Extension series turns focus to entrepreneurs

University of Nevada, Reno Extension continues its online town hall and webinar series this week by exploring entrepreneurship changes amid COVID-19 and the new normal, with perspectives from the two special guest authors and other business experts.

The webinar Friday is aimed at getting small business owners to take a step back and look at the bigger picture of how they are running and leading their business enterprises, and how they can build resiliency during this time.

Both the town hall and the webinar are free, and there will be English-language and Spanish-language sessions. The events are part of a series of town halls and webinars for small businesses, “Coping With COVID-19,” being offered each week.

The town hall, “How Entrepreneurship Changes: Defining New Normals” is 9 a.m. Wednesday, Sept. 16 for English speakers and at 2 p.m. for Spanish speakers. Panelists include Bobby Kountz, author of “The Someday Solution: How to Go From Unsure to Unstoppable One Day at a Time” (9 a.m. session); Small Business Administration Deputy District Director Saul Ramos (9 a.m.) and outreach/marketing specialist Alfredo Cedeno (2 p.m.); and Extension business development instructors Reyna Mendez and Juan Salas and research associate Mike Bindrup.

The webinar, “Entrepreneurship: Building Resiliency” is 9 a.m. Friday, Sept. 18 for English speakers and at 11:30 a.m. for Spanish speakers. Salas, Bindrup and the authors will discuss the entrepreneur’s affirmation and revaluation, defining entrepreneurial resilience, common experiences of successful businesses and leading and assuming needed roles.

“This week, we are encouraging business owners to take a look at their business from the 30,000-foot view,” said Buddy Borden, economic development specialist with Extension’s Business Development Program. “With changes in what it means to be an entrepreneur post-COVID-19, business owners need to reevaluate their entrepreneurial mindset. This includes things like identifying and implementing business practices common among other successful businesses and stepping up and into the role of a real leader to build business resiliency.”

To register for the 9 a.m. Sept. 16 English-language town hall, go to https://bit.ly/35IzsN4

For the 2 p.m. Spanish-language town hall, go to https://bit.ly/3c5z2ld

For the 9 a.m. Sept. 18 English-language webinar, go to https://bit.ly/3bXRtIx

For the 11:30 a.m. Sept. 18 Spanish-language webinar, go to https://bit.ly/2ZTUt43

For more information, go to the Extension Business Development Program website at extension.unr.edu/busdev. There are also other resources at the website to assist businesses during the COVID-19 crisis. For more information, email Borden at bordenb@unr.edu