Newspaper Page Text
If Hfimistint Umiu' |f
(imp .ijauntal
j. M
[* ; V t
■*•<?** i
! v4kj
Chris Kinnas
Investment Advice
Smart moves lor
home-based
business owners
When you run a home
based business, you have
the freedom to chart your
own course. But this inde
pendence comes with a lot
of responsibilities. You’ve
got to plan and save for your
own retirement. You’ve got
to take care of your own
taxes. You’ve got to deal
with business expenses.
Consequently, you’ve got to
learn how to make smart
financial moves.
So, if you’re contemplat
ing striking out on your
own, and you’re going to be
working out of your home,
keep these tips in mind:
• Set up a retirement
plan - right away. As soon
as you’re generating any
income, establish a retire
ment plan. A qualified
retirement plan can pay off
for you in several ways:
Your contributions typically
will be tax-deductible, your
earnings will grow tax
deferred, and you’ll have a
variety of investment
options. If your business
has no employees except
your spouse, you can choose
ifrom some attractive plans,
including a SEP-IRA and an
owner-only 401(k).
• Review your invest
ments. Now that you’re self
employed, you may need to
adjust your investment mix.
As you know, going into
business for yourself is not a
risk-free proposition; conse
quently, you may need to
lower the risk level of your
investments, or possibly
adjust your investment mix
to provide you with a
greater income stream.
Keep in mind, however, that
you’ll still need to have con
siderable growth potential
in your holdings, particular
ly if you have many years
left until retirement.
• Consistently set aside
money for taxes. If you pay
your taxes quarterly, as
many self-employed people
do, you don’t want to scram
ble for cash every three
months. So, every time you
get paid, put away some
money for taxes, preferably
in a liquid vehicle, such as a
money market account.
Generally speaking, it’s a
good idea to set aside as
much as 40 percent of your
income. Even if don’t need
all that money at tax time,
it certainly won’t hurt to
have it around. If you don’t
have enough liquid cash to
pay your taxes, you may be
forced to dip into your
investments and that
could slow your progress
toward your financial goals.
• Keep track of all poten
tial deductions. Be diligent
about claiming all business
related tax deductions, such
as percentages of your
mortgage, insurance and
utilities, office supplies,
educational materials relat
ed to your work, etc. You
can benefit greatly from
working with a tax profes
sional someone who can
tell you exactly what deduc
tions you’re entitled to
claim.
• Look for “group-buy
ing” opportunities. If you
are self-employed and work
ing out of your home, you
can feel isolated. But actual
ly, you’re not alone; there
are many other home-based
workers out there, just like
See KINNAS, page 7A
TUESDAY,
MARCH 1, 2005
r ... W ; i _
£ -nu _ ... ■ ****#.■ • MtA
gjJll fUn 9
jBBWB B| hi
submitted
The Warner Robins Area Chamber of Commerce conducted a grand opening with
a ribbon-cutting ceremony Feb. 25 for Hopes and Dreams Bridal located at 1534
Watson Blvd. Hopes and Dreams Bridal specializes in bridal gowns and formal
wear.
iii Mwm t. if #
UpP jp| * % |jß JBfcfßffv X mfe- '
Tm * Ji fiLA ®§t-
submitted
The Warner Robins Area Chamber of Commerce hosted an open house with a ribbon
cutting ceremony Feb. 23 for SRA International Inc. located at 690 Wellborn Ave. SRA
International is a leading provider of information technology services and solutions -
including strategic consulting, systems design, development and integration; and out
sourcing and operations management to clients in national security, civil government,
health care and public health organizations.
(To send in your event for
the Business Calendar, fax
the details to 988-1181, e
mail to hhj@evansnewspa
pers.com or mail to Houston
Home Journal, P.O. Box
1910, Perry, GA 31069. The
deadline for inclusion is 5
p.m. Fridays.)
Georgia Power signs Statement
of Support for Guard, Reserve
Special to the HHJ
ATLANTA - The National
Committee for Employer
Support of the Guard and
Reserve (ESGR), an agency of
the Department of Defense,
announced that Georgia
Power Company President
and CEO Mike Garrett signed
a “5-Star” Statement of
Support for the National
Guard and Reserve on Feb.
23, at the company’s head
quarters in Atlanta.
The “5-Star” Statement of
Support confirms that
Georgia Power has:
• Signed a Statement of
Support publicly demonstrat
ing its support for its employ
ees who serve in the National
Guard and Reserve.
• Reviewed its Human
Resources policies to ensure
compliance with the
Uniformed Services
Employment and Re-
Employment Rights Act Law
(USERRA).
• Promotes training for
managers and supervisors to
effectively manage its
employees who serve in the
Guard and Reserve.
• Adopted polices and pro
grams that are “Above and
Business
OPEN FOR BUSINESS
Hopes and Dreams
SRA hosts open house
BUSINESS CALENDAR
March 8: Starting your
Own Business
WARNER ROBINS - This
seminar, sponsored by the
University of Georgia Small
Business Development
Center, will teach the
requirements for starting
your own business. Topics
Beyond” what is required by
the USERRA Law.
• Is an advocate of empl iy
ee service in the National
Guard and Reserve and helps
to promote the mission of
ESGR.
“Less than 1 percent of
employers of Guardsmen and
Reservists in the United
States have achieved the ‘5-
Star’ level of recognition by
the Department of Defense,”
said Thomas Wessels, Georgia
ESGR chair. “Mike Garrett
has taken the lead by demon
strating Georgia Power’s
commitment to our Guard
and Reserve forces. By sign
ing the ‘5-Star’ Statement of
Support, Mike Garrett has
fulfilled the requirements to
be recognized by the
Department of Defense as a
patriotic employer, who has
set the standard of support
for all employers in Georgia
and southeastern United
States. It is gratifying to see
major subsidiaries of major
listed NYSE companies step
forward like Georgia Power
has.
“Several Georgia Power
employees throughout the
state are members of the
include financing, business
plan formation, legal issues,
and more.
The class will be from 6
until 8 p.m. at the ATDC
Building, 151 Osigian Blvd.
Prepaid registration is
required; cost is S4O. (478)
751-6592.
National Guard and Reserve.
We fully support the com
mitment of our active-duty
servicemen and service
women and our Guards and
Reservists. We’re proud to
have members of the Georgia
Power family who unselfishly
make the monumental sacri
fice of defending and protect
ing our nation,” Garrett said.
“It’s our honor to support
them in any way that we can.
We’re pleased to be recog
nized by the National
Committee for Employer
Support of the Guard and
Reserve for our efforts.”
Employer Support of the
Guard and Reserve (ESGRi is
a Department of Defense
agency established in 1972
whose mission is to gain and
maintain active support from
all public and private employ
ers for the men and women of
the National Guard and
Reserve as defined by demon
strated employer commit
ment to military service.
ESGR volunteers provide
free education, consultation,
and if necessary mediation
for employers of Guard and
Reserve employees.
What Is coaching?
When you hear the term
“coach,” do you think of
sports? Most people imag
ine an energetic person
pacing the sidelines of an
athletic event, calling out
instructions to the play
ers.
Consider as well the
western stagecoaches
you’ve seen on television.
Or one of those fancy
high-society carriages
you’ve seen in a turn-of
the-century movie. These
“coaches” are also a good
metaphor for coaching in
organizations, since these
vehicles take you from
where you are now to
where you want to go.
A reader asked how the
term “coach” applies in a
work setting. How does a
manager provide coaching
to a colleague or someone
under his or her authority,
for example?
Imagine that you are
facing (or just faced) a
tough situation. The expe
rience will be (or was) new
for you. Wouldn’t it be
great to have an experi
enced coach to think with
you about the options
available and to help you
mentally prepare for the
event (or to consider how
to handle it better next
time)?
A good coach would
encourage you, stimulat
ing you to competently
apply your existing capa
bilities. The coach would
help you navigate through
the obstacles you’ll face.
The coach helps you get to
where you want to go a lot
faster than if you had to
rely solely on your own
trial and error efforts.
Coaching in the work
place can occur either
before or after a specific
activity or event. Next
week, I’ll describe how to
help a colleague or a
direct report generate and
evaluate options before a
decision is made and exe
cuted.
In two weeks, I’ll
describe how to help a col
league or direct report
reflect on a recent event,
evaluate what went well
and what didn’t, and con
sider options for how the
behaviors can be
improved next time the
opportunity presents
itself.
Most managers don’t
know how to coach.
That’s not surprising,
since there is little in our
society that would pre
pare someone for that
responsibility. The
columns these next two
weeks will offer sugges
tions for ways you can
increase your skill to
serve your employees.
Assessing Your
Leadership Skills
-SBS/person
O
s
i ~ 'O'
m
Subscribe toibqr • Call 987-1813
"Have Cameras, Will Travel"
Ck , 111 SI I
PHOTOGRAPHY
Aerial I hi t(uiiiDln
iomi imrwi • r/s-iyy-H iln </<*■« mm i
Dennis Hooper
... even greater things ...
dhooper2@juno.com
For today, let’s think
about how receiving the
help of a coach is different
from other. interpersonal
helping skills.
Training delivers new
knowledge or skills. The
trainer usually controls
the agenda. In coaching,
you set the agenda, and
the coach helps you con
sider new options, reflects
with you on your current
behaviors, and then men
tally rehearses you in the
new behaviors you’re con
sidering.
Consulting focuses on
solving some particular
problem or maximizing
some unique opportunity
based on the specialized
knowledge and experience
of the consultant. In
coaching, the coach asks
questions, poses options,
and evokes answers and
choices from your own
awareness, perspective,
and experience.
Mentoring invites you
to choose your behaviors
based on the past success
es and failures of the per
son serving as mentor.
Coaching uses your
imagination and aware
ness to generate and eval
uate options that then
define your future behav
iors, selected to create
your desired outcomes.
Counseling focuses on
overcoming some past
deficit or bolstering a cur
rent limitation.
Coaching emphasizes
your strengths, building
your desired future based
on them. Coaching is
future-focused.
Coaching is a very high
level form of customized
learning. The coach sup
ports your desires to move
from whatever is your
current level of perform
ance to what you envision
“could be.” Workplace
coaching is an evolving set
of skills, part art and part
science.
If you are interested in
serving your employees as
a better coach, look for
that information in this
column over the next two
weeks.
F. Dennis Hooper
Certified
Leadership Development Coach
Building leaders and
organizations of excellence
(478)988-0237
6A
14709
dhooper2@juno.com
|14698