A lie has speed, but truth has endurance. - Edgar J. Mohn

Some business owners never like to "look under the hood" of their finances, and their accountants or financial partners can sometimes encourage that behavior by keeping them in the dark.

Well, I hope that won't be you.

In fact, you need the kind of insight into financials to make strong decisions.

One way I'd like to help YOU is by pointing out different reports and metrics that you can find in most accounting software, that business owners or their bookkeepers often neglect. Knowing these numbers will help you avoid an embarrassing flub in YOUR business.

Even if you are using some of these reports, I'm sure you'll find a few more to add to your repertoire. Of course, this is just a very basic introduction, but hopefully it'll spark some ideas.

1) Profit & Loss Summary and Previous Year Comparison:Most business owners rely on the Profit & Loss Summary report, but comparing your results to last year can provide quick insight into whether your revenue is growing or contracting--as well as how fast expenses are rising.

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To think is easy. To act is difficult. To act as one thinks is the most difficult." -Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe

Many businesses find themselves continually in "scramble mode", taking no chances to slow down and think of ways to get OUT of it.

As is often the case with money, it takes time to make more time.

And it takes the willpower to allow certain other things to (perhaps) fester, while you and your team focus on the most-important tasks.

So, I'm taking some of MY time to give you ideas for how YOU can take more of YOUR time ... to save more time. Got that? Here we go...(who's on first?!?!)

1. Choose Your "Focus Times"
   Every employee, yourself included, has a different style they like to work in -- we all also have times of the day when we work best. Only your team will know when "focus times" should occur, but I highly recommend intentionally setting these blocks of time in place.

Discuss with your team about which blocks of time, throughout the week, can be blocked off for individual work and individual work ONLY. No meetings, just focus time.

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"If you look at what you have in life, you'll always have more. If you look at what you don't have in life, you'll never have enough." - Oprah Winfrey

Parents and employers take heart: could it be that a rhythm of working a little less might actually make you and your team more productive?

It's a pretty counter-intuitive notion, but the reality is that we business owners entered into this role for many reasons ... and I know that for many of us, prime among them was this notion of freedom.

But this could also be equally true for our team.

That's why the notion of "80/20" (the Pareto Principle) is something worth studying when you are looking at having to cut down your own time, or your team is needing to reduce hours for childcare reasons, etc.

There was a study done about a decade ago that offers
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"Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes and having fun." -Mary Lou Cook

I'll be honest ... I hate the buzz phrase "new normal".

None of us want this present reality to remain the permanent reality.

That said, I use it because I think you understand what I mean -- the ground has shifted under our feet.

So, what will we be doing about this?

I should state from the outset: I'm not a marketing guru. But, I keep my eyes open and notice what is working!

How do you do that?

1) Share Yourself
Chances are, you're not the only person selling what
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"One thorn of experience is worth a whole wilderness of warning." - James Russell Lowell

Rather than seeing these ideas as "rules",  it might be helpful to think of them as principles when it comes to helping your kids see money rightly.

And yes ... some of these may be difficult (the first ones, in particular, if they represent a shift for you), but after seeing many families do this well, these are some of the best things you can do with your children when it comes to financial education.

1. Talk openly about money.
Parents make a mistake when they keep information from their children. The only way children learn what is a good deal and what is too expensive is by the experience of what their family earns and what items cost. Hiding this information robs children of the financial education they need.

2. Talk factually about money.
Many parent
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In our last article, I taught you that the Series LLC forms the base of your asset protection structure. It’s simple, inexpensive and provides a great deal of protection. And you’ll learn the basics of how to run and manage an LLC before getting more complicated.

Many clients, especially as they build their portfolio of rentals, seek out additional privacy and protection. This is great! But it does add layers of complexity and cost. But, as your assets grow, then it makes sense to up your asset protections as well.

For privacy, many investors use what is called in the real estate industry as a “land” trust. These kinds of trust do not exist in Utah and most of the country. But we have a modified version of them investors use that we call “real estate” or “property” or “asset holding” trusts. The key to this trust is that it’s not registered with the state. That means it’s a private document that keeps the owners of the trust totally off the record.

Most investors use these trusts to “hold title” to the property privacy purposes. However, these trusts do not provide any asset protection! So, you still need an LLC that will own the trust. Then the trust owns the house. See how that sticks an extra “layer” in between the property and yourself?

On the county land records, only the trust appears, not your LLC. And since the trust isn’t re
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"It is common sense to take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something." - Franklin D Roosevelt

If you measure your key metrics you can manage the performance of your business, AND you can see problems well in advance of when they might show up in revenue or profit figures.

Each and every business has key performance metrics [Key Performance Indicators (KPI's)], some of which are common to other businesses, some are industry-specific, and some companies create their own KPI's.

These sort of things are our bread and butter, when working with small businesses tax pro.

Do you need help?

Financial metrics are often common to all businesses. Some examples include:<
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"A man should always consider how much he has more than he wants." -Joseph Addison 

The financial picture for the various states in our nation is a mishmash of various revenue sources (and expenses). 

Unlike, say, the federal government, the states cannot print money. So, they are forced to go hunting for it. And they get it from a few primary sources: sales tax (based on purchases/consumption), income tax (individual and business taxes based on income), property tax and "other" taxes like the tax on fishing licenses, driver's licenses and a lot of other smaller items.  

And the most volatile -- and COVID-affected -- of these sources is ye olde income tax. Sales tax has obviously tak
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In Parts 1 and 2, we explained that loaning your own money could be a licensed or regulated activity. We also explained that loaning other people’s money for a fee is always a licensed activity. The other risk I see is when investors are doing these loans without the proper protections. Here is a good checklist to follow.

1. Confirm the licensing issues for the kinds of loans you or your pocket lenders are making.
2. Be competent at valuating the property and do so yourself. Do not rely on the borrower’s numbers. Learn loan-to-value!
3. Always use a well-prepared promissory note (loan document). I see many that are not sufficient. You should have one drafted by an attorney, not a title company.
4. Always secure the loan with a trust deed (mortgage). ALWAYS!
5. Always run the loan through a title company or attorney’s office that confirms the recording of the trust deed in the appropriate position! The biggest fraud in real e
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In Part 1 we defined various types of loans and mortgages, which you should read if you haven’t. Be clear that making a closed-end, first position loan for the purchase of real estate is a licensed activity. This is where a lot of investors are taking a big risk.

This is because many investors are loaning funds without understanding the licensing issues. And many others are getting friends and family to loan them money. This can put your Uncle Joe or Aunt May at risk as well. While there may be arguments or exemptions that permit making these loans, there are arguments that it requires a mortgage originators license! The Division has broad authority over these kinds of loans!

Just because there are arguments in your favor, does not mean you will be successful if you—or your lenders—are investigated by the Division. If they deem that you have engaged in mortgage loan origination, the fines can be very steep. Before you engage in making or getting these loans from others, you should truly understand the rules and risks, and how to structure these loans correctly. That is beyond a blog post. You should consult an attorney.

In the above examples, I have assumed that the lender earning the interest is loaning his own money. There is a big difference if you are loaning other people’s money in which you make a fee or spread. What you’re doing now is “connecti
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