If you’re a small business owner in Calgary, chances are you’re a happy person right now, according to a survey of small businesses in Canada.

The TD Small Business Happiness Index analyzed the happiness levels of small business owners’ in 12 North American cities, including seven in Canada. Calgary ended up coming out on top, with 62% saying they would describe themselves as very happy, while 89% said they are happier running their small business rather than working for someone else.

On the index, Calgary registered an overall happiness level of 30%. On the bottom was Kelowna, which had a 21% happiness rating. Saskatoon and Vancouver ranked just ahead of the B.C. city, with both registering a 23% in the happiness index.

But Alec Morley, senior vice president of small business banking with TD Canada Trust, said that overall, small businesses in every Canadian city were relatively happy.

“Despite the recent economic downturn and the ongoing challenges of managing and growing a business, the personal satisfaction small business owners report illustrates one of the key advantages of owning your own company,” he said in a release.

Read more: http://www.windsorstar.com/business/Calgary+home+happiest+small+business+owners/3323938/story.html#ixzz0uzn1MWn2

Have you heard of GoForth Institute? They just may be one of Canada’s best kept secrets when it comes to Canadian Small Business Education and Training.

Leslie Roberts, President and Founder was recently a guest on Ulistic’s Orange Files Small Business Podcast.  During this 30 minute show, Leslie shared the importance of planning and education and how it relates to a successful small business.  GoForth’s offering are available to entrepreneurs from all across Canada and right here in the heart of the Calgary small business training community.

Tune into Leslie and Stuart Crawford’s discussion on small business education.

Is your small business looking a great partner to help you with your small business training in Calgary?

GoForth Institute is the organization to help you with all of your small business training.  Not only are they focused on helping your business learn about the ins and outs of small business, they are also a group of small business entrepreneurs themselves and understand what is importance to every Canadian Small Business.

Check out this Calgary Small Business training and mentoring firm today to take your Calgary small business to the next level.

FedEx Express Canada is offering a unique opportunity for small business owners and entrepreneurs to gain insights from one of Canada’s leading business authorities.  Ian Portsmouth, editor of PROFIT Magazine, will be hosting a series of chat forums on the FedEx Express Canada Small Business page on Facebook providing guests the chance to ask specific questions about their business endeavours.

WHERE: http://www.facebook.com/pages/FedEx-Small-Business-Centre/230309383377

WHEN:

January 18th – 22nd

How do Canada’s small-business owners plan to proceed this year, given the enduring effects of the recession and the still-shaky economy? Where are the bright spots? What are their fears? What risks are they willing to take?

February 1st – 5th

Finding Good People. Finding and retaining employees remains the biggest long-term challenge for Canadian small businesses. How are bosses attracting good people? How are they eliminating weak performers? Are they taking advantage of high unemployment to boost their ranks?

February 15th – 19th

The Leader of the Future. What skills and aptitudes do business owners need to be successful? Are these traits different in kind or degree from the traits of successful leaders a generation ago? Are good business owners born or bred?

HOW TO PARTICIPATE: Simply become a “fan” of the page to gain access to post your question on the page.  Ian Portsmouth will be checking the page throughout the week the topic is live to provide answers.

BikeBike Inc. will be Calgary’s premiere everyday cycling specialists. We will feature bicycles, services, and products that are specific to everyday cycling – car-free living, bike commuting, pathway exploring, running errands, and general city cycling. We hope to inspire our customers to make cycling an important part of their daily life by providing products and services that make everyday cycling not just possible, but totally enjoyable – all year long.

Our mission is to spread our passion for bicycles as fun and responsible transportation and to lead everyday cycling forward in a positive and professional manner.

Climate change, rising energy prices, a growing eco-consciousness, and childhood obesity are just a few factors that are helping push bicycle use back into the mainstream and we at BikeBike feel that the time has come to remind people that bicycles can be used for more than just recreation – bikes are truly vehicles that can change our world for the better.

For more information, please visit www.bikebike.ca
Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/pages/Calgary-AB/Bikebike-Bike-Shop-Calgary/164831463348
Twitter – http://twitter.com/BikeBikeYYC
Blog – http://bikebikecalgary.blogspot.com/

About BikeBike
BikeBike was created by Sean Carter with the goal of providing Calgarians a bicycle shop that is welcoming to new cyclists, families, and eco-conscious individuals. We carry classic Dutch and European bicycles, Canadian designed bikes from Brodie, cargo-carrying bikes, family cycling options including kids’ bikes and trailers, and a full selection of products, repair services, and learn-to-wrench clinics.

What: January “Beat the Winter Blues” Entrepreneur Drink Up Festival
When: January 11, 2010 5:00 PM
Cost: Free
Register: Calgary Entrepreneur Meetup Business to Business Networking – Click Here

Where:
Tipperary’s Irish Pub
2002 16th Ave. N.W.
Calgary, AB T2M 0M1
403 289 5566

Struck in the Winter Blues? Come out to the next Calgary Entrepreneur “Beat the Winter Blues” Drink Up Festival. OK just a smart name for another Entrepreneur Social Event and a great opportunity to meet other business owners, small business professionals and aspiring business leaders in a social atmosphere.

In December over 50 entrepreneurs came out and met others. They all shared experiences in business, they all took the first critical step to success in today’s high paced often stressful business environment. This is the perfect opportunity to let your hair down.

Join Calgary Entrepreneurs for a “free” networking event at Tipperary’s pub at 2002 16th Ave NW on January 11th from 5 to 7:30 PM. Tipperary’s offers happy hour pricing including $3.50 and $3.75 beers plus wing specials and from what I hear, an awesome steak sandwich. This is the perfect time to network, come on out and join us.

This is a must for all – you need to bring cards and strike up great conversations with people you may not know. Remember, we offer a comfortable networking environment.

We will be in Smirnoff room, come to the top of the stairs and go straight. We are on the west side of the main bar.

Stuart Crawford
Bulletproof InfoTech

Learn more here:
http://www.meetup.com/calgaryentrepreneurs/calendar/12088646/

Are you still hungry for a wonderful business to business networking opportunity?  Just want to let your hair down without the pressures of giving out leads?  Want to meet like-minded business people?

Calgary Entrepreneurs is the place for you!

Calgary Entrepreneurs will be hosting a special networking event on Monday, May 4th at 5 PM.  The Cinco de Mayo networking celebration will be held at Julio Barrio’s Restaurant on the top level.  Julio Barrio’s is located on the corner of Memorial Drive and 10th Street NW, just a you come across the Louise Bridge from downtown.

The cost to attend is just $20.00.

Bring lots of business cards and prepare to meet many great new entrepreneurs in Calgary.

Register to attend Calgary Entrepeneurs, Networking In Calgary, Cinco de Mayo celebration

Media Coverage on Calgary Entrepreneurs

eKzact Solutions TV spotlighted Calgary Entrepreneurs alongside The Calgary Chamber of Commerce 7:15 Club as a free or nearly free networking organization.  Thanks to David West for highlighting our club.  Having great members brings satisfaction and a great experience to all.

A recent survey of business owners throughout Alberta lists computer viruses, system downtime and the loss or theft of data in the top ten concerns about their business that keep them up at night.

Businesses in Red Deer and Calgary must have reliable computer systems support from a business partner who does more than simply fix computers. Small Business owners are desperately in need of a Trusted Business Advisor who sits down and provides easy to understand IT advice. A Trusted Advisor who can offer strategies and direction on how Information Technology can have a positive impact on their productivity and bottom line.

Join Bulletproof InfoTech as we share our K.I.S.S Guide to selecting a computer support company with the Red Deer Chamber of Commerce on May 14 and the Calgary Chamber of Commerce on May 27.

Bulletproof InfoTech focuses on helping small businesses in Alberta navigate the confusing world of technology. Working alongside your business and becoming a part of your team. Bulletproof is a Microsoft Partner and Small Business Specialist and works with numerous business in Red Deer, Calgary and throughout Alberta. If you have ongoing issues with your computer network, need to understand the world of social networking or you need simply and effective advice, Bulletproof can assist you with all your technology needs.

All in attendance will receive Bulletproof’s free book, A KISS Guide to Selecting an IT Provider. Available today from their website at http://www.bulletproofIT.ca

How is your telephone system working for you?

Small Business all across Calgary are feeling the pinch of the most recent economic downturn.  With that in mind, business still needs to occur, deals are still happening and communication must occur.  Microsoft has a great telephone solution to meet the needs of small business in Calgary.

Have you heard of Microsoft Response Point?

This new, innovative, robust, scalable and designed for small business is making a huge splash in Calgary.  Many businesses throughout the Stampede City are investing in Microsoft Response Point as their main telelphone system.  Designed with small business needs in mind, Response Point can scale to 50 employees with ease.

What can Response Point do for your business?

Microsoft® Response PointTM is advanced phone system software designed especially for small businesses that have 1 to 50 employees. The user-friendly management center empowers an average computer user to set up a phone or make system changes in minutes. The unique voice-enabled user interface instantly connects employees and customers with the people or information they need. With the entire system in one affordable package and support for both traditional phone service and VoIP, Response Point phone systems are easy to manage, easy to use, and a great choice for any small business.

Small businesses are frustrated with the complexities around add, moves and changes associated with their telephone systems.  Response Point’s simple to administer setup and maintenance allows for adds, moves and changes to basically disappear.  Pick up your phone and move it wherever on your network.  Through its easy to manage web interface the complexities around your telephone systems are removed.

When your business partners with a support firm who has expertise with Response Point, now all your challenges are gone.  Leverage the expertise from Response Point professionals who can help you with managing your telephone systems.

Experience the Magic Response Point touch!

With the magic blue button found on all Response Point systems, those annoying code commands and keystrokes are removed.  Response Point’s easy to use, voice controlled interface allows you to simply speak to your telephone for all commands.  Make calls, transfer calls, access voice mail, retreive calls by simply speaking to your telephone.  How easy can that be?

Voice Mails now are Email

Are you tired of calling into your voice mail while on the road?  How easy would it be to have all your messages emailed to your Microsoft Outlook, Blackberry or any email service.  Now, with Microsoft Response Point this can happen.  Easily have your voice mail sent to your email or mobile telephone and access them from anywhere.  Forward messages onto a colleague, save them in a central location or reply back.  With Response Point – once again the complexities with your telephone system are removed.

Where to turn

Interested in seeing a demo of how Response Point can benefit your business, contact Bulletproof InfoTech in Calgary at 403.206.2233 or email info@bulletproofIT.ca to arrange a demo today.  This is something you need to see and experience.  Then you will be surprise how cost effective Microsoft Response Point is for your business and the benefits you get.

Join us on March 2nd from 5 to whenever for the next monthly Calgary Entrepreneurs Wings and Beverages evening at Donegal’s Irish Pub at the corner of 37th Street and 17th Ave SW.

Link up with other business owners in Calgary, network with others that are working with some of the exact some clients that you are looking at linking up with and meet business leaders from within Calgary.

Last month’s wing night was packed solid with people networking.

Don’t miss this opportunity to get out and meet people in a cost efficient manner.  This event is free to attend, you are responsible for your own beer and wings though.  Wings are only 9 cents.

See you on Monday night, you can register for the Calgary Entrepreneur Beverages and Wings Networking event here.

Canada AM reported this morning that largest increase in the Canadian jobless rate was reported.  My question is that where are these coming from? I am sure a number of them are coming from many of the industries that are being hit hard by this economic downturn like the automobile, airplane manufacturing, energy sector and others.

My question to entrepreneurs in Calgary is what are you doing to recession proof your business?

The silver lining in this dark cloud is that many new opportunities are presenting themselves like they always do in a market like this.  Sure we can argue that this is the worst market in several years or maybe since the great depression, however if this is the worst recession in a while then there is huge opportunities out there.

This is where Calgary Entrepreneurs comes in to play.  Join us at anyone of networking events and see what others are up around Calgary.  Lead by Stuart Crawford of Bulletproof InfoTech and David West of eKzact Solutions, Stuart and Dave are here to help your business.  Stuart’s focus is on saving small business money with them having the right IT solutions and Dave will help you take your business to market with effective web strategies.

Join us at any of our events.  Click here to join for free.