Start Up 2 Success (eBook)

7 Tax Savvy Tips for the Novice Business Owner

AJS CPA (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2024 | 1. Auflage
84 Seiten
Bookbaby (Verlag)
979-8-3509-8056-1 (ISBN)

Infos

'7 Tax Savvy Tips for the Novice Business Owner' is an informative and simple to follow guide for a new business owner to achieve IRS Tax Compliance success.

AJ is a certified public accountant that lives in Atlanta, GA with her husband and 3 kids. She has been practicing accounting for over 15 years. She looks forward to partnering with business owners to ensure that their business thrives. She earned her undergraduate degree from Georgia State University.

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An informative, easy-to-follow guide for new business owners to ensure their business is set up for IRS tax compliance success. These 7 straightforward steps are designed for clarity and effectiveness. AJS, a certified public accountant with over a decade of experience, offers expert insights. By the end of this book, even a novice business owner will be equipped for long-term success. This book will help business owners reduce stress and gain invaluable insights into their business.

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Introduction

“If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.”
Jeff Rich

Welcome to StartUp 2 Success - 7 Tax Savvy Tips for the Novice Business Owner. By purchasing this book and committing to reading it in its entirety, you are making not only an investment in yourself but also a commitment to your business, that will save you money and stress in the future.

I want to first start off by saying “Congratulations” you have taken the first step towards future success. That first step is committing to investing time and effort in your business to ensure compliance. A lot of business owners miss this step along the process of having a dream and executing on the idea. Compliance is not glamorous; it requires investing time and effort in processes that do not yield immediate results. This book will serve as your guide to moving towards compliance for your business. Counsel is important to one’s success and I have found that most novice business owners do not have the financial wherewithal to seek the advice of professionals immediately. This book will help you with balancing a budget while also seeking the advice of an expert.

One of my favorite bible verses is

“Without counsel plans fail, but with many advisers they succeed.” Proverbs 15:22

This book is written for new or newer business owners that might not have the resources to understand the ins and outs of their business as it relates to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and other compliance responsibilities. You are likely not at the level where you can afford a Financial Advisor, Attorney, or a Certified Public Accountant (CPA). However, you are resourceful and wise enough to purchase a book and gain enough knowledge to become familiar with the topic. I promise you, this book will provide the foundation to lead you on a path to success.

I understand that most business owners would rather prioritize marketing and selling- these areas bear fruits rather quickly. Compliance is not a sexy task and most people would put off all compliance tasks until the final deadline rather than immerse themselves in the topic. I will tell you now- compliance is important. We live in a very litigious society, it is important to understand the many risks associated with noncompliance (reputational, legal, criminal, etc.). Your business is your baby and you are the responsible parent that will ensure that the baby is well protected and taken care of. Also, I have personally met a business owner or two, maybe a few, that wish they could have started their business understanding more of the compliance related details. Lastly, I believe that when people are knowledgeable on a topic they have more confidence and it provides for personal and professional growth. Now is a great time to start with the basics of understanding what it means to be a business owner from the perspective of being compliant with IRS expectations.

I am an avid believer in topics being easy to understand. I tell my clients that I personally love the sport of gymnastics–who doesn’t love Simone Biles? However, when it comes to complex topics I am not into mental gymnastics. Any topic should be broken into simplistic information for people to easily understand. This book will provide you with simple definitions on somewhat complex topics. If the information is not digestible and easy to understand, what is the point of me speaking about it in this book? So with that being said, let’s get started.

What is the meaning of self-employed?

The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) offers a full description of self-employed. This information can be found on the IRS website in the Self-Employed Individuals Tax Center.

• A sole proprietor is someone who owns an unincorporated business by himself or herself. However, if you are the sole member of a domestic limited liability company (LLC), you are not a sole proprietor if you elect to treat the LLC as a corporation.
• You are a member of a partnership if the business is formed between two or more people to trade or do business.
• A gig worker is defined as also called sharing economy or access economy—is activity where people earn income providing on-demand work, services or goods. Often, it’s through a digital platform like an app or website. When thinking of gig workers, you could consider Uber or Instacart work as a part of the gig economy.

Self-employment is a courageous act. You took that leap of faith and have committed to manage your own business. In talking with many business owners, I have learned that a new business is always at first, fun and exciting. However, as the business begins making money, taking on more clients, creating more widgets, things can become more complex. Bookkeeping, payroll, taxes, etc. are a few items that create headaches for the novice business owner and the veteran entrepreneur alike.

I have met several business owners that did the following when opening their business. They were initially excited about the business but then over time the business is not as alluring once the full responsibilities kick in. These tasks are not sexy at all, for example gathering tax documents, bookkeeping, and understanding what tax forms to file. Since you are reading this book, I can tell, that you are not the overzealous new business owner that comes up with a great idea, acts quickly and registers their business with the state, gets their EIN (Employer Identification Number), and then never opens their business banking account and never files their business taxes. This same business owner then usually closes the doors of their business because they never understood the responsibilities of self-employment.

Self-employment does mean that you are considered your own boss. You are right– no one can tell you what to do. It also means that much more responsibility and accountability falls on you as the business owner. In the first few years of business, income is unpredictable as you build your client base. However, expenses are many and constant. Entrepreneurship requires the business owner to wear several hats, and this means handling matters such as marketing, accounting, compliance, etc. all simultaneously. This level of dedication and commitment requires the owner to work more than expected. Long story short, this book will come in handy. Once you read this book in its entirety, you will be prepared to better manage your business and sleep peacefully at night knowing that you can focus on other details.

I know that since you are reading this book, you are interested in being a part of the elite group of business owners that will move their business to the official birthing process. You might wonder what that official step is, and it is hiring your first employee. About 1 in 5 U.S. businesses fail within their first year of operation, according to the latest data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Given there are approximately 33.2 million small businesses across the country, it makes sense that a percentage of them will fail. Business owners that begin their business but do not understand their affairs and IRS compliance do a disservice to themselves. This book will help ensure that you do not fall in these categories or any other category that will place you in noncompliance with the IRS.

My goal with this book is to help a million business owners build a great foundation of compliance for their business. These same business owners will understand their responsibilities as owner and operator of a business and avoid trouble later. Now you might ask- what do I define as trouble. Well trouble for a small business owner- is unwarranted letters from the IRS demanding payment or that late tax returns need to be filed immediately. The goal is to have less stress for you. Not years later, but NOW. It is important that you always begin with the end in sight. There is no perfect time to begin the path to compliance. The present time is the best time.

Just to tell you a little about me. My name is Ashleigh-Jade Searles, and I am a Certified Public Accountant licensed in the State of Georgia. I am very passionate about entrepreneurship. I watched my dad throughout my life pursue several entrepreneurial efforts- some of these ventures would result in success or failure. The one thing I noticed despite the outcome of his efforts, he was happiest working for himself and being able to pursue a passion he designed. I always thought it was fascinating for someone to pursue their dreams. I also find talking to business owners enriching. We truly live in a society where I have always believed that when you combine hard work, with vision and execution there is no way that you cannot achieve success. Success is always defined by you.

My journey towards entrepreneurship took some time. I worked in the government sector as a Financial Analyst and enjoyed the work, but not the pay. After years of moving up the corporate ladder and still struggling to make ends meet as a divorced mom, I decided I would put my CPA license to use and begin preparing taxes on the weekends and evenings. I did not enjoy the work at first. Honestly, I was confused with the tax forms as being a CPA does not prepare you for filing taxes. I spent most of my time starting off researching topics and scouring peer network social groups for information. I also noticed that most of my...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 29.11.2024
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Recht / Steuern ► Steuern / Steuerrecht
• ISBN-13: 979-8-3509-8056-1 / 9798350980561