economic loss to request an SBA declaration.

Thank you for your attention to this matter. Should you have any questions or require assistance with completing the assessment, please do not hesitate to contact us at oem.recovery@oem.oregon.gov.

Department of Labor Issues Final Rule on Independent Contractors

Jordan Jeter, Tonkon.com

The U.S. Department of Labor has published its final rule on how to determine whether a worker is an independent contractor or an employee under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)

Click Here to Read the Article

Small business tax preparation checklist 2024:

6 steps business owners should know

Sophie Isbell, quickbooks.intuit.com

This small business tax preparation checklist breaks down the six basics of filing small business taxes and includes a downloadable checklist to stay on top of your small business tax prep needs—including what tax forms to file and documentation to gather.

Click Here to Read the Article



5 Biggest Ways Startups Waste Money (and What to Do Instead)

Kenneth Burke, Entrepreneur.com

As a startup, your biggest resources are time and money. Here's how to avoid wasting both so you can build a better business faster.

Click Here to Read the Article



5 Employment Law Changes Business Owners Need to Know About in 2024 

Brit Morse, Inc.com

Many states enacted additional employee protections in at the start of 2024. Here's what founders and CEOs should keep top of mind.  

Click Here to Read the Article

Seaside Chamber of Commerce's Annual Awards

The Rockstars of Seaside

February 1st, 2024

View the event page here.

Cannon Beach Annual Chamber of Commerce Award Ceremony

February 22nd, 2024

View the Chamber page here.

We are proud to announce that the Clatsop SBDC and CEDR have been nominated for the Legacy Award at the Seaside Chamber of Commerce's Annual Awards, The Rockstars of Seaside. Thank you to the Seaside Chamber of Commerce for hosting this event and for the opportunity to be nominated.

The Workplace

Conflict Toolkit 

With Instructor Meredith Richardson, JD 

Coach and Facilitator for Overachievers and Superheroes 

Turning workplace conflict into collaboration. 

Create workplace collaboration and take your business to the next level with the excellent tools found in this one-day workshop. It can be exhausting being in the middle of other people’s conflict, especially without the right tool kit. They are triggered into fight, flight, freeze, or fawn, and you can be, too. You may try to problem solve only to find that’s not what they wanted. Transformative mediation uses active listening skills to deescalate conflict, reactivate the human brain, and move people from conflict to collaboration. When you empower individuals to respond, rather than react, to conflict, they solve their own conflicts, resulting in less stress at work for everyone.

Friday, February 9th, 9:00a to 4:00pm  

Clatsop Community College Lexington Campus 

Astoria, OR 

Meredith Richardson, JD, makes the impossible possible. Women worldwide come to her for individual and group coaching. Meredith also provides trainings and facilitation for businesses, such as the Tillamook Small Business Development Center. She has been published in Newsweek and featured in Authority Magazine, Thrive Global, and The Story Exchange. 

Click Here to learn more about her or join her FREE Facebook group. 

How to Have Difficult Conversations

with Employees 

Every manager knows that at some point in their position they will need to have a potentially difficult conversation with an employee. While there is no way to guarantee an outcome in these situations, there are steps every leader can take to increase the chances of making it a productive meeting. Here are five to help you get prepared. 

1. Pland Ahead: Choose a place and time that is best for both parties and give real thought to what you would like to say, what you would like the outcome to be, and how you can help get both sides to that place.  
2. Remember This is Hard for Both of You: Make the decision ahead of time to be honest, open, empathetic, and to only stick to the facts.  
3. Make It About More Than Winning: It can be very easy to get into an Us vs Them situation. Use this time as an opportunity to work collaboratively, find common ground, and create solutions together.  
4. Schedule a Follow-Up: Don’t let these conversations grow stale. Be sure to schedule a time to come back together and discuss any changes witnessed on either side, and if progress has been made towards resolving the initial issue. 
5. Continue Your Education: Taking an expert course on having difficult conversations, like The Workplace Conflict Toolkit at Clatsop Community College, is a fantastic way to ensure you are getting the most out of difficult conversations and growing in your leadership skills. Find out more in the course description above or by clicking here to visit the workshop page. 

Paid Social Ads Made Easy - Budget Tips & Tricks

Jamal Meneide

Click the video below or watch here.