Archives for December 2018

The 2018 version of why it’s time for an annual “checkup” for you and, if you have one, your company

Posted on: December 27, 2018, in: , , , , ,

Over the past few years many of you probably read my blog regarding having a checkup for you and, if you have one, your business. This does not involve the doctor, but it does involve all the other professionals in your personal and business life. Since that time, I decided to make this topic an annual tradition. This is based in part on the range of feedback I receive every year.

Some of you said “What a great idea. I am definitely going to do that.” Other said “Sounds like a good idea, maybe I will look into that.” Most of you were busy with the holidays and all that they entail, and probably ignored my advice. To be honest, any of these responses is okay and ignoring my advice may not have had detrimental effects to you or your business.

The point of the advice is that you only know what you know. If you do not check in with your professionals and, for example, make sure contracts or your estate plan remain enforceable and up-to-date, that is where risk comes in. For example, I always check in with my accountant at the end of the year to ensure that all is right with taxes.

In 2016 I had a reminder related to a different item you should check in on annually, auto insurance. We had two teenagers on our policy and a number of vehicles, and the premiums always seemed so high to me. But my insurance person knows me and shops the policy every year looking for the best rates rates for policies with similar coverage from quality insurers. He did that for me at the end of 2016 and we ended up with a new insurer, with pretty significant savings.

With the time constraints of life, it is sometimes hard for me to move beyond the higher-level checkup, but when I do I usually end up with some benefit. Unfortunately, in our time-crunched world, the question of who to check in with at year end is expansive, from your estate planning attorney, to your investment person, to your insurance person, to vendors you may use such as a yard or pool maintenance company, or your cell phone carrier or your Internet provider. You may be surprised what a company will do in lowering monthly costs to satisfy a current or longtime customer. Try it and see what happens. A good one to start with is your cable or satellite television provider (assuming you haven’t cut the cable).

I know, I know, who has the time? None of us do, which is why the choices are yours. Are your contracts up to date? Did you pay enough estimated taxes or withholding? Are you paying the cleaning service at your office or your lawn service for your home too much? The choice of what professionals to consult, what costs to check or compare, and what services to put out to bid is yours. Choose wisely!

And for those of you seeking a reminder or who did not see it in years past, here is my original blog post on getting an annual checkup:

The end of the year is always a good time to take stock of where you are personally and professionally. This can be checking in with your personal accountant to make sure you have withheld/paid enough taxes during the year or planning for deductions to planning for large corporate expenditures on things such as upcoming projects, planned corporate initiatives or planned equipment purchases. But the one thing that is a constant is that we all should be doing this.

In the past I have mentioned why it is good to sit down with various professionals you or your company work with just to check-in, be they attorneys, accountants, insurance professionals, financial planners, investment professionals, etc. The list depends on you and your business.

This does not have to be a formal appointment unless you think that is appropriate depending on the nature of the planned conversation. Instead, it can be you offering to buy them lunch or a drink. The point is the better the professionals you work with know you, the more they are able to make recommendations aimed to benefit you or your company.

So don’t wait, start making plans today to meet with these people this year, or at least first thing next year. We all are busy this time of year, but if you take these actions it will help you now and in the future.

Happy Holidays!

No Comments

Success

Posted on: December 12, 2018, in:

As we head into the end of the year it is a good time to reflect on the past year and plan for the coming year. Was your 2018 a success? If not, will you have goals and a plan in place to try to reach those goals for 2019? Whether or not your year was success, have you ever thought about how you define success?

We all look at success differently. For one person it may be to earn the most money they can. For another it may be to do the best job they can every day they are working.  For yet another it may be to positively impact the most lives they can. Your definition of success depends on you.

The great college basketball coach John Wooden looked at success more about competing with yourself than someone else. I think this is a good point. You may set goals that, if reached, will result in you doing better in some manner than someone else. How you define the goal is the difference.

For an attorney a goal may be about billing a certain number of hours or bringing a certain amount of money. This type of goal can be written in terms of what you will do, i.e. I will bill 1800 hours next year or it can be I will bill more hours than any other partner at my firm next year. Which goal will motivate someone to work harder depends on the person. When I set these types of goals I focus on what I want to do, but not how that will measure up to what others I work with will do.

So as the sun sets on 2018, take time write down goals. When you do, think about how you will measure success. There is no wrong answer. Plus, if you write down your goals, there is a much better chance you will reach them.

I will leave you with a quote from Richard Branson, who equates success with personal fulfillment:

“Too many people measure how successful they are by how much money they make or the people they associate with. In my opinion, true success should be measured by how happy you are.”

No Comments

Consistency and organization matter

Posted on: December 05, 2018, in: , , , , , , , , , ,

Consistency and organization matter. The idea is to have a plan and put it into place. What that plan is and how you put it into place will be different depending on you, your business and how you like to work.

For instance, I use a hand written to do list, but also rely on calendaring and tasks in Outlook. This can result in redundancy, but with some of the types of deadlines I am dealing with, I like that.

Others I know block out certain times in their day for specific activities. This can include blocking out a block of time to review email, and not constantly monitor it. At times, I do something similar in part by blocking out time for specific projects that may take longer and on which I need to really focus.

Also, for me, this is an evolving process. I am always looking at how I can better plan and be better organized. It is very important in my day because many times I am working on a significant number of legal matters during the same day, which can negatively affect my focus if I’m not careful.

Think about how you plan your day to work on or be in touch with the projects and people you want and need to. Then think about how we can plan to be better organized to do so. Last, share the insights that work for you with others and pass it on.

No Comments