Making a difference in someone’s life is my daily goal – honestly. The alarm goes off, I roll out of bed, and before my feet hit the floor, I am asking God to help me be a blessing to someone. I have found that if I put the needs of others before mine, God’s grace helps me to overcome any obstacle I may face.

As I tell my children, “God never promised us a rose garden, He promised to provide us a way out”.


The key to my success is putting my trust in God. In the earlier years, I was not as mature spiritually as I am today. I shared with others my faith, but I never emphasized how having a relationship with Christ makes the difference in the journey. I put God second and my life ambitions first. That is something I am now ashamed to admit, but I do so to let you into a more personal side of me. I’m not perfect and I do not want you to go away from reading this article thinking I put myself on a pedestal – above others. God being second led to havoc in both business and personal relationships. I lived through my day much as we surf the Internet, plugging multiple keys at one time and not getting farther than what is in front of me.

With God first in my day, I see a path that my mind’s eye was blind to all these years. I have wasted more time worrying about what others think of me, than honoring the One who made all of this possible. “God, forgive me”. I made a decision to become that light in the darkness, and help other virtual entrepreneurs who love the Lord, want Him to be first in their lives, and need reassurance that it is OKAY to let the world know the joy that comes from having that intimate relationship with Christ.

As a Christian business owner, you need to crawl out from under the rock you’ve been hiding under all of these years and speak up. Let the entire world know what you believe, share your love for Christ, take joy in the gifts God has favored you with, and put on the Armor of God.
Eph 6:10-17 (NIV)

You will need every piece of this armor. Don’t expect people to be so accepting of your willingness to bring God to the business table. For ages, Religious (Moral) Ethics have been an outcast in the workplace. People will talk negatively about you, business partners may question your boldness, and family will think you’ve lost your mind. Remember with every action you make to honor God, you come closer to receiving God’s promise.

The light at the end of the tunnel is God’s promise. You will succeed in everything you lay your hand to as you (a child of God) have favor in God’s eye. Prosperity is much more than financial rewards and if you give of yourself with the right motives, you will receive ten-fold. The Bible is full of God’s promises to the faithful. You need to make a difference in someone’s life through God’s direction. Become one of the ONE’s and decide to speak up, behave right, and enjoy life as God intended.

Our goal as your national association is to raise bookkeepers' professional status. One way we do this is by keeping members up to date and offering practical, on-the-job help through our monthly newsletter, The General Ledger.


Here's an example from a recent issue.

The case: M, a professor at for-profit universities, had a Sched. C for two side businesses: real-estate broker and property manager. Financial problems then forced him to move both businesses from rented space into his home. On his Sched. C, he claimed 70% of his home was used exclusively for business and deducted the related expenses. The IRS agreed that his home was his principal place of business, but allowed only 43% as used only for business.

Held: For the IRS. Only the area of a home exclusively used for business qualifies for a home-office deduction. De minimis personal use is allowed. For example, a hallway that connects two rooms used only for business or a room that one must walk through in order to get to another qualify. But this taxpayer claimed that de minimis included personal use of an area used once or twice a year, such as his dining and breakfast rooms which he used for family meals the once or twice a year when his adult children visited. But these uses disqualified the room as not exclusively used for business purposes, as the tax code requires. [Mahdavi v. Comm., T.C. Summ. Op. 2010-178]

Business owners know a lawsuit can cause devastation to their reputation and capital. All it takes is one disgruntled customer who thinks you’ve breached a contract or made a mistake. It does not matter if you own a Fortune 500 business, small corner shop or if you work from home, the threat of being sued is always there. The good news is that lawsuits are costly and time consuming. Most sane people will not bother unless they have a substantial amount to recover.

To reduce your liability risk, try these four following methods:

Insurance – No brick and mortar business should be without liability insurance. If you’re working from home, you still want to consider being insured. For most professionals this falls under Errors and Omissions coverage.

Shield Yourself – Use your company as a shield. A person working as a corporation or LLC should freely advertise so the consumer knows they will be working with a company and not you. Request that your customers make checks payable to your business and not you personally. And keep all financial documents separate from your personal accounts.

Disclaimer – Write a disclaimer into your contracts. Use the terminology as follows, “consequential incidental and punitive damages, including but not limited to merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose or whichever is greater is the responsibility of the customer”. Your website should also contain Terms and Conditions. Do not hide the fact that your business operates with specific policies and procedures. Openly, disclose that user’s must agree to your terms to engage in business with you.

Fire High Risk Customers – If you have a feeling in your gut that something just is not right, there is a good chance that you are correct. Do the best you can to dissolve the relationship. But…use caution and remain polite.

Use all of the resources available to you to keep lawsuits off your back. The best business owner is one that is wise and proactive in his or her business. The person suing you has everything to gain, remember that.

Get your business off to a solid start in 2011!
By Marketing Merchant Circle


When was the last time you updated your listing page, added a new coupon, or posted a blog? Keeping your business information accurate and your content fresh will help build a powerful (and reputable) online presence.
Start this year off right by following these 3 easy steps for improving your page!


• Clean it up! Does your listing page have accurate information? If your contact information has changed, or if you've added new products or services- let people know. Posting correct information on MerchantCircle ensures more local customers can find you in an online search. If you change your phone number, make sure to also update your URL.


• Keep it fresh. Do you have expired coupons littering your page? Ring in the New Year with new customers by creating coupons that will save them big. And while you're giving your page a face lift, how about showing us yours? Adding photos to your listing page shows customers who you are, what you offer and what your store or shop looks like.


• Stay connected. Are you opted in to receive all the MC news and email updates? Have you connected your Twitter and Facebook accounts? Click here to manage and update your account information and preferences so you don't miss a thing.

The home office entrepreneur faces similar dilemmas as the high-tech corporate owner, especially where it pertains to slow or delinquent account receivables. There just is NO magic demand letter or collection tool that prompts the dead-beat customer to own up to his or her obligation. It is always a struggle to collect.

What is the solution to collecting what is rightfully yours?


Besides ruling your business with a strong hand, you need a firm contract in place. However, even someone who signs a contract that seals the deal and lays out in layman terms what would happen if there is no payment can be challenged. The dead-beat customer does not care what hoops you have to jump through to collect.

If you are dealing with a local customer, you stand a better chance. Why? The dead-beat customer knows you could make their life HELL if you took the collection phase to the legal system. With you being in the same state, this is the best option for you.


How do you collect if you are a virtual business owner?


Sorry to say that if you are operating a virtual business and trying to collect from someone hundreds of thousands of miles from you, the likelihood of seeing what is owed is SLIM. First, the dead-beat customer knows you will not pay hundreds of dollars to travel to their location when you are attempting to collect less than $500. Second, the resources you have in collecting are limited unless you are prepared to pay collection agencies. Third, dead-beat customers are good at avoiding cyber bulling by not giving you their correct contact information in the first place.


What business solution will help me collect, then?

A virtual business owner needs to be smarter than the virtual customer (client) is. This starts with a solid contract.

1. Hold your customer to a contract: Make sure he or she signs it and provides you with their legal information.

2. Confirm contact information: Do not be afraid to search for the customer’s information. If you provide Business-to-Business services, it is even more crucial that you take some time to ensure the contact information is correct.

3. Do a background check with the BBB Online: Check to see if the party you are engaging in business is worthy of your services.

4. Get a retainer for your services: Ask for a retainer to secure your business relationship. If the customer does not want to pay you a retainer, think twice about working with them.

5. Contract a collection agency: If you are just now reading this article and you are due money because you didn’t take the right steps, you can contract a collection agency to collect.

The best action is to be prepared to take action. Do not believe that because someone tells you they have LIKE business ethics that they will not walk all over you in the end. Conmen practice this statement of faith, which is why they are so good at what they do.