A recent survey from Wachovia Bank shows we women must start to take control of our financial future NOW. The third annual fitness survey of 2008 along with Richard Day research and the U.S. census bureau show that only 30% of women track and manage retirement assets compared to 58% of men. 17% of women make investment decisions compared to 49% of men. Why? What are we afraid of?

I want to challenge everyone who is reading this blog to start today and get control of your financial life. I am not a financial guru. I am someone who has won and lost with investing but is still in total control of my finances and has a financial retirement plan. You’ve got to start somewhere. If it is just a little seed money, grow that seed corn because no one else will!

I am challenging you not to be dependent on your husband or partner or your children or anyone else! Please, listen to Lisa….if I can do, this so can you!!! Not sure where to start? Email me and I can suggest some publications or people to help you get started. Today, we celebrate Independence Day. But are we truly independent? Think about it!

Have a happy 4th!

Here are 12 questions you should ask someone doing work for you to determine if the person is truly qualified as an independent contractor: Please assess your contactor today to see if they meet these independent contractor guidelines.

1. Who has the right to control the activities of the person?
2. Who supplies the tools of the trade? Again, hope it’s not you!
3. Who provides the workplace?
4. What costs are borne by the worker?
5. Can the worker profit from his/her skills?
6. What special skills are required?
7. Do you train the worker?
8. Is the relationship long-term vs. short-term?
9. Is the service he/she provides part of your business?
10. How are payments made?
11. Does the worker get fringe benefits?
12. Does the worker see herself as an independent contractor?

Well, our 2007 tax year is over and if you are like me, we missed an opportunity to save more on our corporate taxes. Believe it or not, we should start planning for our next tax return NOW. Here three easy things you can do now that may save you dollars down the road.

1. Equipment Purchases: Don’t wait until December to start thinking of buying that copy machine! If you need a major piece of equipment for your business, you could deduct this expense under Section 179 of the IRS code. This year, that expense is up to $128,000–this is an offset expense against any expected profit.

2. With the start of summer consider giving your kids summer jobs. Hiring your high school child to work in the office is a great way to pass tax-free income to your kids. You get a deduction, and if you are paying your child less than $5,300 per year, he or she will experience no tax either!

3. Make sure you fund whatever IRA or Qualified Plan you have established!

Summertime is usually vacation time for most of us. Make sure your checklist includes protecting your home and office so you can enjoy your time off and not worry.

1. Arrange for someone trustworthy to handle your voice messages.

2. Set up an out of office email auto-responder so people know you are not ignoring them.

3. Alert key people of your vacation in advance of your upcoming absence.

4. Pay your bills in advance.

5. Consider installing a home security system if you don’t have one.

6. Have trusted neighbors or family members routinely check on your home or office.

7. Have someone pick up your mail and newspapers. Or instruct the post office to hold your mail.

8. Leave a light on an automatic timer to go on when it starts to get dark.

9. Advise the local police that you will be gone and ask if they can drive by occasionally.

By being proactive and taking these simple steps your vacation should be worry free, at least on the home front! Enjoy and happy summer.

As women business owners we are so involved with making our business a success that we may fail to plan for the growth or future of our business. I have listed the top five most significant challenges we as business owners face regardless of size, location or industry.

1. Succession planning. As much as we love what we do, reality is that we will not be able to run our business forever. Caring for a loved one, illness or just plain change of lifestyle could happen at any time to any one of us. Succession planning is imperative to leave the legacy to what you have started.

2. Recruiting and selecting talented employees. I don’t know about you, but I have had challenges finding and trusting the right people for the right job that will do whatever is necessary to help achieve the vision.

3. Retaining talent. You spend tons of money, effort and time training the new employee only to discover they will move on to what they perceive are better pastures. The best way I know of to retain talent is to give incentives to have them stay with you. Everyone has an opinion as to what incentives would WOW someone. I believe if you want to retain talent, you have to give pats on the back and make people feel needed.

4. Providing leaders with the skills to be successful. Continuing education for your future leaders makes them feel important and gives you peace of mind. Whether you send them back to college for an advanced degree, or to Toastmasters to get comfortable with public speaking, the person will feel rewarded and know you are grooming them for something important in their future. They will work hard to prove you right!

5. Rising health care costs. Not all employers pay for health care for their employees. There are a variety of different options out there if you elect to do this for your staff. We spend a lot of money making sure our employees are insured. I believe it helps set us apart and makes an employee grateful.

Getting a good accountant to advise you could make all the difference to the financial success of your business. The key is to get an accountant who understands your business and knows exactly what you want from them.

There are two types of accountants you will need as you continue to grow:
1. An in-house accountant which could be a part-time bookkeeper, or if you are just starting out and are accounting savvy, you could do this yourself.

2. An outside professional. Even if you are not making a lot of money, I encourage you to retain an outside accountant.

The best way to find an accountant who can service your needs:
- Ask others in your community who they would recommend.
- If you belong to any civic associations ask your fellow members for a reference.
- Go through the local AICPA chapter where you live to get a listing of accountants.

Make sure you interview a few accountants first before you select one. It’s important to see if you connect as they will be doing YOUR books, and you need to build a sense of trust. Also, a good listener is imperative as they do need to understand the financial area of your business plan in order to help you achieve your financial objectives.

As your business grows, you can always obtain additional advisors, but an accountant needs to be with you from the start to help keep you straight. After all, you need to be out there do business development, pr, customer service, the web, etc.etc.etc….

Attention Investors! I will be presenting at the NoteWorthy Convention (October 2-5) in Las Vegas, Nevada! Wise Women has made special arrangements for you to attend this valuable convention at a reduced price -click here for registration form. Hope to see you there!

Last weekend, Hillary Clinton officially backed out of the race for President and showed her support for Barack Obama. No matter what your political views are there is a lesson here for all of us who are trying to climb the corporate ladder, build their business or whatever we deem to succeeding in life.

By showing she has the brains and the brawl to run, she has made the path to the White House smoother for those who will follow. Even her harshest critics admit she is smart, tough, disciplined and incredibly hardworking.

Thanks to Hillary, there cannot be many Americans left who still doubt that a woman could be president. The real message here is thanks to Hillary Clinton’s highly visible example, it more plausible and more socially acceptable for Americans in every field of endeavor to imagine a woman at the top.

So we all owe her a debt of gratitude.

Ask any successful business owner, “What is the secret to your success?” and you will find the answer in a hurry. Here’s a clue: it’s not just about money….it’s about people!

1. Find the right employee (people), for your team.

2. Get continual feedback from the customers (people), so you can improve your customer service, business relationships, etc.

3. Ask for referrals (people!)

Listening to and acting upon people is crucial for growing a successful business. If you can keep people in the forefront of your business goal setting, campaigns and offerings, you will find success and make money! Remember, successful women business owners always use the Golden Rule of treating others the way you want to be treated.

Did you know that at least 40% of seats on company boards in Norway must be held by women? Corporations there are embracing women! In 1993, this number was at 3%. Sweden is number 2 with 21.3%, Britain is number 3 with 15.2% and then the U.S. is 4th with 14.8%. Most of us who sit on boards of companies or associations have had to fight our way up the ladder. With the mandate in Norway, companies actually recruit, train and put future professional and entrepreneurial women through the company culture to where they can eventually end up as CEO. Interesting isn’t it?