Jason Oakley, owner of Recess and full time student at Memorial University, has been named the 2010 Student Entrepreneur Newfoundland Champion by national charitable organization, Advancing Canadian Entrepreneurship (ACE).unknown
Jason Oakley owns and operates Recess Weekly, a company that was set up to create job opportunities for post-secondary students. It consists of a free student publication, and recessweekly.com, a website that enables franchisees to publish weekly editions of Recess with an online publishing tool.
Three Things on Mr. Oakley's mind:
1. Don't hire until you've tried to do the job yourself. When running a small business, many entrepreneurs jump the gun on hiring employees. In my experience, arbitrarily hiring an employee for a job you know nothing about actually ends up creating more work for you in the end. You should always try doing the job yourself first so you understand exactly what to expected from an employee. It will make explaining, managing, and evaluating the job easier and more effective. You may even find that you don't need the extra expense at all!
2. Set specific dates when requesting anything. When you request work from anyone, it's safe to assume that they know you want it as soon as possible. Over time I've learned that it saves a lot of headache and stress by simply setting specific deadlines. If you're asking for a quote, say you need it by a specific day and time. If you're collecting payment, set a specific deadline or request a time when you can come to collect. The main goal here is to speed up the time it takes for you to get the things you need!
3. The more money you have the more you'll spend. When starting a small business, try and build with as little funding as possible. You'll find that you become much more resourceful and efficient when you are forced to make use of limited resources. Alternatively, when you have a lot of funding at your disposal you'll find that you spend a lot more on things that you don't actually need.
Special to The Globe and Mail