Everything to do with your shak.
I can’t help but think about how nice it must be to look out that window every morning. Tough work! Giada’s an incredible cook, and a very lucky one! Can you believe I have a friend who watches her show daily, and has never noticed the background! Sometimes I find it hard to focus on the show! Great “work at home” environment!
It’s a new year, and if you are like most people, you thinking of how to improve your budget for 2010. For someone with a home business, budgeting is especially important. This is because you may not have a steady income each month. Some months you may make more than other months. As a result, budgeting becomes especially important. Here is a simple process that can help you budget for the new year:
1. Look at your total earnings for last year. Divide that by 12 to get a monthly average.
2. Look at your total expenses for last year. Divide that by 12 to get a feel for your monthly obligations.
3. Create a monthly budget based on your income and expenses.
4. On months when you actually make more than your average income, put the money in a high yield savings accounts.
5. On months when you fall short of the average income, you can use what you have saved up to make up the difference.
This process is easily done when you have personal finance software, or bookkeeping software. You can create a report that breaks it all down for you, including allowing you to see categories (entertainment, eating out, etc.) where you can cut back if necessary. If you don’t have personal finance software, you should consider getting some in order to more easily track your cash flow.
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=ccca1f68-3f7e-4ee0-b007-511e552e1d92)
I loved this great E*Trade commercial featuring the baby reminding his buddy that the lottery doesn’t constitute a solid retirement plan.
Happy Friday!
One of your work from home New Year’s resolutions might be to reduce your freelancing workload, or to find more time for other pursuits. This is important, since you don’t want to be stressed too much about what is happening in your home business, and have it encroach too much on the rest of your life. However, it is important to carefully consider your options before adjusting your freelancing workload. Here are some things to consider as you work on changing things up with your home business:
* Cost efficiency of clients. Consider renegotiating your fee with clients you have had for a long time, giving them a chance to pay what you are worth. Some clients, though, may not be cost efficient at all, and it is time to let them go.
* Stress level associated with clients. Sometimes your relationship with a client is more of a factor. If you don’t like the work, or if the client stresses you out, or you find the work difficult to deal with, it can be a good idea to cut ties with that client, and keep a less stressful client, even if s/he is less cost efficient.
* What you can handle. Consider your quality of life. If you can afford to cut back in order to spend more time with your family, or do something for yourself, it might be a good idea to do so.
For courtesy’s sake, though, it is a good idea to let your clients know at least two weeks in advance, so that they have time to make other arrangements.
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=dce2ab5c-eaa9-4e79-bbfe-64d85fb86cf7)
In this classic Homestar Runner video, Strong Bad explains the different types of people that frequent garage sales. Enjoy!
Happy Friday!
Many people like to do their own taxes, rather than pay someone else to do them. While I understand this mindset, I am glad the I use a tax preparer for my pass through home business LLC and for my personal tax return. For years I did my own taxes, even when I filed as a sole proprietor. However, when I switched my organization to the LLC, added some investments and began itemizing, I decided that perhaps things were getting a bit too complex. I am perfectly capable of taking care of it myself, but it is so time consuming.
I have to read instructions, make sure I have the right forms, and keep up with all of the ins and outs of new tax laws, credits and deductions. Sure, I could buy some software to figure my state and federal taxes, and do it for my business as well, but by the time I paid for the proper edition, it would only be a little less expensive than using my tax preparer. On top of which, we go back to the time thing. With the tax preparer, I bring my (well organized throughout the year) stuff in, talk to him for about half an hour, and then leave for an hour and a half, running errands and being generally useful, while he prepares everything and gets it all ready for e-file.
Even with software, I’d be sitting there for a couple hours in front of the computer. And when I add in what my time is worth, it tips the scales in favor of the tax preparer. It’s more convenient, I have more time, and it’s worth the cost.
What about you? Do you use a tax preparer?
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=563722b5-acfa-472f-8be8-89bc1264a0a7)
As the new year approaches, many of us think about what we would like to accomplish in 2010. I’ve got my own personal and financial resolutions, as well as a couple for my home business. I thought about what I’d like to accomplish, and asked myself a few questions. And, really, I came up with a rather short list of home business New Year’s resolutions:
* Cut ties with clients that demand more and pay less.
* Focus on developing a more targeted plan with social media.
* Begin deciding which clients to cut as my husband finishes his Ph.D. and looks for a job.
I am really fairly satisfied with my home business overall, and quite happy with the way things have been going. I am fortunate in my connections, and my hard work laying a foundation over the years has paid off. Now it’s about refining my focus to a point where I might have time to write my own book or develop my personal blog. Those goals are another year or three in the future, but what I do now will eventually get me there.
Do you have New Year’s resolutions for your home business?
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=542e4866-7dc1-4e2b-a0a1-6a1b406b9cc8)
Everyone sets goals this time of year. And that includes home business owners. We are all interested in setting goals to provide some sort of guidance in the coming year. And it is also a good time to reflect on how things went this year. As you look toward 2010, it is a good idea to stop a minute and consider this past year. Freelance Folder offers five questions you should ask yourself before you start setting your home business goals for next year:
1. Are you doing what you want to be doing?
2. Which projects did you most struggle with? Why?
3. Did you lose customers? Why?
4. Did you gain customers? Why?
5. Are you comfortable with your typical workload?
When I began asking myself these questions, it really opened my eyes to how things have been going and what I might want to accomplish for next year. As a result, I’ve been holding off on my home business goals for 2010. But I think I’m about ready to make them.
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=0e1f252c-a1a0-4f7a-a4a5-a2fe9aafa2d0)
It’s time to start working out your home business tax deduction options, and one of those is a portion of your mortgage payments. When you have a home office, you can deduct a portion of your mortgage payment.
Here’s how you do it:
1. Check to see how many square feet your home has.
2. Figure out how many square feet your home office has. If you have a whole room for your home office, then use that. If your home office is only a 5 foot x 4 foot area, figure that up.
3. Divide the square feet of your home office by the total square feet of your home.
4. Multiply that number by your mortgage payment.
This will give you an idea of how much you can take as a tax deduction for your home office. Here is an example:
1. My home is 1750 square feet.
2. My home office takes up 6 feet by 4 feet in one room of my home, or 24 square feet.
3. 24/1750 = .014
4. .014 x $1,350 (my mortgage payment) = $18.90
That’s really not much. But if I had a whole room dedicated to my home office, I’d be looking at pretty close to $80, which might be enough to push me down a little bit. And some people believe that every little bit matters.
And, of course, you can also take the percentage of your utility bills. For instance, if I paid $1,200 a year in utilities, I can take another deduction of $16.80 (.014 x 1,200), for that portion of my utilities. This also works if you are renting.
But you have to use the home office space strictly for your home business. This is why I don’t get to count the entire room; I use part of the room for storage. However, you should speak with a tax professional before doing anything, just to make sure that everything is as it should be.
![Reblog this post [with Zemanta]](http://img.zemanta.com/reblog_e.png?x-id=deb60a51-7e4e-4b8d-9bc7-e15b0b1bfead)
