1. Devote 10 minutes a day to building your brand. It doesn't take much time to build up your brand's equity. Small-time investments like tweeting or writing thank you cards can go a long way. (From "How To Build Your Brand In 10 Minutes A Day," by Dorie Clark)
2. Take advantage of the year-end tax-savings scramble. Pitch your product or services to business owners who are looking to "reduce their tax liability by purchasing equipment or prepaying for services," writes expert Mike Michalowicz. (From "5 Hacks To Land New Business Before The End Of The Year," by Mike Michalowicz)
3.  Find the source of your employee's anger. More often than not, an angry employee is really a frightened employee, threatened by something happening in the office. Once you eliminate what's scaring them, the anger goes away. (From "Two-Step Solutions To Two Common Office Problems," by Jason Brick)
4. Embrace humor in your marketing. Don't take your business too seriously: Funny messaging shows your personality, and increases the likelihood that someone will relate with your company and share it with their friends. (From "4 Lessons From The Year's Best Marketing Campaign," by Rohit Bhargava)
5. Give (and get) lots of feedback from employees. This creates a loop of positivity for both employer and employee: Employees get the information they need to improve, and employers create an environment where they can learn from their staff. (From "4 Tips For Mastering Bottom Up Leadership," by Rieva Lesonsky)
6. Invest in social advertising. More businesses are looking to social media for marketing. Make sure you know which one provides the biggest bang for your buck, though. "While Facebook, Twitter and Google are natural fits for social ads with their consumer-led audience, LinkedIn has always stood apart as a professional business network," writes expert Danny Brown. (From "Battle Of The Social Networks: Which One Will Be Your Go-To Ad Partner?" by Danny Brown)
7. Mentor budding entrepreneurs. Besides the genuine desire to help others, and the value of networking, mentorship helps solidify your values as an entrepreneur, says Diego Saez-Gil, a VP at StudentUniverse. "You get to articulate your learnings, and in a way, remind yourself of the 'dos' and 'don'ts' that you would like to practice in your own business." (From "8 New Year's Resolutions You Might Want To Make," by Erica Swallow)
8. Tell your employees, "Think before you click!" Many phishing attacks—18 percent—happen at the office, thanks to employees clicking suspicious links in emails that actually lead to sites where malware can be downloaded. (From "Phishing Alert: 10 Tips To Protect Your Business From Attacks," by Robert Siciliano)
9. Choose the right fundraising option for your business. From bootstrapping to government grants, there are a number of options available for funding your business. But know the pros and cons of each option before you make a decision. (From "Startup Funding: 8 Best Ways To Raise Capital," by Raj Abhyanker)
10. Gift a bestselling small-business book (or read one for yourself). You can give the gift of confidence, creativity or influence with any one of these business-focused books that wowed us this year. (From "14 Best Small-Business Books Of 2013," by Matthew E. May)
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