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In the “old days,” you went to the general store for your dry goods, the blacksmith for your horseshoes or tool repair and likely had your own cow and chickens for milk and eggs. Fast forward, you went to a lawyer to get a will, an insurance rep to get a policy and an accountant to get your taxes done. There was no internet, so information was something you had to gather and organize yourself. You would talk to a few co-workers, a family member, a mentor and then take actions based on the limited intel. Back then, you would sit with a financial advisor, and if they were a big deal they might have a stock ticker pumping out

First, let us make it clear that we aren’t saying that your CPA or accountant is doing anything wrong. The accounting industry is one of the most honorable and respected fields around. That being said, there is a misconception that they are going to be proactive when advising clients about their taxes, and that’s just not part of the training most have received. Certainly some are, but the majority who know things about steps a business could take to perhaps be more aggressive on tax planning for the future, don’t feel it’s their responsibility to pursue a client in engaging in alternative accounting choices or behaviors. A good example is “Bob” who owns a tire shop that has grown from two employees

Have you ever seen a cat on the side of the road that waits until the very last second and then darts across the road in front of traffic? Ever see one that didn’t make it and think, “Some child is going to be very sad soon.”? I always wonder what makes the cat wait until the last second, but then again that’s what most taxpayers seem to do. They wait until February or March with a filing deadline looming and then dash out in front of a tax preparer and beg, “Is there anything we can do to lower this?”  Like the cat, perhaps the preparer has an idea and they miss getting hit with the entire bill, but

Well, do they or don’t they, actually? Long debated and often manipulated by the media, the topic of the wealthy and taxation has many, many complex points and counterpoints. First, when people say that, they often don’t define what kind of tax. The people hearing the comment usually go to federal personal income tax in their mind as TAXES. However, if a wealthy person owns 20 C corporations, with each filing their own tax returns, those C corporations pay their own taxes and unless the wealthy person needed to take a dividend or other distribution, then they could pay zero federal income tax, even though their companies paid potentially millions in taxes themselves.   The kinds of taxes people pay depends

Many people who do not deal in the tax preparation or planning business think of taxes as something to deal with one day per year. Like Christmas, only not as good. So perhaps more like “Grinch Day.” Nevertheless, it doesn’t get a lot of attention after April. It drifts into the “Thank goodness that’s over!” mental space and goes away until the new year. It’s different for self-employed small business owners, as tax related issues are dealt with more often, but it’s still mechanical in nature. “I’ve got to go deposit payroll taxes today” or “I need to send in my 941 quarterly payment this week.” But still, their thoughts are not focused on proactive activities, but more so on