Sorry for being late with this month’s edition. Wayne had to travel to Charleston last Monday, we all know what day Tuesday was and then we were in court Thursday regarding Carolyn’s mother’s estate. A busy week and it is nice to sit down and write. In honor of April 15th. we start this issue with an article on how to save on next year’s taxes.

Thank you for agreeing to receive our ezine. Please feel free to forward this issue to your friends. Comments and article submissions are always welcome. Our email address is solidgoldhome@charter.net. If you wish to subscribe or view past issues please visit our website at http://www.solidgoldhomebusiness.com. If you have not already downloaded your free ebooks the email addresses are below.

Wayne and Carolyn Patterson

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Contents

Article- Keep More of Your Money with a Home Business

Commentary- More on the MCI Neighborhood

Thought for the Month from our favorite actress

Article-Five Reasons Why You Don’t Achieve Your Goals

Computer Tip

Want to Publish Your Own Ezine?

Interesting Links

Fr*e Ebooks

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Keep More of Your Money With a Home Business

By Wayne Patterson

First lets get the disclaimer out of the way. I am not an attorney or CPA and the following is not legal or financial advice. With that said, I have owned and operated my own business for over twenty-five years and have had extensive interaction with those two professions. Earning a profit is a difficult task. Much more difficult is the task of keeping that money in my own pocket. Not only do I pay exorbitant taxes at every level but governmental legislative actions have created an anti- business climate in America. My construction business is subject to laws such as the Family Leave Act, OSHA, Americans with Disabilities Act, Clean Air Act, and numerous other rules and regulations subject to interpretation at the whim of some official. While I agree with the intent of many of these laws, the effect is the closing of American businesses and the loss of American jobs. The exception is the trial lawyers who are feasting on businesses that unwittingly violate some obscure regulation.

The situation for employees is just as dismal. Workers who are lucky enough to keep their jobs are not receiving the promotions and bonuses prevalent in years past. Many companies are dropping health insurance due to the enormous increases in premiums. The courts are now allowing supervisors to be sued personally if the regulations are not followed. A frivolous lawsuit can now ruin the financial stability of the entire family. More wives are working outside the home since it is almost impossible to make ends meet on one income. Unfortunately the average working mother contributes very little to the family bank account. One study estimated that the actual take home pay of a working mother with a yearly salary of $15,000 was only $1,156.

The solution Carolyn and I found was to start a profitable home business. The main advantages of a home business are that they are exempt from many government regulations and many otherwise personal expenses automatically become tax deductible. This may be your first business opportunity and I am confident that your hard work will produce a moneymaking enterprise. I would like to share a few tips that will keep you from getting a nasty surprise next April 15th.

Your first step is to invest in a computer program to keep track of your home business. We use QuickBooks because it is cheap, adaptable to any business, and can be readily networked. Having everything in one system allows you to import all of your information into a tax program at the end of the year. I no longer stay up all night on April 14th. to beat that dreaded deadline.

Now you are ready for some specific ways to reduce your tax burden. If you have two cars, set aside one of them strictly for business. Order magnetic signs, place them on the car and take pictures. Be sure to keep a log of your miles and the business purpose. Carolyn and I just returned from a week in Las Vegas. The cost is tax deductible since we attended classes at a convention and we both participate in the business. Business income can be transferred to children or parents that are in a lower tax bracket. They must actually perform some work and the payments must be reasonable. Computers, automobiles, desks, and any other equipment used in the business are eligible for the depreciation deduction. This is true even if you purchased the items years ago and have now converted them to business use.

This is just a quick overview of the many ways a home business can improve your financial picture. Remember that it is a business and keep the proper records. Don't be afraid to ask for advice. There are many resources available on the net for free. The IRS is accessible at www.irs.gov. GosmallBiz.com has an extensive free area and their paid service allows unlimited access to professional consultants. InternetTaxHelper http://www.internettaxhelper.com/g.o/solidgold has a program designed especially for online home businesses.

If you already have a home business, then be sure that you are taking advantage of everything the law allows. If you don't have a home business, then what are you waiting for?

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Commentary

In February’s issue I warned about a television commercial for MCI. While we stopped short of calling it a scam, another ezine publisher was not so kind. Here is her story edited for space. Ok, for the Scam du Jour I'm going to say a word or two about something that happened to me personally recently. It's called "The Neighborhood" from MCI. Supposedly, I would get my phone service, caller id, voice mail, 3-way calling and 5000 minutes of long distance a month for the incredible price of only $49.95

I signed up on-line last September 25. Signing up on-line was also suppose to get me a free month! The smallest bill I have had from them so far is $103!! Well, folks, it could just be me, but that seems like a far cry from $49.95. Add that to the fact that it took them 8 weeks to actually get the service connected and the fact that they were billing before I even had the service, and this in one person who is steaming mad. Customer Service? I think their motto is: "We don't need no stinking customer service". It has been 6 months since I ordered the service. Every month I have to call them 2 or 3 times to ask them to correct the problem. And they always promise to do it, then call me that evening to tell me that I owe them money. What a lovely bunch of jerks.

I am happy to say that as of yesterday, my phone is back on Southwestern Bell and all is well.

Except that MCI called me last night to tell me that I owe them $264 for March and April! HELLO!!! ? Is it just my part of the Universe here, or is April still on its way? They threatened to disconnect my phone if I didn't "Pay Up" right there on the phone, right then. I merely said, go right ahead. But you'll have to call MY phone company to get it done. In this humble publisher's opinion, this is one company to really keep and eye on. Publisher Sheila Cain http://www.lonestarmarketing.com

If you want REAL savings on your local and long distance service then cut and paste this link in your address bar http://www.excelir.com/cpat107

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Thought for the Month

"We are taught you must blame your father, your sisters, your brothers, the school, the teachers - you can blame anyone but never blame yourself. It's never your fault. But it's always your fault, because if you wanted to change, you're the one who has got to change. It's as simple as that, isn't it?" .................... Katherine Hepburn

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5 Reasons Why You Don't Achieve Your Goals

by Julie Plenty Have you set goals for your business, personal life, career, finances only to find that you keep hitting a wall and you're not sure why? You know the saying "if you fail to plan, you plan to fail". Setting goals is fundamental to being happy and successful on your terms. You've developed your strategy - but keep missing the mark. This article gives five reasons why achieving your goals is proving so elusive.

1. You didn't really want to achieve the goal

Hello? That's right. Beneath your intention was really something else. Sometimes we set goals in response to cultural/societal expectations. You may want someone else's approval i.e. your partner, parents, colleagues. "If I do/achieve this then X will love/like/ appreciate me more"

The end result is often self-sabotage, because the goal wasn't crafted with your true desires in mind. So ask yourself who or what are you setting this goal for and ensure that it's something that you want - not for someone else.

2. Your goal clashes with your hidden, negative beliefs

You set a goal with the best of intentions - but it clashes with unconscious negative beliefs which stop you from following through. For egg you may decide to start networking to increase the profile of your business. But guess what? You hate the idea of promoting yourself in this way, because you have negative beliefs about what networking involves.

Or you may want to get a better grip on your finances and attain financial freedom, but you have unconscious beliefs about rich people (arrogant, uncaring, selfish etc). This beliefs silently trip you up and then you wonder why you didn't achieve the goal. Learn how to identify your hidden negative beliefs and reframe them so that they work for you.

3. Caught by the Value Vampires!

You were had by the Value Vampires. They are the naysayers, the doom and gloom merchants who influenced you and killed your idea in its infancy. They planted seeds of doubt in your mind and then you started to water them! Put up a "no entry" sign to Value Vampires or don't tell them your aims and goals too early, before they've had time to develop. You know who these people are!

4. No real motivation to achieve

Setting a goal should turn you on and get the juices going! If it's approached as a "should do" "ought to" - you increase your chances of not achieving it. Link the goal into a bigger picture, wider vista. Ensure that you begin to feel excited about it - imagine the possibilities that it opens up. You can try and set goals in isolation, but they work best when they're part of something bigger that you're really enthusiastic about.

5. Didn't consider obstacles or challenges

If you didn't consider the possible obstacles/challenges when setting the goal - this makes it a lot easier to fall back and give up when you meet difficulties. This isn't an excuse to make excuses to stop you doing it altogether! Just to take a slightly detached view of what could getin the way. Ask yourself what challenges you might face and how you'll deal with them - offense is the best form of defense!

And............ sometimes you didn't achieve a goal because things happened which were outside of your control. Shift happens - the best laid plans go awry. Other things take priority and it was right that they should do so. Maybe you weren't ready to achieve that goal or it wasn't right for you.

The most positive aspect of not achieving your goals is what it teaches you; what you learn about yourself along the way. Next time you don't achieve a goal - look at the above reasons, see if any relate to you, learn the lesson and move on.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Julie Plenty is a Personal and Business Coach who suffered from low self-esteem for years. She developed tips and techniques to raise her own self-esteem and turn her life around and now wants to help others do the same. For more tips visit: http://www.kickstartyourselfesteem.com/web2/toptips.html

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Computer Tip

Need to open up space on your harddrive? 1. In Windows go to Start and select "Find", then select "Files or Folders". In "Named" enter - "*.tmp" (no quotes) - and Windows will find all instances of files with the tmp extension.

Many of the files will have a size of "zero". Unless you have recently crashed your computer, you can safely delete all of the files that are there. Place your mouse on the first file and, while holding down the shift key, go down to the last one. This will highlight all the files listed, hit delete. If you are in doubt about removing a particular file - don't.

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Interesting Links

Happy Easter My Virtual Friend! http://www.geocities.com/Wellesley/Gazebo/1601/easter1.html

http://www.newbieclub.com/?solidgold - Several excellent fr*e tutorials

~*~I'm Already There~*~ http://www.brattyamanda.com/already.html - for all our trucker friends

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