What a CPA, Bookkeeper, & Business Manager Can Do for Your Business - a podcast by Nathan Lively - Online Courses for Live Sound Engineers ?

Show Notes: http://wp.me/p1sfi8-1H5

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In this episode of the Sound Design Live podcast I speak with certified public accountant Rick Norris on creating a strategic plan for your business (which is what you need before a business plan) and who you should have on your team as a small business owner. We also answer the questions:

What's the difference between a CPA and a bookkeeper?
How do I protect myself from fraud (bogus checks!)?
How do I know when I need a book keeper?
What percentage of your income do medical bills need to be before you can claim them as a write-off?
How do I use independent contractors without coming afoul of labor lays?
How do I reduce my audit risk if I take a business loss?

Details from the Podcast:

All music in this episode by Gold Chains (https://soundcloud.com/topherlafata).
Rick's articles and Rick Norris CPA on Facebook and Twitter

Stephen Fishman's book and interview
Medical expenses example: $100,000 income. 7.5% of that is $7,500. If you have $8,000 in medical expenses, you'll only get to deduct $500. But if you are self-employed then you can also deduct medical insurance payments on top of that.
Tip:
Tell your bank to alert you any time someone tries cash a check.
Never have book keepers in charge of writing checks and doing bank reconciliations
The IRS is really coming down on small businesses who improperly classify employees as independent contractors.
Quotes:
Once you've built the car, you need a map. That's what a strategic plan is. A road map of where you are going to be 10-20 years from now.
Most people think that if they are not going out of the black, they're doing fine, but they really don't have a direction of where they are going.
Keep one eye on the step in front of you and one eye on the horizon.
If you can't measure it, you can't manage it.
Once you start going outside of your core competency you lose the risk of losing your vision and then the whole thing just falls apart.
The more money you make, the less you can deduct.

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