Have You Written a Money Letter?

Dear Reader,

Did you know that writing a simple “money” letter to your children will have more of an impact on their spending habits than just telling them your thoughts and feelings about money?

This week, why not think back to your biggest money successes and failures (these are often most helpful), put pen to paper and send your child a note that can have a deep and lasting effect on their lives? If you’re lucky, they’ll listen to your advice and you might even find yourself featured in a book, like Gail Shearer did when her daughter Kimberly wrote the book, Smart Mom, Rich Mom, based on the money letter she received from her mother.

Need advice on just what to say? Check out this article from the New York Times, The Money Letter That Every Parent Should Write.

Who Has The Higher Unemployment Rate?

This month, many high school graduates walked the stage and are now preparing for the next step in their education. Will the college training they seek really help them get a better job and make more money? According to the current unemployment statistics, the answer to that question is, Yes. Quoctrung Bui for the New York Times highlights this point in the article, The One Question Most Americans Get Wrong About College Graduates. Even when the economy is down and college grads have difficulty finding work, those with degrees have a better chance of acquiring sustainable jobs that ultimately make more money than their non-degreed counterparts.

Grandparents Help With College

As college expenses continue to increase, grandparents are beginning to step-in and offer assistance to their grandchildren. John F. Wasik, for the New York Times offers sound advice for those wishing to help with their grandchildren’s college expenses. The Best Way to Help a Grandchild With College. There are many aspects to be considered in order to maximize your monetary support of a student, such as when the money is applied or whose name appears on the account. Read the full article to learn more about the amazing gift of higher-education that you can share with your grandchildren.

Overtime and Fair Pay

Ever sat at work on a weekend or late in the evening wondering why you didn’t qualify for overtime? Salary threshold rules have not been adjusted for inflation since 1975 and currently reflect a maximum amount of $23,660 per year. The new proposed changes to the law would raise this limit to $47,476 per year, allowing a larger segment of the salaried population to qualify for paid overtime. As this legislation is coming at the end of President Obama’s term, it remains to be seen how it will fare with a new administration, but for the moment this is one more step toward fair pay for a whole new set of employees.

Making Overtime Fair Again

Google Takes A Stand

Wednesday, Google announced they would ban all ads pertaining to payday loan businesses. Customers will still be able to find these companies through an organic search on the browser but the ads will not be featured. Google has seen fit to “edit” their ad content previously as noted by Christine Hauser for the New York Times in, Google to Ban All Payday Loan Ads.

Google has taken similar action against advertisements for other products or services that it deems harmful or dangerous, such as guns, fireworks and tobacco. Last year, Google disabled more than 780 million advertisements for reasons ranging from counterfeiting to phishing.

It’s quite refreshing to see such a well known, worldwide company taking a stand of this magnitude. Go Google!

Are You Effective or Just Busy?

Mind-Your-Busyness — http://www.selfawarenessacademy.org/mind-your-busyness/

Ever have that feeling that your day will never end? Smartphones and other electronic devices make us available 24/7. Keeping our minds spinning, and making it seem that our time is constantly filled. In the Entrepreneur 360 article, 5 Ways to Stop Being Busy and Start Being Effective, four simple steps explain how we can accomplish work in the most effective way and help shed the constant feel of busy-ness.

Don’t say yes to every task.
Create time for your family and friends.
Prioritize.
Do not let others distract you.

Give it a try, and let us know how it works for you!

Save On Your Property Taxes

Were you shocked by the amount listed when you got your property appraisal in the mail recently? Did you know that protesting the appraisal is an option? Although not a simple process, it can be done by an individual. If you feel you need help with the paperwork and supporting documents, there are companies available who specialize in this type of tax appeal. You may be surprised by how much you will save on property taxes when your appraisal is lowered successfully.

2015 Tax Appraisal Tax Appeal

It’s Tax Day, Hug Your CPA

Today is one of the most stressful dates for many Americans. April 15th, Tax Day brings all kinds of worries for those who have waited to complete their tax forms and not sought the help of a CPA. On the other hand, accountants are just coming to the end of an extremely busy work season. Maureen Schwartz offers a humorous view of living with a CPA during this time and how best to care for them. Happy tax season and raise a glass to your and all CPAs in the US this monumental day! The 10 simple rules of caring for your CPA this busy season

April “Fools?”

Did you get a minion mic drop in your inbox this April Fools? Google’s famous elaborate April Fool’s pranks may have finally gone too far. This year, the idea was that you could select the “Mic drop” button on Gmail and send a .gif of a minion dropping a realistic mic. After sending, no other replies from that mail stream would come back to you. Conversation over, the end. What an amazing way to handle a never ending work email, right? Turns out that the “Mic drop” button was a little too close to the send button, causing quite a few misfires to clients and bosses. Oops. After a myriad of complaints on their Google forum, the button was removed and an apology issued.

What do you think? Did they go too far or do we all take ourselves just a little too seriously in this day and age of electronic communication?

April Fools’ Undo: Gmail Removes Its ‘Mic Drop’ Feature

What Part Does Social Media Play in Your Life?

How often do you check your social media accounts? Do they play a large part in your social or business life? You’re not alone. According to Teddy Wayne for the New York Times, 90% of 18-29 year olds and over 75% of 30-49 year olds use social media on a daily basis. But times may be changing as a small group of “holdouts” are eschewing social media, even as a marketing platform. Check out why in, Holdouts of the Social Media Age.