KIS & Tell July 2020
As a kid, I loved the Summer. Who didn’t?
No school, sleep-overs any night of the week, days spent at the pool, popsicles galore, and trips to Virginia Beach and Kings Dominion theme park – these are glorious childhood memories.
Now, I get to make even better ones. It’s more fun to be an adult – we have the money to do whatever we want and no one to tell us it’s bedtime.
Plus, I love being an entrepreneur because we make our own rules. We can be as lively and upbeat as we want. We set the tone; we set the rhythm.
Fun hobbies, vacations, and downtime are essential. You are your company’s greatest asset, so you must take care of yourself. If you don’t nurture all sides of you, including your inner kid, you’ll burn out.
So get out there and enjoy your holiday weekend! Take the time to do something else besides work. I know you work hard. Taking time to do something else does not – repeat, DOES NOT - make you lazy. In fact, you’ll come back refreshed and accomplish more.
Fresh Content
Hot off the press & onto the blog, website, and beyond.
Attention, all PPP recipients!
Your eight-weeks to spend the funds is almost up. Now, you should be thinking about applying for forgiveness. This blog and free spreadsheet are to help you track your spending. It includes lots of details and formulas to makes sure filling out the application easier.
If you haven’t spent all of the funds yet, do not stress! Congress expanded the time you can spend the funds to 24 weeks. For those who haven’t been able to reopen fully and rehire your employees, you have more time to use the funds and meet the requirements for forgiveness. Check out the blog for some additional changes made to the program in June.
App of My Eye
I'm always on the lookout for new apps that help make running business easier! Here are the best finds over the past month.
Back when I was working in the oil industry, a coworker recommended a nifty tool for taking and editing screenshots. You can take a quick picture, crop it, add arrows and boxes, and even blur out text to your heart’s desire.
This app was so helpful that I still use it now. You’ve seen the fruit of this app, as some of the pictures in KIS & Tell are screenshots created with SnagIt.
A bonus feature I didn’t have back in my corporate days is recording! I can record my screen to give a quick demo to a client, training to my team, or review a complex question in full with my tax partner.
Recording videos is one of the fastest, most natural ways to document your processes. Give it a try. I guarantee you’ll be impressed!
Best Reads
I love to learn. Especially with business, there are always new perspectives and information we can benefit from. Here's my latest fav.
This Best Read isn’t a read per se, but you could think of it as an audio-book.
Yale’s most popular course, The Science of Well-Being, was condensed and put online for free. By well-being, the professor, Dr. Santos, means happiness. The lectures are more like a fireside chat in her living room. There is homework – but it’s as easy as ones you got in third grade.
Dr. Santos covers what people predict will make them happy, and the research that proves the predictions wrong. She coined this as “miswanting” and “annoying features of the mind.”
In week five, you’ll find the real gems. We learn what research shows to improve well-being, including time affluence, socialization, and sleep.
If you’ve been following me here for a while, you know I highlight mindfulness all the time. It’s incredibly important to me, and I’ve built it into my everyday routine. What I love about this course is it does go into the science of why mindfulness works. Many ancient cultures knew this, and only now are we able to explain why it works with data.
Practicing Simplicity
Practical tips to simplify your business.
Practice: Silence your phone
Rationale: You’ll be more present, in the flow, more attentive to those around you, and train your brain to focus.
Tools: Turn off the volume & vibration, notifications
** Warning: as you stay in-the-moment longer, you may forget to turn the sound back on(that’s my experience).
Tax Tips
The world of tax is constantly changing. Here's what you need to know.
The Mystery of the Unexpected IRS Deposit
Here is a story of an identity theft fail. It’s a sucky story because a new client had his identity stolen, which is a real headache to resolve, but it could have been much worse.
If you get a random deposit from the IRS, be suspicious. If you file your tax return and are rejected because someone already filed using your social security number, react.
Right now, it’s near impossible to get the IRS on the phone to confirm what a deposit was. (Since I’ve done a lot of work with the COVID business aid, I knew that it wasn’t related to PPP or another stimulus program.) We went ahead with filing the income tax returns, and it was rejected because someone had already filed. This is a tell-tale sign of identity theft.
Sure enough, I asked my client to pull his transcript off the IRS website and he found someone had filed a 2019 return. They only reported $1 in income and the rest was blank.
The thieves anticipated a huge windfall but made a fatal mistake at the very end. They didn’t update the banking information. It was like breaking into a bank safe and forgetting the cash!
Pretty bad for a criminal, huh? lol
So be on the lookout because thieves filing fake returns to get your refund is all too common. But if it happens to you, I hope you get a dumb criminal too!
Out & About
We're going places! Whether it's for networking, client meetings, or personal travels, I love to explore. Here's one recent stop.
Midsummer is a big holiday here in Sweden. Because it’s so cold and grey most of the year, the Swedes love celebrating the warm, long summer day. Two years ago, I went to a traditional Swedish celebration, but this year was low-key.
Yigit took a short term job in Northern Sweden last month and was away during the holiday. Since he was so far north, the sun barely dips below the horizon at night. He sent me this photo from his hotel room at about 11:40 pm. It is bright all night! (sun emojis) The Swedes call if the “Midnight Sun.” 😎
Kitty Corner
It's probably impossible for me to get through a newsletter without mentioning my furbabies!
Cami would like to introduce you to her little friend.
This one is decidedly friendly and un-Scarface-like. It doesn’t have a name, but it does have a smell. Introducing: the unicorn! 🦄
Stuffed with catnip, this is Cami’s new best buddy. She snuggles it in her office bed, licks it, and occasionally will play and throw it around. It’s very cute and she gets so catnipped. I’ve had to take it away so she can pace herself!
I’m an enabler. Because that’s what cat-mama’s do. 😍
On the Horizon
Here's what we'll be focusing on over the next few weeks.
I hope you’ve been saving for estimated taxes because we have a triple whammy in a couple of weeks.
Your 2019 income tax balance due, Q1 estimated taxes, and Q2 estimated tax payments are all due on July 15th. If you are planning on making an extra retirement account contribution and not extending, it’s due on July 15th as well (a quadruple threat!).
You can file an extension that would grant you until October 15th to file your returns, however, the payments are always due on the original deadline. In this case, that’s July 15th. You have a couple of weeks to calculate and make the payments. Be sure to do so online at IRS.gov, and with your state if necessary, or drop the checks in the mail.
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Have an awesome Fourth of July!