It’s Cyber Monday, and as is my habit, this strategy note is being composed early in the week. Plenty to do this week, and gotta get ahead, after all.
Did your Cleveland business run a sale for the holidays, or Cyber Monday or Black Friday? If not, you may have (ahem) missed out on some great selling opportunities.
The days are long gone when the actual rationale behind these days were true: remember — everyone had dial-up internet service at home, and Monday at the office was the first day after the holiday weekend that most people had access to broadband (which came through those copper T1 connections at many workplaces). So (presumably while the boss wasn’t looking), happy employees everywhere caught up on their holiday shopping online with the “lightning” speeds available of about 2 mbps.
And thus, “Cyber Monday” was born.
Now, well … most cell phone signals are exponentially faster than those days of yore, and it’s all pretty much just an excuse for a big sale. And of course we also have Small Business Saturday and Giving Tuesday thrown into the mix.
Hopefully someone will soon give “Sleep-It-Off Sunday” the attention it righteously deserves.
But anyway, we are still receiving lots of questions from Cleveland clients about the tax reform bills working their way through Congress, and I will remind you: nothing has changed until an actual bill has passed.
There aren’t many “legislative days” left on the Congressional calendar right now, but we’ll be watching it like a hawk, as usual, paying attention to it so you don’t have to!
I’ll have more to say in the coming weeks about what it might mean for you and your Cleveland business once the dust has truly settled on something.
Now … I don’t know about you, but December is pretty hectic for us here at First Tax Relief. With all of the EOY tax moves, legislature-watching, and general holiday clamor, we keep pretty busy.
Speaking of which — if you have questions about how we can help you reduce your 2017 tax bill, send me a note (Rich@FirstTaxRelief.com) or give us a call, and let’s set a time to discuss possible moves you can still make during December. (833) Low-Taxx
So with December being what it is … and moving into a very busy tax filing season, I’ve learned to place a premium on productivity. Maybe this is an area in which you also might need some re-focusing. So I have some ideas…
Get Stuff Done With Rhodes’ Productivity Tactics
“Only I can change my life. No one can do it for me.” -Carol Burnett
I’ve discovered a few tricks when it comes to getting things done through the day — and managing others who do so. Here are some little tactics I’ve found to be helpful:
1. Turn off cell phone alerts.
Resist the temptation to stop what you’re doing every time your phone beeps with a new message. You’ll be better able to focus on tasks when you’re not constantly distracted and interrupted.
2. Fine-tune your to-do list.
When planning your day, add estimated times to each item on your to-do list. This will help you decide what to do first and what can be saved for later.
3. Run two-minute drills.
Every few hours, look at your list for tasks that can be done quickly–answering emails and phone calls, confirming appointments, and the like. Spend a few minutes clearing those away, and you’ll have more blocks of uninterrupted time to take on bigger tasks.
4. Take regular breaks.
You’ll burn out if you go full throttle for eight or 10 hours. Determine how long you can effectively concentrate on a single task (usually between 30 minutes and an hour, for most people). Take a break after that time–walk around, get out of the building, talk to coworkers–and you’ll return feeling refreshed.
Let’s see your December blow the doors off of last year. Get stuff done.
Feel very free to forward this article to a Cleveland business associate or client you know who could benefit from our assistance — or simply send them our way? While these particular articles usually relate to business strategy, as you know, we specialize in tax preparation and planning for Cleveland families and business owners. And we always make room for referrals from trusted sources like you.
Warmly,
Rich Rhodes
(833) Low-Taxx
First Tax Relief
