As the year is winding down, you can still make decisions that may lower your tax bill. Here are five for you to consider with input from your accountant:

1. Review your business books. You need a clear picture of your earnings and expenses before you make any decisions. Ask your accountant or bookkeeper if you should be tracking something you aren’t.

2. Defer income. Unless you expect to make considerably more income in 2011 when our tax rates will likely be higher, you might want to defer income until after the first of the year. If this is the case, send out your invoices late this month so you won’t receive payment until January.

3. Increase your expenses. Stock up on business equipment and supplies before year end. Pay some of your bills early.

4. Contribute to your retirement plan. Review requirements for payments to your plan. If you don’t already have an individual 401(k), you may want to set up one before the end of the year.

5. Give. Charitable donations are tax deductible if you have a receipt.

These strategies apply differently to each business owner based on her particular situation. Since I’m not a financial professional, take time to discuss your strategy with your personal tax advisor.

The International Association of Professional Quilters offers resources and networking opportunities for you to create a success from your quilting business. Learn about all the benefits of IAPQ membership and join here.

Fall seems to be ripe with opportunities for you to donate your work, whether that’s your original artwork or your product, such as a pattern or book. We all receive letters from charitable organizations, including guilds, asking for donations. While it’s wonderful to support so many worthwhile organizations, you cannot support them all. You may not have enough stock nor time to create more. And, if you respond to all the requests, your business could take a serious financial hit. On the plus side, you may get some media coverage and gain a collector of your work. When considering such requests, here are some suggestions/guidelines:

1. Choose a few charities that you care about and give to them. I’m partial to the Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative. Many quilters have given to Fiberart for a Cause. Kathy Thompson with Quilters Dream Batting has started a project for ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease). The Quilts of Valor is another popular project. It will be easy to find a charity that touches your heart.

2. If you are an artist who is asked for a donation, consider asking the organization to share in the proceeds if your piece is auctioned. Ask that a reserve (or minimum) price be set for your work. This is particularly true if you are donating a one-of-a-kind piece of a great value. The organization still receives a fair return, and you should be able to recoup the costs of your materials. If you donate a great deal of artwork that sells for lower prices, this could “devalue” your artwork to your regular audience.

3. Remember that you are only permitted to write off on your taxes the costs of your materials. You are not permitted to write off the value of your art and your time. Perhaps you’ll find a better option is to make a monetary donation that you can deduct fully.

4. Consider offering prints or giclees of your work in lieu of the original artwork. Check our blog for the post on giclees or refer to Issue 112 of The Professional Quilter for the full article.

5. Consider who receives your donation. I regularly receive requests from guilds across the country to donate something for their annual show or shop hop. Since our audience is limited to professionals, I have no way of knowing if a professional will win the prize. If I choose to make a donation, I do it as a gift certificate and include information about IAPQ. Hopefully a professional will take me up on the gift.

6. Sending a gift certificate, as I do, is an option for many, particularly with the requests for guild shows. Pattern designers can send a pattern – either new or one that is no longer being produced – or a gift certificate with a catalog. Longarm quilters, already so generous with their time, can offer to quilt a top for someone who is making a charitable donation.

What are you guidelines or suggestions for donations?

The International Association of Professional Quilters offers resources and networking opportunities for you to create a success from your quilting business. Learn about all the benefits of IAPQ membership and join here.

When I was on vacation in Florida last month, I took a water aerobics class. One morning the instructor noted that we only had four months left in the year to accomplish our goals. While she was referring to our health goals, we now have three months to accomplish our other personal or business goals. How close to your goals are you? I know I still have some work to do on mine. One tool I use could be called “The Power of Five.” I’ve probably always used some form of this concept, and Jack Canfield coined it the “Rule of 5” in his book The Success Principles

Simply take five steps towards your goal each day. They don’t have to be big steps; they can be baby steps. For example, if one of your goals is to promote your new pattern, sending a sample with a letter to five different distributors counts as five steps. The steps don’t have to big ones, just ones that move you towards your goal. And, I think that often the small steps get you there faster; they make the goal seem less overwhelming. Of course, to do this you have to break down the goal into specific steps, often referred to as “chunking.”

I use the concept several ways. I have a running list of things that need to be done for a project, and I can decide the night before what I will accomplish the next day. Then I use my calendar to note the five things I did accomplish. That lets me see that I am progressing towards my goal. And some days I don’t get five. That doesn’t really matter as long as I’m taking some action towards my goal. It’s about persistence with one step followed by another step.

The International Association of Professional Quilters offers resources and networking opportunities for you to create a success from your quilting business. Learn about all the benefits of IAPQ membership and join here.

With the travel I’ve had this month and that I see ahead – hello, Houston and its deadlines – I have to be quite organized to get it done. Here are some tips for accomplishing all that’s on your to-do list.

1. Start with a written plan. Clear, written goals are essential. What is the major goal and what are the sub-tasks? For example, my trip to our industry shows, Quilt Market and Quilt Festival in Houston, is a major goal. It has a number of sub-goals, including creating handouts for the two classes I will be teaching, developing a look for the booth, shipping supplies, developing an order form, etc. I have written out all the specific tasks for each sub-goal in my plan. It lets me focus easily and assures I don’t forget anything.

2. Prioritize the tasks and set deadlines. You need to determine when all the sub-tasks need to be done for the goal to be completed. In the case of Quilt Market/Festival, we know it takes place beginning Oct. 29, so I create a schedule backwards showing when my display materials and class materials need to be shipped. I also like to build in a little extra time. And, you might find out that not everything on your list will get done, so focus first on those activities that have the greatest impact on your business results.

3. Make a daily schedule. Take time either first thing in the morning or the night before to plan your day. Then take daily action toward your goals. How you work toward your goals will vary. You may like to work on one project to completion or divide your day into large blocks for different tasks. In my case, I plan to work on the handouts for my classes on one day and then ship the materials this week. That way they are done, I can check them off the list, and I won’t rush at the last minute.

4. Create and use systems if possible. I have a checklist for booth supplies for trade and retail shows. When it nears time for me to pack my supplies to ship, I get out my checklist, note any additions I may have added at the last show, and print a revised copy to use. I allow extra time in case I need to replace something on the list, e.g., masking tape or a new bulb.

5. Not everything on your list will get done. Remember the 80/20 rule. Twenty percent of your activity results in 80 percent of your results. Concentrate on work in the 80 percent; that’s where your ROI (return on investment) will be.

6. And, finally, let go of perfectionism.This is a hard one for me. One of my mentors says to work to “good enough.” It might be that you set a timer for some of the tasks and what you accomplish in that time is “good enough.”

One of my favorite resources for getting things done is Eat That Frog! by Brian Tracy. The book’s title references a quote from Mark Twain: “Eat a live frog every morning, and nothing worse will happen to you the rest of the day.”

Brian goes on to offer his own two rules about “frogs,” your most important task. “The first rule of frog eating is this: If you have to eat two frogs, eat the ugliest one first. The second rule of frog eating is this: If you have to eat a live frog at all, it doesn’t pay to sit and look at it for very long.” So when I have lots on my plate, I look for the frog and start there.

How do you handle getting everything done on your list?

The International Association of Professional Quilters offers resources and networking opportunities for you to create a success from your quilting business. Learn about all the benefits of IAPQ membership and join here.