Q: Before you begin hiring, make sure you have taken the necessary steps to be able to collect federal and state wage taxes, provide employee eligibility verification, and obtain worker's compensation insurance, among others.  One of your central obligations to ensure that employees are eligible to work in the United States. To do this, you must complete "Form I-9" within three days of hiring a new employee. Completing this form will require you to submit documents to verify your employees citizenship and confirm their eligibility to work in the United States. The form can be downloaded on the U.S. Immigration and Customs website. Note that you do not need to submit this form with the Federal Government, but you do need to keep it on file for three years after the date of hire or one year after the date of termination, whichever is later. Make sure to register for Workers Compensation Insurance with your state's Workers Compensation Insurance Program. When hiring an employee, they must provide you with a signed Form-W4 before they begin employment, which you must send to the IRS. This allows you to withhold federal income tax. Further information regarding hiring and employer responsibility are available on the SBA website (https://www.sba.gov/category/navigation-structure/starting-managing-business/starting-business/establishing-business/hiring). The first impression is critical for a new small business, and unless you’ll be doing all the work yourself, that impression will be made at least in part by the people you hire.  Ideally you can find someone who is familiar with the business — someone who has twirled dough if you’re opening a pizza shop, for instance — but even more important is finding a person who is willing and eager to learn.  You need employees who want to learn to do things (and represent your business) your way. You do have to be willing to let go a little, however.  This business has been your baby for a long time, but as you let it out into the world, you’ll need help taking care of it.  Look for employees who are eager to contribute ideas and adapt as the business goes through its early growing pains. Do your homework.  Look over resumes.  Call references.  Don’t just hire your nephew to make your brother happy.  (Wait until your business gets on its feet.) Key questions like "Can you provide an example of a problem that you successfully solved?" may offer insights into a potential employee's ambition, ingenuity, and work ethic..  Keep in mind that such questions are common, however, and the interviewee may have prepared stock answers already.  (An inability to answer effectively is thus a bad sign.)  In addition, try to think up a few problem-solving hypotheticals, for instance, that are specific to your small business. Whether you have a physical or virtual business site, the impression it makes on your initial customers will go a long way toward determining your chances of success.  If your business involves a storefront — a candy shop or used-book store, for instance — set up your space to represent your vision for the business.  Coordinate color patterns and décor with your logo, for example, or consider personalizing it with family photos to establish your essential connection to this business.  Consider hiring a professional interior designer and/or decorator. A web presence is becoming (if not already) essential for any new small business, so don’t take this aspect for granted.  Especially if your business has a substantial web-based component, make your site intuitive, manageable, and suited to the brand identity you want to build.  Hiring a professional web designer may be a good idea. If your budget is tight, and/or your business does not require a traditional storefront, don’t overspend on a fancy space.  A local coffee shop can make a good place to meet clients, or you can rent a space as needed for such gatherings.  Wait until your business has a solid foundation before expanding into a nicer space. There is no rule that says your first day of business has to also be your Grand Opening.  Give your business a chance to work out the kinks before announcing itself to the world.  Restaurants are probably the best-known example of businesses that often have soft openings — dry runs of dinner service with invited guests, maybe even just friends and family.  But the concept can work with just about any small business.  Send your new landscaping company’s crews out to work on your local relatives’ houses, lure your friends in with free pedicures, or convince your book club to come in and discuss their life insurance needs. Open officially for business without great fanfare, maybe for a week or two before your (well-advertised) Grand Opening.  Customers will probably just trickle in, but that will make it easier to practice getting things right before the hopeful rush of customers to come.
A: Determine employer responsibilities. Hire the right people. Prepare your site. Consider a “soft” opening.

Q: The easiest way to do this is to simply run some water into your bathtub as though you were about to take a nice relaxing soak. If your home doesn’t have a bathtub, you could also use a large bucket or a plastic or rubber storage container, so long as it’s watertight.  Whatever container you end up using should provide enough room for you to stand in with both feet comfortably. Assuming you have neither a bathtub nor another suitable type of container at your disposal, you also have the option of searching for a natural body of water to go tramping through, or wetting your shoes thoroughly with a garden hose or faucet. The exact quantity you put in will depend on the amount of water you’re working with. Aim to use about 1 tablespoon of salt for every 1⁄4 gallon (0.95 L) of water in your container. This will give you a salinity of about 3.5%, which is roughly the same as the water in the ocean.  You can pick up a bag of purified sea salt at the supermarket for just a few dollars. Incorporating salt into your soaking water will simulate the conditions of wearing your Top-Siders in and around the sea, which is perfect if you’re going for an aesthetic that’s more veteran seaman than preppy yacht club. Slip into the shoes and pull as much slack out of the laces to make sure that they’re nice and snug on your feet. The tighter you make them now, the more they’ll loosen up once you get them wet. Don’t wear socks with your boat shoes (unless you enjoy the feeling of soggy feet). Canvas and textile shoes will begin sponging up water right away. It may take a few minutes for leather, which has natural water-resistant properties, to become fully saturated. As you stand in the container, rock forward onto your toes and backwards onto your heels to stretch the material through its full range of motion. Watch your step when climbing into your soaking container. Even though boat shoes are made for wet wear, accidents happen. Step out of the container carefully, allowing the water that’s collected inside the shoes to drain out as you do. Then, pat the upper part of the shoes all over with a clean, dry towel to wick up the remaining moisture on the surface. They don’t need to be bone dry—just dab them until they stop dripping.  It’s a good idea to put down an absorbent layer, such as a bath mat or second folded towel, to avoid covering the floor with standing water. Some Sperrys (particularly textile models that have been dyed to deep shades) aren’t as color-fast as others. If possible, select a dark-colored towel that won’t show signs of staining in case of bleeding. For best results, go for a short walk or do some simple exercises to introduce more movement to the damp material. Boat shoes are designed to dry quickly, so you shouldn’t have to wait long. In no time at all, your brand-new Top-Siders will soften up and take on an organic lived-in look, like you’ve owned them for ages.  If you’ve got other things to do, or just don’t particularly feel like wearing wet shoes, leave a wooden shoe tree in your Sperrys while they air out instead.  Leather expands when it gets wet and shrinks as it dries. Together, these two reactions will result in a unique fit that feels tailor-made for your feet.
A:
Fill a spacious container with about 6 inches (15 cm) of warm water. Add some sea salt if you want to give your shoes a more weathered look. Put on your Top-Siders and lace them up tight. Stand in the water with your shoes on until they’re wet all the way through. Towel-dry your Top-Siders to remove excess water. Wear your shoes around as they air dry to let them conform to your feet.