If you believe that only senior executives need to think strategically, think again.
No matter what level you’re at, strategic thinking is a critical skill — one that can always be improved.

As we enter 2017, there are a number of issues that owners of UAE businesses of all sizes and across all sectors will face. In this article, I will highlight the areas we, as a business ourselves, feel will be hot topic items in 2017, and the biggest issues our existing clients have been engaging us about when preparing financial forecasts for the new fiscal year.

It is very important for foreign investors to understand the role and functions of local sponsors
One of the challenges to start and operate a business in the United Arab Emirates ‘mainland’ is the element of the local sponsor owning 51 per cent of the business.

Acquiring a free zone licence can be that first step to being a successful entrepreneur. Just heed these dos and don’ts

Practicing mindfulness is as much physical as it is mental. Paying attention to your body can help you stay calm in stressful moments. This is called anchoring — noticing your physical experience rather than avoiding it.

All businesses need exposure, but even more than that, you need paying customers and you need the cost to acquire a customer to be less than the life-time value of that customer, so you can profitably scale your business.
The fastest way to get exposure is advertising, but it can be expensive and needs a lot of monitoring. That is why you will find these unusual ways of getting exposure for your business to be useful.

Bootstrapping is a perfectly viable option, unless you’re launching a business that needs staff, equipment or contractors, in which case you need money.

As an entrepreneur, you have a lot on your plate. Staying focused can be tough with a constant stream of employees, clients, emails, and phone calls demanding your attention. Amid the noise, understanding your brain’s limitations and working around them can improve your focus and increase your productivity.

I recently interviewed over 200 ultra-productive people including seven billionaires, 13 Olympians, 20 straight-A students and over 200 successful entrepreneurs. I asked a simple, open-ended question, “What is your number one secret to productivity?” After analyzing all of their responses, I coded their answers into 15 unique ideas.

As organizations demand more and more from their people, time-pressed employees have to scramble to keep up. You may not be able to make the day any longer, but you can replenish your energy. Use these 4 simple ways to help you work smarter and prevent burnout: