Business startup, taxes, and technology

5 Tips for Backing Up Your QuickBooks Data

admin — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 12:51:50 +0000

Guest Post by Shannon Tucker My phone rings, and I’m talking with a QuickBooks user about their catastrophe: QuickBooks won’t open – it gets fatal errors – and the auditors are coming in two days. Me: “How is your backup situation?” Customer: “Not so good. I thought someone else was taking care of that, but it turns out [...]

The Truth About Making Money On-line

Sheryl — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 13:17:11 +0000

Learn the truth about making money on-line. I’ll be leading a free workshop in Indianapolis where I’ll answer your questions about starting an on-line business. Details are here. Please share this information with others who might be interested. Thanks. Social Bookmarking

Home Energy Tax Credits (IRS video w/subtitles, ASL)

Sheryl — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 13:03:20 +0000

Social Bookmarking

When is That Meal Tax Deductible?

Sheryl — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 22:55:12 +0000

There’s a lot of confusion among taxpayers about what meal and entertainment expenses they can legitimately deduct as business expenses on their tax returns. Professional tax preparers aren’t in complete agreement on the subject either. Not too surprising, considering the length and complexity of the Internal Revenue Code. As I said in an earlier article, in [...]

Where to Report Your Business Tax Deductions

Sheryl — Mon, 22 Feb 2010 20:36:39 +0000

The answer to the question “Where do I report my business tax deductions?” depends on three factors: The legal structure of your business The tax form(s) you file The type of expense you’re reporting Since most small business are either unincorporated sole proprietorships or single member LLCs, I’ll answer the question for those entities. For both of these [...]

You Don’t Have to be the World’s Greatest Salesperson

Sheryl — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 18:13:13 +0000

Especially if you think that selling means convincing someone to buy something they don’t really need or want. Think about your own experiences of being “sold” to and how that felt. If you’re like most people, you want to buy things, but you absolutely hate being sold to. So why would you want to [...]

Is It Deductible ?

Sheryl — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 18:37:27 +0000

What business expenses can I deduct on my tax return? Where do I take the deduction for…(fill in the blank)? What records do I need to prove the deduction? Those are the most popular questions I get from small business owners this time of year. Starting today and continuing through the end of this year’s filing season, I’ll be [...]

What’s Your Most Urgent Question About Business Taxes?

Sheryl — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 17:55:53 +0000

What questions do you have about your business taxes? I’d like to do a series of articles this month and next to help small business owners like you to better understand their business taxes. Rather than write only about what I think is important, I’d like to hear what’s on your mind. Leave a comment [...]

You Don’t Have to be an Einstein

Sheryl — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 15:34:55 +0000

You don’t have to think like Einstein, belong to Phi Beta Kappa, or even have a high school diploma to start a successful on-line business. It’s OK if you do, but credentials aren’t the most important thing you need. You don’t even have to be especially creative. What do you need to get started working [...]

Crash Course in Taxes for Schedule C Businesses: Car Expenses

Sheryl — Tue, 02 Feb 2010 07:06:48 +0000

If you don’t feel like wading through zillions of pages of IRS material in hopes of discovering information that will help you understand how to deduct your car expenses, you’re in luck. Here’s a special report that spells out the basic definitions, methods of calculation, restrictions, reporting, and record keeping requirements. It’s for business owners who operate [...]