2022

Planning Your Financial Year

As we draw closer to the end of 2022, there is a feeling of hope in the air: tomorrow always holds the potential for us to be better, happier, and more successful than we were yesterday. One of the biggest advantages of embracing hopeful energy is that it motivates us to plan and prepare for the future we desire. With hope on your side, anything is possible!

With that in mind, I’m excited to share with you some easy steps for planning your financial year. It may seem daunting at first, but it’s surprisingly easy and quick to plan a financial year that will bring you joy instead of tears. The key to planning anything is breaking it down the big goals into smaller, more manageable pieces. Then, once those pieces are defined, take action daily in order to make your dreams come true. I’m getting ahead of myself: let’s start at the beginning.

Ask yourself, What do I want? Vague goals get vague results. Get specific and stop excluding yourself from your desires: eliminate the word “can’t” from your vocabulary. If the goal feels so huge that you doubt that it can happen, then take it down half a notch, but never make it so realistic that it doesn’t excite you. Your goals should light you up: if it feels lackluster, it isn’t big enough. Big, dreamy, specific goals are what you need to keep you motivated throughout the year.

Ask yourself, What will it take to get what I want? Break your big, dreamy goals into smaller, specific steps. If any part of your goals rely on luck, specify that, but also focus most of your attention on the actions that are within your control. If you identify a step that feels a bit overwhelming, then break that down into a much smaller, more manageable sub-steps. The objective of this exercise is to make your big goals feel obtainable (because they are!)

Ask yourself, What can I do today to get closer to what I want? Consistent, daily action is what takes a dream or plan and turns it into reality. The biggest problem I’ve seen people encounter on the path to their goals is believing that they need to take grand actions in order to make progress. If you wait for the right time to make big moves, you’ll find yourself frustrated, stuck, and feeling like a failure. Rarely do we get a “perfect” time to take big actions: we either sneak up on our goals or we hope for the stars to align before we make moves (I don’t recommend that you do the latter).

I’m still thinking of my big, dreamy financial goal for 2023: once I’ve identified that goal, I’ll share it here, and give you all my process for achieving it. Look out for those posts in the next few weeks!

I’d love to hear what your financial goals for 2023 are: please let me know all about them in the comments below!

3 Things To Do In December for Financial Health

The end of the year is almost here! This is the month leading into my favorite holiday, New Year’s Day! There’s something so exciting about opening a brand new chapter, and I’m thrilled every time January 1st rolls around.

After having several busy seasons, as well as a few slumps or slower moments throughout the year, you’re probably just ready to bring in 2023 quietly. I don’t blame you for wanting a tame intro to the new year, but there are a couple of things you can prioritize in December, to set yourself up for success in 2023 and beyond!

Here are my finance tips for December. These work well for both tax practitioners, business owners, or even employees that are looking for ways to increase their wealth now and in the future. To your continued success!

  • Send thank you cards and holiday cards to clients and customers. Sending seasons greetings, as well as heartfelt expressions of gratitude, is a wonderful gesture for everyone. The goodwill is multiplied if you’re an entrepreneur and do this with your clients and customers. If you aren’t a tax preparer or a business owner, then this is a fantastic practice to develop when showing appreciation to the people that you employ (think hairstylists and nail technicians, postal workers that you interact with regularly, childcare providers, housekeepers and other in-house staff, lawn maintenance workers, etc.,). Gratitude is an energy that always brings in abundance, so express thanks often.
  • Create and/or refine your business vision for 2023. If you haven’t done a business vision board, this is a good time to do it! I love how vision boards can help you crystallize the ideas, goals, and aspirations you have for your business. If you aren’t interested in a vision board, then writing down the vision is also powerful and can move you closer to your desires. If you’ve already done one or both of these steps, this time of year is also fantastic for reviewing those previous notes or boards, and seeing if it still aligns with you. If so, great! See if there is a way to expand on what you already have. If your previous vision no longer aligns, then refine that vision until it resonates with you again.
  • Schedule business activities for the first quarter of 2023. It’s never too early to start planning for the upcoming weeks and months, so set aside a little time this month to schedule things that you know you’ll need to handle in January and February. Take that scheduling time out to March, if it feels good. It’ll feel great to know that you’ve already gotten a head-start on the next year, and it will save you some time and frustration at the beginning of the year, when everyone else is scheduling activities and taking the best available time slots!

Those are my end of the year finance tips! I’d love to hear what money-related things you like to do in December in the comments below!

3 Things To Do In November for Financial Health

Welcome to November! We’re on the cusp of the holiday season, which means there will be more time to spend with our loved ones and more plans to make as we wrap up the year.

This is one of my favorite times of year: while summer is my favorite season, November is full of exciting energy as it is the last month before the final month of the year. This time feels full of possibility: what will happen before we get swept up in the activities of December? We get to decide, for ourselves, what we do with this last dance before the end of the year.

With less than 2 months until the end of the year, this is a fantastic time to take inventory of anything that is unfinished from earlier this year. For this month, I recommend reviews and automation. My three financial tips for November:

  • Review current health insurance selections and adjust accordingly. For many employers, November is the final month to make any changes to health insurance selections before being locked in for the next year. So this is a great time to review your current insurance plan and see if you are getting the most out of your health insurance, as well as whether you need the amount of coverage you’re currently paying for. Further inspection may reveal that you are under- or over-insured, and you should absolutely choose a plan that suits your needs for your current phase of life.
  • Identify any tasks that you can pre-schedule/automate throughout the end of the year (and spilling over into the new year), then do it. During the last several weeks of the year, it can be easy to overlook tasks that need to be handled, and the price that comes from forgetfulness (usually in the form of late fees or decreased credibility) isn’t worth it. Take time to see which items need to be automated – even if it’s just for a few months – and set up those automations/schedules/alerts now, while you can. A few moments of preparation can mean huge savings for you!
  • Review your professional credentials and schedule any necessary continuing professional education (CPE/CE) courses. I mentioned the need to schedule CPE/CE classes during the summer slump that many tax practitioners experience. But, if you missed that post, now is also a good time to schedule those courses before the end of the year. Most professional credentials have annual requirements for maintaining those licenses, so the last thing you want is to let the end of the year arrive and you’re a few credits short. Schedule those now, so that you won’t have to rush around and find the courses in December, when many CPE/CE courses have limited options (because so many people wait until the last minute to do it!)

Those are the finance tips for November. Let me know if you’ve done any of these already, and how that worked out for you, in the comments below. Take care!

Extensions Due on October 17th

Just a gentle (or firm, depending on what you require) reminder: all of those extended tax returns are due on October 17th. If you’ve been following this blog since the summer, then you know I’ve been sounding the alarm on tax return extensions and how to prepare for filing those. Along with filing extended tax returns, this is the time to do any withdrawals of excess IRA contributions made during calendar year 2021 (excess contributions must be withdrawn to avoid penalties). This is also the time to contribute to solo 401(k) simplified employee pension (SEP) plan for tax year 2021 if you extended the filing time for Form 1040.

Whew, that’s a lot! There is still time to do a few things to close out tax year 2021 if you’ve extended your time to file. For most tax preparers, October 17th is the end of their tax season, and they can finally have a chance to rest before the beginning of the next tax season. However, if you’re a business owner, you may have a different tax filing date. If so, keeping up with the general extension dates and assigning specific tasks to complete on those dates can be a fantastic way of staying ahead of the surge of work that comes when its time to file taxes.

That’s all: get those extended taxes filed! Talk to you all soon!

3 Things To Do In October for Financial Health

Welcome to October! As we step into the season associated with cooler weather and harvest time, it’s time to enjoy this break from the long, hot days of summer.

While autumn isn’t my favorite season, it is a great time to get certain things done before the end of the year. October marks the last quarter of the year, and it’s a perfect time for a bit of increased activity, especially since many businesses end their fiscal tax years at the end of September. Careful planning and execution in October, November and December can set businesses up for success in the months to follow.

Whether you have a calendar year or fiscal year schedule for your business, or if you have no business at all, there are a few things that you may want to do in October that can help improve your financial health. Here are some tips for this month:

  • Consider the charitable contributions that you want to make before the end of the year. With the focus on multiple charitable causes, heritage recognition and awareness (October is the month for Breast Cancer Awareness, National ADD/ADHD Awareness, Filipino American Heritage, LGBT History and Down Syndrome Awareness, just to name a few!), this is the perfect time to think about what you want to give to the charitable organizations of your choice. If you itemize, this could be a wonderful way to reduce your taxable income. If you don’t itemize on your tax returns, this may be not helpful to you as far as taxes go, since the current exception ($300 in charitable contributions are deductible for nonitemizers in tax year 2021) is set to expire at the end of the year, unless Congress intervenes.
  • Check your tax deadlines and start working on items that need to be completed before the 17th. Several major tax deadlines occur this month, so you may want to review your documents and see what may be due in the next few weeks.
  • Consider adjusting your withholding so that you have more income available during the holiday (peak travel/shopping) season. If you always get a refund and have never adjusted your withholding to get a little more of your money back with each paycheck, this is a good time to figure out if you want to update your W-4 (federal withholding form) so you can have more of your income now, instead of having to wait for your tax refund in the upcoming year. It’s a calculation you may want to discuss with a tax professional, so you don’t create a tax liability due to miscalculation.

Those are the tips for October! Are there any other things that you plan to do this month to improve your financial health? I’d love to hear about it in the comments below!

5 Income Sources You Can Create For Yourself Now

Happy Finance Friday! I hope you all had a great, prosperous week. If not, then I hope this post gives you some ideas for turning your money story around, and for majorly upleveling your finances.

Many of the discussions around money center around making more (which is what I’ll be talking about today) and spending less (to be discussed soon). These are the cornerstones to creating financial freedom, so the quicker you can implement them, the better your results. But when it comes to quickly implementing money-making strategies, there is usually this looming sense of overwhelm and a lack of clarity regarding where to start first.

Never fear: here are 5 income sources that you can create quickly, so you can start making more money NOW. I’m keeping it simple, giving you links and sources that you can explore right now, to start making money quickly and to give your finances a boost.

Tutoring – There are many online tutoring platforms, but I recommend Cambly for its ease of use. Once you’ve signed up and your profile is approved, you can sign up for Priority Hours, which guarantee that you will get priority student placements (basically, students are routed to you first) and you are guaranteed to receive partial payment for the hour, even if you don’t get any students routed to you (this is rare, but it can happen). It pays about $10 per hour, so it won’t make you a millionaire, but if you do one hour a day, that’s $300 per month that you can use to treat yourself, knock out debt, or invest in your future.

Make printables – if you’re creative, this is a fabulous way to make money without having to keep a bunch of physical inventory. Design cute templates and printable documents using free online software (like Canva), then upload the designs to your own website or to another platform (like Etsy). You can be making money within a few hours, if this interests you.

eBay store ownership – Sign up for an eBay account, take pictures of your stuff, then upload and set your price. Yes, there’s a little more to it (writing out descriptions, figuring out what has to happen once the items are purchased, etc.). However, this is one of the quickest ways to make money with what you already have.

Personal assistant work – Fiverr, TaskRabbit, and Upwork are just three of the platforms where you can advertise your skills as a personal assistant. Yes, even TaskRabbit has options beyond yardwork and furniture moving: you can find gigs for errands and clerical tasks. Once you set up your profiles on these websites, you can start making money.

Host virtual cocktails – This is great if you’re social and want to quickly monetize your popularity. Come up with a fun cocktail idea, set up a FB event page for it, work out the Zoom (or other meeting platform) details, then start selling tickets. Yes, it will take a few moments to set up a way to receive your payments, but that’s what PayPal, Zelle and CashApp are for. If you’re a fabulous hostess, you can make a memoral event happen from the comfort of your home.

These are just a few ideas for generating money quickly so you can start hitting your financial goals. Look out for another post in a few weeks, discussing 5 ways to spend less money, so you can hold on to more of what you earn. Have a great weekend!

Still Need Student Loan Debt Assistance? There’s Help For You.

The recent announcement of federal student loan debt forgiveness has exposed strong opinions on both sides of the issue. Aside from the passionate arguments from the pro and con crowds, there are many other issues and points of discussion that have arisen in light of loan forgiveness. One of the less discussed aspects of student loan debt debacle is the balances owed even after some debt has been forgiven. Many people will still have enormous debt, even after receiving the maximum forgiveness available.

For those that will still need assistance after the forgiveness is applied, there is a webinar that may provide some guidance that is helpful. The National Council of Negro Women (NCNW) is sponsoring a Student Loan Debt Webinar to provide resources and strategies to assist indebted individuals. The webinar is scheduled for September 22, 2022, starting at 7:00 PM EST. The session is scheduled to last for roughly 1.5 hours, so expect lots of valuable information: don’t forget your notebooks!

NCNW is, “Washington, D.C.-based charitable organization making a difference in the lives of women, children, and families through a four-pronged strategy that emphasizes entrepreneurship, health equity, STEAM education, and social justice.” The organization does a splendid job of offering timely tips and actionable information, and I think the Student Loan Debt Webinar will be an invaluable resource to those interested. With nearly 100 years of commitment to service, the organization has a long track record of giving back and uplifting the population it serves.

If I find any other useful information for you all (regarding student loan debt or any other barriers to financial freedom), I’ll be sure to post them here!

Tracking The Good Stuff – My Results

The past several weeks may have been difficult for you (I certainly felt the energy of difficulty and frustration). Last week, I mentioned that I would be focusing on all of the good stuff that came into my life. Keeping a Goodness Log is a great idea if you need to turn your mind away from frustrating topics and to put your attention toward what you prefer to have. Given the overall negative slant of most of the information that we’ve been getting, a Goodness Log can be just what you need to get your mindset back to where you want it to be.

I noticed that I experienced SO MUCH goodness last week: actually, there were too many good things to capture them all in this post. So, I’m going to share some of my highlights. Here’s some of the goodness that came my way over the past week:

  • I had a luxurious dinner with my lovely daughter at Hondo’s
  • I saved quite a bit of money on a few of my food delivery orders
  • I received a free set of candles to review on one of my YouTube channels
  • I got some fabulous instruction regarding which direction I needed to go in my businesses
  • I had wonderful conversations with some of my dearest friends
  • I got some great resources that will help me fill the gaps within my daughter’s educational program
  • I found some information that I needed to complete a chapter in my upcoming book
  • My schedule had a lot of restorative free time (much needed)
  • I saw increased channel and blog activity

The goodness is coming in, everyone! This exercise really helped me to get back to the positive mindset that I prefer. I’m hoping that you all felt an energy shift from keeping a log, too!

Making Your Labor Count – 3 Ways To Make The Most of Work

In the United States, yesterday was Labor Day. This day observes those American works that advocated for labor law improvements that established guidelines for ethical, reasonable work and that opened the way for safer work environments, fair(er) pay and better work schedules. While the state of US labor still has much room for improvement, this holiday recognizes the workers that paved the way for better work for all.

As I reflect on Labor Day, I think of how those early advocates would be both delighted and dismayed by the current state of work here in the US. I also thought about individuals within the workforce, and how they can position themselves to make the most of their careers and the experiences afforded to them by virtue of their professions. Here are three ways that we (because I’m still an employee, too!) can make the most of our time as employees:

  • Explore and take advantage of employee benefits. Free or lowered price training, various insurances, shopping discounts, access to restricted spaces and exclusive events: find out all of the benefits available to you from your employer. Then take advantage of every program, benefit, and perk that you can. If these perks can be enjoyed on the clock, even better!
  • Network like crazy while you’re there. Wherever you work, remember that you are less than six degrees from people that can assist you with your goals. So meet as many people as you can, and add these individuals to your network. The thought that a person should only go to work and refuse to develop networks within their sphere of influence is antiquated and limiting. Many people that hold this perspective will also complain about job stagnancy and air their frustrations over how better networkers get certain promotions and advantages within the workplace. Your dream role may be just one crucial contact away from where you are right now. Learn to network so that you can tap into all of the opportunities just beyond your reach.
  • Do a skills audit so you can quantify what you learned and make moves based on your skill set. Examine the skills you’ve gained on the job, and determine which ones would qualify you for a better position (spoiler alert: ALL skills have the potential to qualify you for something better). If you struggle with identifying and enhancing your skills, you can get a skills audit done by me. I offer this audit so that, instead of feeling overwhelmed or disempowered, you can devise a plan of action that moves you confidently toward the career of your dreams! As employees, most of us are more talented, skilled, and desirable than we know. The skills we have are often downplayed by us (as an attempt to display humility) or others (part of getting us to accept less than we deserve). If you aren’t sure what your gifts are, or what you bring to the job market, contact me: I can help you pinpoint your talents and tell you how to leverage them to your advantage.

Those are my top tips for getting the most out of your current job. What are some of your tips? I’d love to hear about them in the comments below!