Philip Campbell's Blog

I’d Love to Meet You in Fort Worth in March 2016

The Fort Worth Chapter of the Texas Society of CPAs has asked me to present at the 8 Hot Topics for CPAs conference being held on March 23, 2016 in Fort Worth, TX. The full day session will also be webcast if you prefer to attend online rather than in person.

The conference will go from 8:30 am - 4:25 pm. The cost is $175 for TSCPA members and it includes lunch and digital materials. The cost is $225 for non-members. CPAs will receive 8 CPE hours.

The seminar will include a number of speakers on various topics (especially to CPAs).

• Improving Collaboration with Microsoft SharePoint, Gary Tonniges, CPA TriQuest Technologies Inc
• The 3-Part Plan for Breathing Financial Life into a Company, Philip Campbell, CPA
• Case Study: Help a Company Survive and Thrive, Philip Campbell, CPA
• Significant Developments in Employee Benefit Plans and Compensation, Scott Thompson, JD Haynes and Boone, LLP
• State Tax Nexus for Generalists, Tram Le, CPA
• New Developments on the Revenue Recognition Standard, Bill Schneider, CPA AT&T
• Handling Texas Sales Tax Audits and Appeals Steve Hanebutt, CPA Sales Tax Specialists of Texas
• 10 Things Any CPA Can Know About Individual Income, Tax Walt Hatter, CPA Hatter & Associates

Here is a short description of the two sessions I will present:

A 3-Part Plan to Breathe Financial Life into a Business

CFOs and Controllers have an exciting opportunity to play a more strategic role in business. No one is better positioned than we are to help a company win financially in business. In this session, I will demonstrate the power of implementing a 3-Part Plan to bring order and direction to the challenge of making a company financially strong.

I will also share some counterintuitive tips and strategies that you can use to help entrepreneurs and CEOs avoid the pitfalls and poor financial decision making that plague many leaders in business today. You will learn an exciting new approach to providing value and increasing your influence and credibility as a CFO or advisor.

Case Study: Help a Company Survive and Thrive

The second session I will present is a case study. We will walk through a case study of a business that is struggling financially. The owner has made progress becoming more profitable but cash always seems to be tight. He doesn't understand what is causing the problem or exactly how to fix the problem.

We will get hands on by going step-by-step through the 3-Part Plan. We will assess the financial reality of the business and look at ways to help the owner create a financial future that is bigger and brighter than his past.

Here is the link to learn more.

I'd love to have the opportunity to meet you if you can make the conference in March.

 

FREE REPORT: A 3-Part Plan to Breathe Financial Life Back into Your Business. If you are an entrepreneur or business owner, this FREE GUIDE provides you a step-by-step, simple process for creating a financial future that is bigger and brighter than your past. Click here to get it FREE.

Paying Smart People to Help You Get Things Done

Each of us has skills and abilities that make us unique within our company.

There are things you can do very well that I do poorly. And there are things I can do very well that you do poorly.

Over time, as you navigate the complexities of growing your business, you become better and better at delegating certain responsibilities and assembling a group of smart people around you.

Everyone would agree that it makes sense to have other people help you tackle the vast array of challenges that come with owning and managing a business.

How are YOU Doing?

On a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 is awful and 10 is awesome, how well are you doing right now at bringing smart people together to help you make important initiatives happen?

Is your To Do list overflowing with important, strategic initiatives that are stalled?

Are you unsure what your next action is on each initiative?

Do you think it will cost you more to outsource the work than you will see in benefits?

A Rule of Thumb

Here is a rule of thumb to help you if you are concerned about the cost of paying a smart person to help you in a certain area of your business.

Put a dollar amount on the potential impact of the initiative or "project". Divide that number by 5. The result is what it should cost you to get a smart, seasoned, experienced person to do the work for you.

Example

Let's say you are tired of flying blind financially. You are fed up with the sloppy decisions that have been made in the past. You are tired of cleaning up messes and feeling like money has been wasted unnecessarily.

You estimate (based on past problems) that turning your financial information into an insightful, action oriented tool for decision making would create a benefit of at least $100,000. Divide that number by 5 and you get $20,000.

It will likely cost you at least $20,000 to get the right person to help you achieve that goal.

Pull out your To Do list and put some dollar amounts next to the items that are really important.

It will help you decide whether to continue to put things off or to go ahead and pull the trigger and get a smart, experienced person to help you get the work done.

 

FREE REPORT: A 3-Part Plan to Breathe Financial Life Back into Your Business. If you are an entrepreneur or business owner, this FREE GUIDE provides you a step-by-step, simple process for creating a financial future that is bigger and brighter than your past. Click here to get it FREE.

Income Taxes: The Key Word is INCOME

 

Every day in America, business owners are trading $10,000 of their money in order to get a $3,000 reduction in their income taxes.

Sounds foolish. But it happens every single day. Especially this time of year when income taxes are on everyone's brain.

And you are no exception! J I am willing to bet you are doing the same thing in your business.

Whacky But True

I have been a financial guy (CPA, CFO, consultant) for 30 years now.

And I have always been surprised at the whacky decisions business owners make in the interest of "saving money on my taxes".

Horrible financial decisions are common place in business today when it comes to "tax planning" and trying to "reduce my income taxes".

To their credit, they are not purposefully throwing away their money. They are just following the herd. They have not really looked at what they are doing. It's a habit (a money losing habit).

The Two Key Words

The key to being smart with your income taxes is to focus on each of the two words in the phrase Income Taxes.

Word 1: Income

Word 2: Taxes

The amount of income taxes you pay in business is a function of your taxable income. Your taxable income being defined as revenues minus expenses. Your profit.

Depending on what type of entity your business operates in, taxable income multiplied by a formula is your tax expense.

Here's Where the Bad Decisions Start

In business, you want your income to go up.

But to reduce your income taxes you need to reduce your taxable income.

And 80% or more of the bad decisions made about taxes are because the business owner spends money to reduce their income. They spend $10,000 to reduce their income taxes by $3,000.

Nobody admits to doing it. But that doesn't the change the fact that they do it routinely. Especially this time of year.

I'll talk more about that on my webinar on Tuesday. And the three question test that will rid you of this bad (money losing) habit. J

 

FREE REPORT: A 3-Part Plan to Breathe Financial Life Back into Your Business. If you are an entrepreneur or business owner, this FREE GUIDE provides you a step-by-step, simple process for creating a financial future that is bigger and brighter than your past. Click here to get it FREE.

Go Big… or Take a Baby Step

In business, there are times when you should make big decisions. Sometimes a big, bold decision is the best thing you can do to make something happen.

Other times, baby steps make more sense and will do more to help you achieve your goals and objectives than going big.

Here's an Example

For example, if you know you need to cut expenses, my suggestion is to go big.

Oftentimes you can make one decision, in one area of the business, that will cut expenses in a big way. It is so much easier to implement one decision than to make 25 different decisions to try to nibble around the edges of 25 different expense categories.

When it comes to charting the path to financial health and stability in your business, I suggest you take the baby step approach. I practice what I preach in that regard in The 3-Part Plan to Breathe Financial Life into Your Business.

The interesting thing about baby steps is they are counterintuitive. It doesn't seem logical that a tiny step can actually cause big things to happen for your financial future.

But I have seen them work so many times in my life that I'm a believer. Especially when it comes to the month-to-month process of creating financial health, wealth and freedom in business.

Try a baby step this week on something you have been struggling with in your business. I bet you will be surprised by what happens.

 

FREE REPORT: A 3-Part Plan to Breathe Financial Life Back into Your Business. If you are an entrepreneur or business owner, this FREE GUIDE provides you a step-by-step, simple process for creating a financial future that is bigger and brighter than your past. Click here to get it FREE.

Financial Forecasting: The Ultimate “Heads Up” Tool in Business

Sometimes a "heads up" helps you avoid problems.

"Hey Philip, just a heads up that there is a 10-car pileup on I-35. You might want to take an alternative route for your drive to downtown Austin this afternoon!"

That little tip could save me a couple hours and help reduce stress. (Traffic in parts of Austin, TX isn't too pretty.) J

A Financial Heads Up

A reliable financial forecast is your "heads up" that a financial or cash flow problem is brewing. Most business owners think that cash flow problems "just happen". In almost every case that is not true.

Most financial problems can be seen in advance. And far enough in advance to do something about them… before they happen.

A Tool for Improving Your Profitability and Cash Flow

In addition to helping you prevent financial problems, a reliable financial forecast is one of the most powerful tools in business for improving your profitability and cash flow.

It helps you identify your profit weaknesses and shines a light on the places where cash is either trapped in your business or where it is leaking out the back door.

Armed with that intelligence, you can set targets and get to work on making your business stronger.

FREE Rapid Learning Guide You Can Download Today

I have created a free guide to help you put financial forecasting to work in your business. It is titled Financial Forecasting for Serious-Minded Entrepreneurs (and CFOs).

In this guide, you will learn:

• How to use your financial forecast as a powerful tool for driving growth, profitability and cash flow to new levels
• 5 rules for creating a forecast you can trust
• How to avoid the single biggest mistake entrepreneurs make in forecasting
• The secret to enhancing your influence and credibility with lenders and investors
• How to plan, create, and present a reliable and repeatable financial forecast
• 3 keys to success (and how each one unfolds during the forecasting process)
• How to present your forecast results in a 2-minute summary
• How to overcome the obstacles and resistance to forecasting

You have two ways to grab the guide.

1. Get your free membership at the Financial Rhythm website and grab the guide as well as other free downloads and tools for your business. Or,
2. If you would rather pass up the free membership, you can grab the guide right here.

Either way, grab it now while its still free (it will be a paid course in short order).

 

FREE REPORT: A 3-Part Plan to Breathe Financial Life Back into Your Business. If you are an entrepreneur or business owner, this FREE GUIDE provides you a step-by-step, simple process for creating a financial future that is bigger and brighter than your past. Click here to get it FREE.