client service opportunities

hot shot sales manager is not such a hot shot

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businessman holding a printed red "down" arrowsometimes people reveal more than intended.

by ed mendlowitz
call me before you do anything: the art of accounting

a client decided that to grow her business she needed a top-tier sales manager and recruited someone from a much larger competitor.

more: am i happy? | how hidden bias taints results | when to keep some plans to yourself | employees have better memories than bosses | when writeups went extinct
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even entrepreneurs must diversify

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also: don’t let them undervalue themselves.

by anthony glomski

based on my years of experience helping successful entrepreneurs, as well as my research and interviews with experts in the area of successful business exits, i have identified key financial challenges that entrepreneurs who are about to cash out must address.

more on liquidity: when clients cash out: four smart financial moves
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the idea is to ensure that you can help them make a smooth and successful transition from where they are today to where they want to be post-exit. read more →

am i happy?

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life is short, you know.

by ed mendlowitz
call me before you do anything: the art of accounting

my father was dying – too young and too soon. he succumbed over a nine-month period to coronary heart disease. today his life could have been extended, but not in 1976.

more: how hidden bias taints results | you must push the pencil | the art of the deal: starts with listening | working for a jerk | the ‘wrong’ cpe | be a sounding board to your clients
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i would visit him and see his strength waning to the point that he could barely lift his head or talk and even then it was in a hoarse whisper. one of the last things he said to me was, “are you happy?” i answered quickly, “yes.”
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when clients cash out: four smart financial moves

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how to put your clients in the best possible position.

by anthony glomski

there are over 28 million businesses in the united states today. while the odds of being highly successful remain long, many businesses that do succeed are often worth far more than their owners imagined.

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the main reason for that disconnect is that owners are laser-focused on growing their business; they’re not in the business of buying and selling businesses like investment bankers are.
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how hidden bias taints results

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statue of scales of justicedon’t make your job harder.

by ed mendlowitz
call me before you do anything: the art of accounting

it is very hard to avoid injecting bias in investigatory forensic work, but essential if you want to be successful. i had a great experience to illustrate this.

more: you must push the pencil | my boss hated the client | fired from my first job | staffers need to speak up with clients | bored by cpe? you’re missing out! | clients buy solutions, not hours | roger is my only client
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

first, very few people do things that are completely unbiased. most everyone starts with some sort of preconceived idea and, whether consciously or subconsciously, they lean toward that. maybe i should have said unconsciously. so many people do things without a clue, but that is a different story.
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what to do with an inherited mortgage

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4 specific tips.

by barry j. friedman, cpa
industrynewsletters

the right of inheritance applies to all property, including properties with mortgages attached to them.

more: alternative minimum tax: what’s it like today? | the latest rules on charitable donations | the latest fraud problem: synthetic identities | how to challenge property taxes | real estate, iras & clients | percentage-withholding for clients | bitcoin: what clients need to know | supreme court wayfair ruling sows confusion – and opportunity
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if your client inherits a mortgaged property, a number of questions and concerns may pop up, including whether the mortgage can be assumed. your client may wonder how to record the deed and take title to the property.
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you must push the pencil

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woman's hand using a pencil on notepadsometimes the conventional is not wisdom.

by ed mendlowitz
call me before you do anything: the art of accounting

tax rules continuously change, but the specific tax matter here is not what’s important. what is important is the process.

more: when to keep some plans to yourself | employees have better memories than bosses | when writeups went extinct | kennedy’s acceptance speech
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

in the 1970s the tax law provided for a penalty for certain family corporations retaining “excess” earnings and not paying dividends. for the record the individual tax rate on dividends then was 70 percent, so forcing the payment of dividends would give the government that much more tax – on some level you can say that it almost was a confiscatory tax.
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alternative minimum tax: what’s it like today?

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there are only two brackets for 2018.

by barry j. friedman, cpa
industrynewsletters

the tax cuts and jobs act made many changes to the individual tax law, including the alternative minimum tax.

more: the latest rules on charitable donations | beware the taxes of self-employment | charitable giving under tcja | why padding tax deductions is a risky proposition | portability: sharing the estate tax exemption
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one of the goals of the new tax law was to reduce the impact of the amt or even to repeal it entirely. a modification was made – let’s see what it could mean to your clients.
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my boss hated the client

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drawing of unhappy face and arrow pointing from it to happy face“his remarks were like a kiss of death.”

by ed mendlowitz
call me before you do anything: the art of accounting

early on, my boss took me to a client i was to work on. he started to explain what needed to be done and what the client did, but then he said, “i hate this client – everything is always messed up and nothing ever makes sense.”

more: when to keep some plans to yourself | the art of the deal: starts with listening | working for a jerk | the ‘wrong’ cpe | be a sounding board to your clients | make obsessed leadership work for you
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he also told me my work area was in the factory. i would probably have to move a chair next to a carton that would serve as a desk, and he warned me the lighting wasn’t too good.
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clients’ top worry: going broke

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survey shows healthcare costs and market volatility drive client fears.  

of all the concerns impacting americans’ retirement today, running out of money, maintaining their lifestyle and rising healthcare expenses continue to top the list, according to a new survey of cpa financial planners.

more on client management: busy season: accountants worry for u.s. economy   |   tax season launches with a whimper  |  when to keep some plans to yourself   |  shutdown: what to tell tax clients during “the lapse”  |  how clients should gather their papers for taxes  |  staffers need to speak up with clients

goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

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the latest rules on charitable donations

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5 guidelines.

by barry j. friedman, cpa
industrynewsletters

charitable contributions are deductible, says the irs, only if you itemize deductions.

more: beware the taxes of self-employment | 6 key facts about excise taxes | gifts to charity: 6 facts about written acknowledgments | yes, home equity loans may still be deductible | social security hike the largest in 7 years | how to talk to clients about ‘basis’ | basis: turning a common client question into new business | the w-4 time-bomb and what to do about it
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

but how do your clients know that the charity they are donating to is qualified?
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when to keep some plans to yourself

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smiling woman meeting with man in officeleave room to be surprised.

by ed mendlowitz
call me before you do anything: the art of accounting

planning is a trait of most accountants, including me. maybe that is one reason we become accountants. i always seemed to write out plans – for myself, partners, staff and sometimes personal activities.

more: the art of the deal: starts with listening | fired from my first job | staffers need to speak up with clients | bored by cpe? you’re missing out! | clients buy solutions, not hours | roger is my only client | blown loan covenants and how to recover from them | beyond the numbers: be a friend | perception becomes reality
goprocpa.comexclusively for pro members. log in here or 2022世界杯足球排名 today.

one time i had a plan for a new staff person who became our tax manager and eventually ran our firm’s tax department.

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