Keep Your Profits “All in the Family”

Make Your Bookkeeping and Accounting Business a Family Affair

I started in the warehouse and drove the delivery truck. I learned to work at the feet of my father. It wasn’t always easy, but he taught me to value customers and take pride in my work.

As my father and I swept the warehouse floor together I learned how important it is to do the job right, even if it was just sweeping the floor. And by washing the delivery truck every week, I learned to take pride in my appearance and how I presented myself. My father made sure I learned these important lessons when I was young.

Dad always said, “Son, there are givers and there are takers. Make sure you don’t become a taker.” I learned some important lessons sweeping that warehouse floor. Not the least of which was the requirement to “give” your best everyday. He was a tough task-master sometimes, but it was a valuable education that I couldn’t have found anyplace else.

I don’t work with him anymore, but the lessons I learned from him are with me everyday.

Universal Accounting Started as a Family Business

Alf Bostrom started Universal Accounting over 25 years ago as a means to help small businesses. He was widely known for helping ailing businesses get back on their feet financially by implementing sound accounting principles. His son, Allen Bostrom, President of Universal Accounting credits his father Alf, with teaching him the basics of sound financial management as a young man. He says, “I watched him, learned from him, and enjoyed how much business owners respected his advice. His example acted as a spring board for me as I have been able to learn from him and experience even more.”

Teach Your Children The Important Life Lessons as They Work With You

Whether or not your children stay in the accounting field, they will learn skills that will help them throughout their life. Understanding the accounting process is a valuable skill that anyone in business should know, but most people never learn.

Allen’s early exposure to bookkeeping consisted of inputting accounts receivables and payables into the ledgers for his Dad. This experience with bookkeeping didn’t involve a computer, and allowed him to learn the nuts-and-bolts of the accounting process. This provided a valuable education that most teenagers never get.

Hands-On Learning is Hands-Down the Best

The way Allen’s Dad taught him is the way we’ll teach you. The Professional Bookkeeper Program is unique in its hands-on teaching method. You’ll actually complete the full set of books for several different small businesses. You’ll do the books for a bakery, a motorcycle shop, a frame shop and a convenience store, just to name a few.

With the confidence you’ll gain from this unique method of hands-on learning, you’ll be able to approach any small business and be comfortable with your ability to provide a valuable service. And you’ll be able to earn a very profitable income too. I’ve not found another course that uses this method of instruction like Universal’s Professional Bookkeeper Program.

We’ve been teaching small business bookkeeping and accounting since 1979, that’s over 25 years. There’s not a more complete course on the nuts-and-bolts of small business bookkeeping anywhere. No wonder we’re called the small business accounting experts.

A Great Deal On the Most Complete Training Available Anywhere!

Having a solid understanding of Accounting and Bookkeeping methods and procedures is a great first step. You will learn to do books for small to mid-sized companies and how to analyze the books to prepare reports. You will learn to interpret reports so that you can advise your clients how to reduce costs. You’ll show them how to better understand their financial standing and profitability. Your clients will look to you as an invaluable source of information about the financial health of their organization. You’ll likely save them more than they pay you, so selling your services to them is easy.

The first step to one of the most rewarding and satisfying businesses available is only a few mouse clicks away. There has never been a better time to start your own professional accounting and tax business than right now.

Kick-Start the Year with 6 Practical Goals:

2008 New Year’s Resolutions

Always bear in mind that your own resolution to success is more important
than any other one thing. –Abraham Lincoln

About this time most of us feel obligated to make a few New Year’s resolutions. And while you may have your own resolution to loose a few pounds, cut credit card debt, or spend more quality time with your family, your business could probably use a few resolutions of its own. It’s difficult to increase your success if you don’t have a target to shoot for. Here are a few things that can help you create a list of realistic business goals for the New Year:

Organize all contact information
If you’re like most small business owners you have business cards, scraps of paper with contact information, and maybe even a notation or two in your planner of potential clients. They’re doing you no good scattered around; you need to gather them all together and organize them into a rolodex or electronic file that makes it easy to look up individuals and actually contact them!

Contact potential clients regularly
Now that you’ve organized all your contact information, it’s time to devise a plan for actually contacting these people. For some reason or other you thought they qualified as potential clients; now it’s time to give them the chance to request your services. Determine the method of contact you feel most comfortable with: phone calls, mailings, lunch appointments, gift calendars. You need to remind these people, without being pesky, that your services will enhance their lives. Once you’ve contacted them two or three times you can rotate them off your contact list. But the good news is that you should be able to find a few new clients this way, increasing your client base and your bottom line.

Backup your hard drive
While this is a boring resolution, it’s definitely something that you can check off in one day. Hopefully this is a task most of you perform regularly, but if you don’t, today is the day to start; don’t wait until your computer crashes to regret not performing this resolution. You have lots of crucial, financial information that clients expect you to manage. If you loose it, you also loose your credibility, and that can cost you more than you can imagine.

Increase your staff
When you think of this resolution, all you might see in your mind are dollar signs. But if you hire right, you can train an employee to perform monotonous accounting tasks for less than you charge your clients. This means that if you pay your employee $15/hour and you charge $40/hour to do those tedious jobs, you make a $30 profit each hour this employee works; now you can spend your time doing the more significant accounting tasks. And if you use a son or daughter to do this work, part of their salary is tax-deductible! The point is, if you can hire a reliable, efficient employee to help manage some of the easier tasks, you have more time to take on more clients. This enables you to grow your business.

Cut costs
We’re guessing you advise your clients on ways they can cut costs. It’s time you take a look at your own books to see if there are ways you can cut costs and save yourself some money. Regardless of how frugal and efficient you think you are, chances are there are ways you can cut some of your costs and channel that money into more productive channels.

Better manage client information
Whether it’s your filing system or the electronic method you use, you may want to find something that helps you better manage client information. Can you easily run reports that give you a birds-eye view of your clients’ finances? Do you have a quick method of accessing client information from multiple views? There are numerous software packages that attempt to make your job as an accountant easier. You may consider purchasing one that could help you. And because 80% of small businesses use Intuit’s QuickBooks Pro, that’s the software package we suggest.

UAC’s Guide to Quickbooks Pro
Universal Accounting Center (UAC) has a training program that will teach you QuickBooks quickly, and painlessly. UAC’s Guide to Quickbooks Pro is a self-paced program that enables you to complete the parts that interest you and skip over the parts that don’t. Even if you have used the program for years, the program teaches you shortcuts and methods you may not have known. You will be impressed by the simple flow and completeness of this program. So why wait? In just a number of hours you could be ready to better manage your own finances, and add new services to your own practice, increasing your bottom line.

The retail cost of UAC training coupled with the QuickBooks Pro software is $485, but for a limited time you can get that for just $385. And if you already have the software, or are just interested in a trail version, it’ll just cost you $285. Don’t wait; order today!

Regardless of what resolutions you choose, it’s important to set goals for your business. If you don’t make plans to increase your success, you’ll be lucky to get by. Don’t wait until the end of January to take steps to improve your business. Regardless of how small, take steps to move your business forward today!

Claiming a home office is not a red flag for the IRS like it once was. It’s more common for individuals to claim a home office these days, especially since nearly half of small businesses are operated from owners’ homes. So when working from home it’s important to take advantage of home office tax breaks. However, qualifying can be tricky if you’re unaware of the IRS’s requirements. Here are some guidelines to ensure that your home office is IRS-friendly.

Regular and Exclusive Use

This one phrase, “regular and exclusive use,” is the requirement to which you must pay particular attention. The area in which you conduct business must only be used for business purposes. And the IRS is serious about this detail. In an article on SmartMoney.com, Jess McCuan quotes Martin Nissenbaum in an article entitled “Setting up a Home Office that Qualifies for Tax Breaks.” Nissenbaum is the National Director of Personal Income Tax Planning at Ernst & Young. He said, “Exclusively really does mean exclusively. The rule is clear. You can use the space only for your trade or business. If you happen to have a TV set in there and you watch it while you’re working, fine. But if your kids play there and you use it as a den, you cannot take a home office deduction.”

Note: The IRS does consider excessive square footage a red flag when it comes to home office deductions (1,000 square feet might cause suspicion for your in-house accounting practice).

Principle Place of Business

If you spend the majority of your time in a rental space and use your home office to work after-hours, the latter will not qualify as the principle place of business. The home office must be where you conduct the majority of your business (which results in the majority of your income) in order to qualify for a deduction.

Home Expenses

If your home office qualifies under the regular-and-exclusive-use requirement, then a corresponding portion of home expenses (utilities, mortgage interest or rent, maintenance costs, and insurance) is deductible.

Office Supplies

All home office supplies can also be deducted as long as they are exclusively used for home business purposes. If that stapler you keep on your desk is used for both your work and your kids’ homework, then you can only deduct the home-office percentage of the stapler’s cost.

Business Credit Card

While you may think it’s easier to keep the receipts from your business purchases in order to deduct them later, the delineation becomes clearer when you use a credit card strictly for business purposes.

The IRS is in the Details

In her article entitled “Make Your Home Office IRS-Friendly,” Joyce Rosenberg notes details you should not forget when claiming your home office. She references Jeffrey Chazen, a tax partner at the accounting and consulting firm Richard A. Eisner & Co. LLP in New York who says it’s important to note that you cannot deduct more than your net profit. He goes on to say that if you’ve been depreciating your home office space but then sell your home, you must “recapture” the amount you’ve already received, adjusting your profit to account for that particular tax break.

For more specific information on home office deductions, visit the IRS website and download IRS Publication 857, Business Use of Your Home. You should also review IRS Form 8829, Expenses for Business Use of Your Home, also available at the www.irs.gov.

References
McCuan, Jess. “Setting up a Home Office that Qualifies for Tax Breaks.” 6 June 2007. SmartMoney.com.
Rosenberg, Joyce M. “Make Your Home Office IRS-Friendly.” 25 January 2007. BoomerGirl.

To wish you were someone else is to waste the person you are. - Anonymous

Each time we face our fear, we gain strength, courage, and confidence in the doing. - Anonymous

Without self-confidence it can be difficult to get up in the morning, let alone run a successful business. If you find yourself questioning yourself and your abilities, it’s time to get an injection of confidence, and quick! Last week we talked about the following 5 confidence-boosting tips:

1. Practice positive self-talk
2. Excel
3. Don’t waste time
4. Do something that scares you
5. Note your accomplishments

To conclude our series on increasing confidence we’ll discuss the following 5 tips:

6. Do something difficult
Peter McIntyre once said, “Confidence comes not from always being right but from not fearing to be wrong.” Often we’re afraid to try something we perceive to be difficult because we’re afraid of failing. Unfortunately, that’s how an insecure individual perceives difficulty. A confident individual recognizes that the reward is in doing something difficult, not in whether or not they ultimately succeed. There’s learning in the doing and that experience is invaluable. And often, regardless of the outcome, the act of performing something difficult is hugely rewarding and will go a long way to increase your confidence.

7. Stop procrastinating
Putting off important tasks never helps you feel better about yourself. In fact, the opposite is true; generally we feel worse about ourselves when we procrastinate. So make a list of all those tasks you’re avoiding, and tackle one everyday. Even if you’re unable to complete the task you’ll immediately begin to feel better about yourself.

8. Get in shape
Your physical condition makes a considerable contribution to your confidence level. We’re not trying to encourage small business owners to become obsessed with superficial appearances; we are, however, encouraging you to be healthy. Eating the right foods, exercising and getting enough sleep are key in how you feel about yourself. And you’d be amazed at how loosing those extra 10 pounds will help you stand a little taller and speak a little louder.

9. Take care of yourself
In light of number eight, we want to emphasize the importance of taking care of yourself by adding that you should avoid the abuse of drugs and alcohol. Even if you’ve unwittingly extended the use of a potentially harmful prescription drug, you’re sending yourself the signal that you and your body aren’t worth topnotch treatment.

10. Expect great things to happen
Walt Disney once said, “If you can dream it, you can do it.” There’s something to be said about being able to imagine your own success. Because if you can’t, who else will?

Confidence radiates from you like heat. Clients will feel that confidence and become even more convinced of your expertise. And the more you nurture that confidence, the more self-assured you will be, and soon you’ll find that your business is a reflection of your new sense of self-worth.

Look to Universal Accounting Center for an Infusion of Confidence

When you receive the right training you can feel more confident and secure about the services you’re offering. If you haven’t yet been able to achieve that confidence with any other training, we’re certain you can find it with UAC. Here’s what just a few of our graduates have said:

My confidence and enjoyment in Accounting has increased ten-fold. - Tyson Soffe

The presentation was informative and challenging. Yet, the help given was free from intimidation- always building confidence in accounting and my ability. - Merrill Lotthouse

I was very pleased with Universal Accounting. Their program help me to establish a good solid business and gave me the confidence I needed so badly at that time. I would recommend this program to anyone and I have sent at least 2 people in at my recommendation. Thank You. - Nadine Gibby

The Professional Bookkeeper Program
What’s all that fuss about? UAC’s Professional Bookkeeper Program! Designed to teach small business accounting, it helps individuals like you achieve the success you’re looking for. Over 85% of the opportunities in the accounting field are within small businesses; when you have small business accounting expertise you can focus on this niche market and have confidence that you offer business owners unique and beneficial services.

At Universal Accounting, we understand the needs of the small business like nobody else. We’ve helped people like you advance their career in small business accounting for over 25 years. The Professional Bookkeeper Program is designed specifically to address the needs of small businesses, and Universal Accounting Center’s small business accounting course is the most complete of anything else offered today. And depending on your schedule and situation, it will only take you 60 hours to complete. Imagine earning a professional designation in less than one month!

UAC Can Also Help You Get Clients
UAC has developed a turn-key marketing solution which will enable you to grow your business with our proven system. You could work for years on a marketing plan, hitting and missing, only to find your business growing at a snail’s pace. Imagine learning which marketing strategies work in just 48 hours!

The Universal Practice Builder Program
Universal has recently turned their amazing Universal Practice Builder Workshop into an 8-DVD course. No longer do you have to attend a local, 2-day workshop to learn the marketing expertise necessary to promote your business. Top your Professional Bookkeeper Designation off with this guaranteed program where you’ll walk away with over 12 marketing strategies that you can implement immediately. You’ll also be able to increase your annual billings by $30,000 in just 12 months!

If you enroll today, you can purchase both programs for one low price. In a matter of months you could grow your business in ways you’ve only imagined. Don’t wait. Order now!

7 Tips That Will Boost Your Professional Exchanges

Accountants are stereotyped as introverted bean counters who don’t feel comfortable interacting with others. Thankfully that image is changing for the better. But some of us still struggle in social situations primed for profitable networking. Your business depends on your ability to put current and potential clients at ease, to communicate in a way that builds stronger professional relationships while getting you the information you need to secure new customers and do the best work you can for current costumers.

If your people skills are lacking, here are 7 quick tips that will improve your interactions:

1. Smile
No one needs a smile as much as a person who fails to give one. -Unknown

When all else fails there’s one thing you can do: smile. Regardless of what the other person does, a smile won’t damage your image or spoil a networking opportunity. This is especially important to remember if you’re feeling a little nervous. Chances are you’ll get lots of smiles in return which will put you at ease and make it easier to connect with others.

2. Listen
I think the one lesson I have learned is that there is no substitute for paying attention. - Diane Sawyer

While listening you will discover how your services can best fulfill the needs of those you’re talking to. The more you can get them to share about their business the better prepared you’ll be to illustrate how your expertise will improve their profitability.

3. Remember names
When you remember names you’re communicating that the people they belong to are worth remembering. You should always strive to make the people you speak with feel important; remembering their names is an easy way to accomplish that.

4. Remember common talking points
At the bottom of things, most people want to be understood and appreciated. - The Buddha

Sometimes it’s a matter of knowing what you can talk about when there’s a lull in the conversation or you need to break the ice. Fortunately there are certain topics nearly all individuals love talking about:

• The traffic
• The weather
• New movies
• Their business
• Their children
• Family pets

5. Acknowledge things you have in common
The more you have in common the more connected you will feel. Pointing out the similarities you share will help strengthen your bond and forge a solid professional relationship.

6. Avoid gossip
Gossip needn’t be false to be evil; there’s a lot of truth that shouldn’t be passed around. - Frank A. Clark

Avoid gossip like the plague. While it may be easy to talk about someone else it certainly puts your character in question and causes the individual(s) you’re talking with to consider what you might say about them when they’re not there.

7. Be positive
Attitudes are contagious. Are yours worth catching? - Dennis and Wendy Mannering

Negativity will repel more contacts than you can imagine. Whether or not people recognize it they are drawn to individuals who are positive and affirming. Regardless of the topic of conversation, stay positive; it will leave a good and memorable impression.

And above all, remember that it takes time to develop good people skills, especially if it doesn’t come naturally. Just make an effort to work on one thing at a time and soon you’ll recognize an improvement that will not only put you more at ease with others but positively impact your business.

The Real Scoop on Being Awarded Money to Start or Expand Your Business

You’ve probably heard the commercials promising big bucks for entrepreneurial-minded individuals looking to start their own businesses. Grants are a great source of income because you are not required to pay them back; it is money awarded to you, free of charge. But how easy is it, really, to secure a small business grant? Unfortunately, not as easy as those commercials suggest. But it is possible.

While the federal government doesn’t award grants there are state agencies that do. Check out our resources below to discover the local opportunities that exist for your business.

What might you do to make your application more appealing? The following four tips should help:

Recognize the process may be long and exhausting

It’s important that you be prepared to spend a significant amount of time and energy researching potential grants and their requirements. It may help to assign someone on your staff the responsibility of laying the ground work. You can visit the links below to get started.

Create a thorough Business Plan to evidence your preparedness

This may help you stand out from the competition. A thorough Business Plan demonstrates your attention to detail and the fact that you have thought about your business enough to devise a plan from startup to exit strategies.

Submit a complete and thoughtful application

The grant approval process is long enough as it is; you don’t want to delay the process further by submitting an unacceptable application. This also projects a poor image of your business and implies that your products and services just might be as sloppy as your grant application.

Maintain contact with the organization awarding the grant

Just as you would maintain contact with a potential employer that had interviewed you, so should you maintain contact with the organization awarding the grant. While you should avoid being intrusive and annoying, you can check on the review status and determine how long it might be until you are notified. It’s also a good time to see if they need anything else in order to decide whether or not you are the right candidate for their grant.

While it is possible to receive grant money to fund your business startup, it’s not always an easy process. You must pay close attention to the requirements and ensure that your business is eligible. You must also be willing to spend considerable time and energy preparing the necessary application. However, it’s not impossible and if you believe your business is suitable for a grant; it could be well worth it to go through the process.

A Business with Little Startup Costs

While every owner of a fledgling business would like some free cash to get going, starting an accounting practice requires little in startup costs. With no expensive equipment to purchase, the ability to work from home with as little a computer and internet connection, and the flexibility to work from the spare bedroom in your basement, an accounting and bookkeeping practice might just be the best home business yet. In fact, authors of The Best Home Businesses for the 21st Century, Paul and Sarah Edwards, rate a bookkeeping service as the “Best of the Best” home-based businesses. With a little training and professional certification, you could be on your way to a low-cost start-up with big returns.

Currently there are countless students trying to earn their accounting degrees by spending hours at a university, learning accounting theory, but not much practice. Once they graduate and try to get a job they will discover that they have been prepared for less than 20% of accounting opportunities. They have been groomed to act as corporate accountants. Unfortunately for them, more than 85% of opportunities are with small businesses which continue to grow and grow every year. These small businesses have unique needs that are not easily met with corporate accounting practices. They need a specialist-a small business accountant.

The Professional Bookkeeper Program

Since Alf Bostrom opened its doors in 1979, Universal Accounting Center has been training individuals in the practical application of small-business accounting. With more than 25 years experience, we know what the small business needs, and we also know how to effectively train you to master small business accounting. In less than 60 hours you could complete the Professional Bookkeeper Program and start a small business’s books from scratch. You could also become that business’s Profit Expert. With such valuable skills you could manage not one, but multiple small business accounts, becoming the most popular contract accountant in your area.

The Professional Bookkeeper’s Guide (PBG) to QuickBooks

But why stop with just small business accounting? Why not add another valuable complementary service to your practice? Our Professional Bookkeeper’s Guide to QuickBooks will help you master QuickBooks, by far the most popular accounting software used by small businesses. Upon doing so you will not only be able to add QuickBooks services to your menu, but you will begin attracting a new demographic that will bring more business your way. And if you order both the Professional Bookkeeper (PB) Program and the Professional Bookkeeper’s Guide (PBG) to QuickBooks now, you will receive our newly released 2008 version of the PBG. This version beats out other QuickBooks training programs. Its features include the following:

• Training targeted for all user types
• The ability to work more efficiently
• 6 months of follow-up support
• The opportunity to earn a QuickBooks Specialist (QS) designation
• 16 CDs with 15 hours of training
• 4 books with over 800 pages of instruction
• The ability to quickly pay your bills so you never incur late penalties.
• The ability to write checks with one single click!
• Be reminded when bills are due.
• Quickly and effortlessly create invoices so you get paid sooner. It even takes care of sales tax.
• Get organized. QuickBooks streamlines the process of tracking customers and vendors so you can easily look them up in one place.
• Keep on top of incoming and outgoing payments. It’s like having your own accounts receivable and payable clerk you don’t have to pay.
• Access easy-to-read financial reports NOW!

Start your own accounting practice by getting trained in small business accounting and QuickBooks. With minimal to no startup costs and services that will appeal to a wide market, you can be up and running in no time at all. This is as close as you can get to a guaranteed startup. So take a deep breath and imagine yourself working as a thriving contract accountant. Enroll today! Click HERE to pay in full or HERE to finance the programs.

Resources for Finding Grants

• Federal Funds Express
• The Grantsmanship Center’s Local Funding Sources
• The University of Michigan’s list of grant information

Gain the right skills and you will earn a better income. Bookkeepers can anticipate a 6.8% rise in base compensation in 2006. That’s great news provided you have the right skills.

The 2006 Salary Guide is based on an analysis of thousands of job placements managed by Robert Half International Inc., and predicts that heightened competition for accounting and finance professionals will lead to increases in base compensation next year.

Companies are Recruiting Accounting Staff

Max Messmer, Chairman and CEO of Robert Half International says, “Organizations are actively recruiting accounting and finance staff to support business expansion initiatives and corporate governance efforts.”

“To attract and retain skilled financial professionals, firms are reassessing their hiring practices and enhancing compensation packages for current staff.”

Bookkeepers are Doing Better than Average!

Robert Half International forcasts an increase in starting wage for bookkeepers and accountants of 3.1%. An increase of 3.1% is OK, but according to the Salary Guide, bookkeepers can anticipate a 6.8% rise in base compensation in the year ahead. Over twice the average. What a great time to consider a bookkeeping and accounting education.

The opportunities for you have never been better in accounting. Click on the link below and discover the potential for you to earn a great income and enjoy a stable, recession free career.

Show Me a Stable Career With a Great Income

The Accounting Department Has Always Offered Great Opportunities

For hundreds of years accountants have contributed to the profitability of businesses all over the world. And they have been well paid to do it. With the right skills you will not only find the right job or enhance your present career, you’ll also enjoy the benefits of increased competition in the marketplace and can expect a bigger paycheck.

Where Can I Find the Right Skills… I Don’t Have a College Degree?

You don’t need a college degree. You do need a specialized education. And you can find it at Universal Accounting.

For the last 25 years, Universal Accounting has taught thousands of people the profitable and exciting skills of small business bookkeeping and accounting. We’re the small business experts and we can teach you to be too.

You don’t have to take my word for it, let’s look at what some of our graduates have said:

“I was amazed how practical this course was, and surprised how much I learned. Having an accounting degree and over 17 years experience in accounting, I didn’t realize how much I didn’t know. This is well worth the time and money, and you will be benefited from this class for years to come.”
-Philip Lufkin

“This was an excellent course. I have a B. S. in accounting, and this class taught me stuff I never learned in college.”
-Catherine Ferguson

“Universal’s accounting course is a very thorough approach to learning small business accounting. The materials and work sets are presented in a professional learning atmosphere. …I felt this class really helped my confidence and mastery of the accounting principles.”
-Bradley Jensen

You don’t need to be a math wiz to enhance your career. Calculus and algebra aren’t necessary. Basic math skills are the building-blocks to a successful career in bookkeeping and accounting. With your basic math skills and a willingness to learn, you’ll be on your way to an incredibly rewarding and satisfying career.

Businesses Have to Do Accounting… It’s Required By Law

It doesn’t matter what type of business, it has to keep financial records and has to have bookkeepers and accountants. Follow the link below and find out for yourself how an education in bookkeeping and accounting will enhance your present career, increase your paycheck and provide personal and professional satisfaction.

Show Me Why Becoming a Bookkeeper or Accountant is Right For Me

What’s The Cost of NOT Starting Your Own Accounting Business?

We have been in the Accounting and Bookkeeping business since 1979 and have seen, and been a part of many successful businesses that provide write-up and daily bookkeeping services for small businesses. We have seen and put into practice the highly effective strategies, tactics and methods of Accounting and business and experienced many times over the exhilaration of dreams realized and company goals met by following what is taught in our courses.

One constant that has run over the course of the last 25+ years in the role of the accounting employee, and the inability to be paid equal to who they work for. The constraints that naturally come with such a position do not allow, in our day and age of business, to remain an accounting underling, and pay for the best in life.

Perhaps you’ve experienced these limitations yourself. The following are just some of the things we have observed about that type of a position.

• Strapped down by what someone else thinks you need to be paid – Entry level pay aside, for those who have been conducting accounting duties for years have found that their pay is determined by what someone else (usually their boss) thinks they need to be paid. Sometimes the driving factor is what the company can afford, regardless, someone else is making the decision what your time is worth.
• Kept to the 3% cost-of-living pay increase – Pay increases are limited to usually the 3% cost-of living increase that companies dole out each year. This is designed only to keep the employee on pace with inflation. Not a way to increase their bottom line and take home pay. It’s been said that when you’re just treading water you’re only one arm stroke from drowning.
• Control of your position out of your hands – How much you are paid is completely dependant on the fancy, whim or circumstance of the:
  • Economy – Businesses are smart to expand and shrink as the market demands, but most times this tactic leaves their employees high and dry. Accounting and Bookkeeping services are as recession-proof as you can get.
  • Bosses – We’ve all experienced that type of boss that doesn’t have our best interest in mind. Whether conflicts of personality, or purpose or even professional knowledge come into play, who usually wins… The boss.
  • Corporate Culture – Corporate culture with some companies can be cutthroat and demeaning. Even if it makes no difference either way it isn’t set up with your welfare in mind, but the welfare of the company. Many employees can get lost in the welfare of the Corporation.
• No matter how well you do, usually pay remains the same until your yearly review – All of us like to be rewarded in a position in what we do and when we do exceptionally well we would like that reflected in our take home pay. Most of the time this is not possible to do until HR schedules out your yearly reviews. By the time that can roll around, the momentum of that wonderful result would have lost its luster and the realized impact on the company would have waned.

So How Can All This Benefit Me?

You may be thinking, “I’m looking for work, not to go out on my own, why am I still reading this?” Frankly, for some people to be their own bosses is not in their make-up. It’s just not something that they have the discipline to do. However for those types of people like you and me, it’s time to consider and weigh the immediate pain and work for the overall results and rewards. First let me ask you this question, can you afford NOT to go out on your own with the help of the Professional Bookkeeping Course? Let’s run some numbers.

Let’s take the entry level pay for an average accountant and boost it a bit. Let’s say you are making around $20 an hour currently and you are a healthy 30-35 year old person working the normal 40 hours a week, 50 weeks out of the year. (2 weeks off for vacation of course, don’t want to work you into the ground do we?) Before taxes that’s $3200 a month or $38,400 a year, not too shabby. Not taking into consideration the taxes, health benefits and 401K situations most companies have, over the course of the next fifteen years ( and taking into the equation of the 3% yearly living expense increase each year) your earning potential only reaches $59,826 a year for a 15-year gross total of $774,025.

You’re probably thinking, “Ok, what’s wrong with making $59K by the time I’m 45 years old, three-fourth of a million dollars is a lot of money”… Yeah, look where you can be if instead of $20 an hour you were making $45 an hour on your own (taking the same formula above).

• Your starting gross yearly pay would be $86,400 (a $48,000 difference to START).
• Adjusting the 3% increase of living each year by the end of that 15 years your yearly gross income would come to a mere $134,608.
• A whopping difference of $74,782 a year between the two!
• Over the course of those 15 years you loose out on potential earning of nearly $970,000 dollars.

And this is not considering if you grow your Accounting practice to require employees and dozens of clients. This is only taking into account what you can do! So I ask again, can you afford NOT to get this program?

Nut and Bolts of the Universal Offer

All that aside and based on the program’s merits this is the best decision, and the easiest decision you can make. While developing the most comprehensive training course found in the market - chock full of 25-years worth of experience and up-to-date proven strategies, methodologies, and tactics. Crafted to the student, and taught in such a way to have everything for the beginners to the most advanced in the profession - we have given to those who have come before you this Iron-Clad Guarantee.

Getting the program is as Risk-Free and “Benefit-Full” as we could make it. A better offer is hard to find.

And we extend this Universal Iron-Clad Guarantee to you! Purchase your copy of the course today and you will have not only the Knowledge-packed course, the Iron-Clad Money-Back Guarantee but we’ll give you an additional two practice sets ($198 value). Business types that you can practice doing books on, so you can completely familiar with all the methods of the accounting process.

Practice Makes Perfect.

The three modules already contain practice sets for nine different types of businesses. Purchase the Professional Bookkeeper today and you’ll receive two more practice sets, giving you eleven in all. This will give you even more confidence and experience in various industries and the opportunity to work with additional types of clients.

In addition to the practice sets we recognize that you will need the support from Universal to help you through your coursework and answer questions that arise from all that is involved in the program. We won’t just leave you high and dry! We’ll add into this offer 6 months of Universal Coaching Support, a $585 value for FREE. You’ll have access to our Academic Coaches to be able to get your questions about the course work, but you’ll also have 6 months access to our CPA Coach to be able to answer the questions that arise when you are applying what you learn to your position. By phone or email both of these coaches are here to answer what questions may come along. This also includes the cost of $485 for the final exam for the Professional Bookkeeper’s designation. Certification to your employers that you have gone through the best possible training and have mastered everything there is to know in the program.

What’s Next For Me?

There you have it. If in the end you feel this course wasn’t worth its cost, you can get your money back! Very few opportunities like this come with a risk-free guarantee. Just add in the rest of what Universal can get to you, for FREE and this sounds like a sweet deal.

But WAIT! Hold On A Moment

We want you to be sure, we want you to be absolutely positive that this is something that you want to do. We don’t want you to have that moment in the middle of training where you could get off-track and second guess yourself. Your peace of mind, as well as our training and the effort put into the program by our instructors is too valuable to waste, even on the slightest doubt.

So, instead of giving you what enrolling into the course will run you, Universal Accounting encourages you to simply order your FREE copy of the “Introduction to The Professional Bookkeeper Program ” DVD. All we ask you to do is pay for shipping it to you, a mere $4.95. Take this opportunity by clicking here to order your copy today. You’ll be able to see after the mailing information is given for the FREE DVD, the details of what’s in each Module and the low pricing of the program.

Read it, digest it, bookmark the page and then wait for your copy of the DVD. Take a good long look at Universal and all that you can expect from such a comprehensive training course, you can’t go wrong.

Click Here to Order your FREE Copy of the “Introduction to The Professional Bookkeeper Program”

Ask Yourself: Do You Enjoy What You Do?

For way too many of us, the answer is no. Work can be hectic and stressful. Often, our careers just are not going anywhere. We need something to get them going again. The Professional Bookkeeper program gives you hands-on training in the full range of Accounting and Bookkeeping skills needed to succeed.

Learn How the Professional Bookkeeper Program Can Get Your Career Back On Track

According to the Medical Expenditure Survey Panel, only 34.1% of small businesses with less than 10 employees offer health insurance. This is largely due to the high premiums associated with employer-based insurance which went up more than 9% for the fifth consecutive year in 2005. In fact, recently Aflac conducted a survey which questioned 501 small business owners to see how they perceived health benefits to influence employee retention. 37% of those surveyed said they believe their inability to retain good employees is influenced by their health benefits (or lack thereof). 49% said they believe they can’t attract good employees without competitive health insurance.

If you’re a small business owner, this isn’t news to you. Regardless of whether or not you have employees of your own, health care is a weighty issue for the self-employed. Here are some things you might want to consider if this is something you worry about.

Small-Business Health Care Bill

While a bill recently failed to approve legislation allowing small business owners to pool together to reduce risk and lower health care costs, a revised bill may be reintroduced. Health, Education, Labor and Pensions ranking member Senator Michael Enzi sponsored the bill last year and has promised to reintroduce the health care bill to Congress again this year.

Some concerns exist that the new bill would lessen coverage to participants. And because these plans would not be restricted by state requirements, opponents argue that coverage would not be as comprehensive. Some fear it would drive up costs for services not covered by these plans.

Others are more optimistic. Senate Finance Chairman Max Baucus said, “Purchasing pools would bring together large numbers of small purchasers, both individuals and small businesses, and allow them to take advantage of group rates for coverage.”

Consumer-Driven Health Care Promoted by the President

In his State of the Union address, President Bush proposed changes to tax law that would promote consumer-driven health care. Currently tax benefits are extended to employers; changes in the tax code would enable employees enjoy the tax benefits associated with their health insurance. Employees would also be more involved in developing a plan that best suits their needs rather than picking from a menu of prepackaged plans. The changes would also increase tax benefits for the self-employed, lowering insurance premiums and increasing health care options.

Health Savings Accounts (HSA)

HSA’s are an example of consumer-driven health care. This health care plan is attractive to small business owners and their employees because it couples health insurance with a tax-deductible account with which to pay health care costs. Benefits of this plan include:

• highly-deductible health care
• a Health Savings Account which enables participants to contribute amounts equal to their deductibles
• money placed in HAS is tax deductible
• ability to roll-over HSA contributions
• penalties are not charged for participants who are over 65 and withdraw money from HSA for non-medical reasons

While health insurance may have been a sore spot for small business owners in the past, it looks as if forces are converging to make changes that would benefit the self-employed and any of their employees. Stay informed and you too can take advantage of some of these changes.

How to Go Solo and Still Keep Your Job

Full-time or part-time? Many graduates of our course have started incredibly successful businesses. But for many of our graduates, a bookkeeping and accounting business makes the perfect part-time job. How much extra income do you want to make? You can do it with a part-time bookkeeping and accounting practice.

If you want to leave your present career, but don’t feel quite ready yet, you can do that too. Ellen McGirt, Janet Pasking and Donna Rosato on CNN.money.com offer 7 steps to going solo and still keeping your current job. Let’s look at their list.

1. Scour Your Finances: As you consider going out on your own; while you still have your present job, pay down your credit cards. Set-up a line of credit that you can use before you are completely self-employed. Your first year or two in business it’s often harder to establish credit.
2. Make the Most Out of Your Current Employer: Take advantage of every opportunity to attend workshops, training, networking forums and receive tuition reimbursement. Not only will these opportunities help you prepare for your own business, but you may find yourself advancing enough in your present job that you will not need to go out on your own.
3. Hitch Your Wagon to Another Star: For many, finding a mentor helps as you prepare to start your own business. You may find that a great mentor won’t just appear and offer his/her services to you, most of the time you’ll need to ask.You may also find more than one mentor. I haven’t found a rule saying that you can only have one mentor. Surrounding yourself with a number of people who are motivated to help you advance your career is a good thing. You can often find a mentor by participating in the local chamber of commerce, other community groups or professional organizations. You can also visit web sites like score.org. (Service Corps of Retired Executives.)
4. Go Out With Style: Stay committed to your present job until you leave. Don’t short-change the employer that pays your bills now. As long as you stay, be true to the company you work for.You may also find that some of your first customers will come from within the contacts that you already have and burning bridges isn’t a very good idea. We’ve had more than one graduate who has ended up doing contract work for their former employers. Treat your soon-to-be former employer the same way you would like to be treated if you were them.
5. Line Up a Support Team: Starting your own business is often a one-man-show. This often proves a little overwhelming for the owner of a start-up. By lining up the people to offer help and advice before you’re on your own, you’ll find the stresses of starting your new business easier to take.
6. Give Yourself Away: Offering freebies, discounts and barter to pad your portfolio is often a great way to start, just remember that you can’t do it for long or you run the risk of going out of business before you start. Although it might appear tempting to try to undercut your competition, don’t. (See #7)
7. Get Paid What Your Worth: Learn to value your place in the market. If you don’t charge what you’re worth, you will eventually find yourself looking for another job. The cheapest competitor in the market is not always the best place to be. I know of many industries who automatically label the lowest bid as the unqualified bid. Get paid what your worth.

Much of this isn’t new. Some of this advice my mother gave me as a kid. Starting your own business doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing proposition. With a little planning and consideration for your present employer, you can make a smooth transition from employee to business owner.

Bookkeeping and Tax Preparation Supply an Easy Transition to Self Employment

There may be others, but I consider a bookkeeping and accounting practice the perfect opportunity to transition from employment to business ownership. The nature of this business allows thousands of people to operate a part-time business out of their home while maintaining their full-time job. You can do it too.

To learn more about how you can start a rewarding and profitable bookkeeping and accounting practice simply click on the link below. Full-time or part-time, a bookkeeping and accounting practice is the perfect transition to business ownership.

Click Here to Learn More About the Perfect Business