Oakland County offers Facebook workshops

Business owners and entrepreneurs are invited to attend workshops in April offered by the Oakland County Business Center. This month, they are offering a series of three Facebook workshops in addition to the regular monthly seminars. held at the Oakland County Executive Office Building Conference Center 2100 Pontiac Lake Road, Waterford Township.
For registration and location specifics, visit www.oakgov.com/peds/calendar or call 248-858-0783.
Center for Empowerment & Economic Development (CEED) Microloan Orientation— Many small business owners face obstacles when trying to obtain a business loan. Topics discussed at this workshop include the requirements and process necessary to apply and obtain a microloan. This workshop is 9 to 11 a.m. Wednesday, April 4. It is free, but registration is required.
Business Research: Feasibility to Expansion is for those thinking of starting a business and business owners who want to benchmark profit margin and other measures against similar size businesses in the industry. This workshop is presented by the Oakland County Business Center, Market Research Division and an Oakland County Public Library business reference librarian. It is 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, April 4. It is free but registration is required.
Fundamentals of Marketing Your Business — Marketing is an essential of business success. techniques and marketing principles to help promote products and services to the most promising customers. Presented by The Michigan Small Business & Technology Development Center (MI-SBTDC), this workshop is 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, April 4. The fee is $40 per person.
Small Business Loan Workshop — Learn the “5 C’s of Credit,” how to develop a winning loan proposal. Presented by The Service Corps of Retired Executives (SCORE), U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and the Oakland County Business Center, this workshop is 9 a.m. to noon, Thursday, April 5. The fee is $20 per person and includes handouts and SBA Source Book. Make checks payable to SCORE.
Facebook for Business (Beginner) — Facebook and social media is a powerful business tool that can connect businesses with customers, potential customers and the world. This workshop is 6 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, April 10. The fee is $40 per person.
Fundamentals of Starting a Business is a seminar for anyone thinking about going into business. Participants examine their entrepreneurial skills, learn how to implement their ideas and receive a list of pitfalls to avoid when starting a business. This workshop is 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, April 11. The fee is $30 person.
Oakland County Venture Forward is an 11-week program designed for owners, CEOs and top management team members of businesses with at least two years of operating experience. The class is 8:30 to 11:30 a.m. Friday, April 13 through June 15. The fee is $299 per person. All applicants need to be pre-qualified.
Facebook for Business (Intermediate) — In this Intermediate session of Facebook for Business attendees establish social media objectives and goals for Facebook, create a Facebookstrategy and schedule. Prerequisite for this session is Facebook for Business Beginner. This class is 6 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, April 17. The fee is $40 per person.
Fundamentals of Writing a Business Plan is a workshop for small business owners who are developing a plan to serve as their road map to success. Workshop participants learn what elements are commonly found in effective plans and work on developing each of these for their own business. The workshop is 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, April 18. The fee is $40 per person.
Oakland County CRA Association: Small Business Money Smart (Banker’s) Forum — This free financial forum, sponsored by the Oakland County Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) Association, offers entrepreneurs up-to-date information on sources of funds and valuable business support resources. Bank-ready entrepreneurs can meet one-on-one with bankers. The presenters are representatives from the City of Pontiac, Pontiac Regional Chamber of Commerce, Oakland County CRA Association members (bankers), Oakland County Business Consultants, Oakland County Business Finance Corporation Loan Officers, Oakland County CEED Microlender and Detroit Micro-Enterprise Fund lender. This workshop is 8 a.m. to noon Friday, April 20. Registration is required.
Legal & Financial Basics for Small Business provides new and existing Michigan entrepreneurs an understanding of the “key” legal and financial considerations when starting and operating a business in Michigan. Presented by Witzke Berry & Carter PLLC, this workshop is 9 a.m. to noon, Tuesday, April 24. This workshop is free, registration is required.
Facebook for Business (Advanced)— In this Advanced session of Facebook for Business attendees will establish objectives and goals for a Facebook campaign, create and Launch a Facebook campaign, build a complete multi-channel, social media-enabled marketing strategy, grow your base of fans and engage participants, learn how to advertise with Facebook, and how to effectively target your advertisements and learn how to run effective Facebook promotions and/or sweepstakes.
Prerequisites for this session are Facebook for Business (Beginner) and Facebook for Business (Intermediate).
This class is 6 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, April 24. The fee is $40 per person.
5 Keys to Achieving Fiscal Fitness — This workshop provides the business owner an in-depth look at the essentials of using financial information to make effective decisions about improving their business performance. This class will be held on Thursday, April 26, from 8 a.m. to noon. The fee is $25 per person.
For registration and location specifics, visit www.oakgov.com/peds/calendar or call 248-858-0783.

Success is the top priority

It may seem silly, but the pursuit of success often gets put on the back burner. Too often, businesses and workers go into complacent survival mode. Simply taking a step back and rethinking the approach to a task can usually make a dramatic difference in the outcome. At the very least, it can improve the worker's attitude.

Sometimes it's impossible to take time for that. This should not be a constant scenario. There should be time periodically, to shift gears, evaluate what's happening, listen to new ideas and be open to change.
While planning is good, there shouldn't be too much time spent in planning or research or else the goal gets too far away. When describing a solution to a team, use examples either visual or spoken, to "show" what you mean. Use a trial run, to test an idea.

Priorities should center on what brings success. If an activity doesn’t seem to be productive, then ask why does it need to be done. If a process seems cumbersome, maybe there is a way to streamline it or break it into bite size segments to do later.

Tips for taxes without tipping the government

American Institute of CPAs offers 10 tips for filing your 2011 tax return

 Tax season is here again. While individual tax returns are not due until April 17 this year, America’s CPAs remind taxpayers that not waiting till the last minute will make filing easier and the process smoother.

Here are 10 questions and answers from the American Institute of CPAs to help make sure you pay no more taxes than you should and to give you peace of mind that you’ve done everything required.

Q.        How do I get ready to file my tax return?

A.        Gather your W-2s and 1099s. The simplest thing to do is also the most important: Keep the W-2 and 1099 forms you receive where you won’t lose them and where you can easily find them. You can’t complete or file your returns without them.

Q.        What else do I need to do?

A.        Collect your other records: Round up all of the receipts, canceled checks and other documents that support the income, deductions, and credits you’ll be reporting or claiming on your return. This is especially important for taxpayers who keep their paperwork in the proverbial “shoe box.” Whether you prepare your return yourself or work with a Certified Public Accountant, the better shape your records are in the more likely you will be paying only what you owe. More tips to get started preparing your tax return are available on the AICPA’s 360 Degrees of Taxes website.

Q.        When is my federal tax return due this year?

A.        You have two extra days this year. Your 2011 tax return must be filed by midnight Tuesday, April 17.  

Q.        How do I know if I can take some special tax breaks?

A.        Know if you qualify: Many taxpayers don’t think about the special tax provisions that may apply to them and often pay more tax than they need to pay because of it. The special provisions include the earned income tax credit, the child tax credit, the American opportunity credit and the adoption credit. Check with your local CPA or the official IRS website to see if you qualify.

Q.        What are some deductions I might be able to take?

A.        Take advantage of everything the tax code allows: Your 2011 tax return could be your last chance to claim credits for energy-efficient home improvements or other provisions that are set to expire at the end of this year unless Congress extends them.  Expiring provisions include deductions for tuition and fees, educator expenses, mortgage insurance premiums, and the option to include your state and local sales taxes paid as an itemized deduction.  Review some tax savings strategies on the AICPA’s 360 Degrees of Taxes website.

Q.        Can I deduct my health insurance premiums if I am self-employed?

A.        It depends. If you’re self-employed, you may be able to deduct 100 percent of health and long-term medical costs for yourself, your spouse, and your dependents. This deduction is taken as an adjustment to income and it can only be taken if the self-employed person or spouse is not covered by an employer health insurance plan.

Q.        How should I prepare and file my tax return?

A.        Consider all your filing options: There are many different ways you can complete and file your tax return. You can prepare it yourself or go to a professional tax return preparer. You may also be eligible for free face-to-face help at an IRS office. And e-filing will make that last-minute dash to the post office unnecessary.  Don’t wait to the last minute; give yourself time to weigh all the different options and find the one that best suits your needs. 

Q.        What should I do if I don’t understand something?

A.        Get answers to your questions: You’re not alone. Regardless of whether they’re basic or advanced, you need and deserve answers to the almost inevitable questions you’re going to have about what you owe, how you complete your forms and how you file. The official IRS website is a great place to find answers to the standard questions. And your local CPA can help you determine how the law applies to your specific situation. The AICPA’s 360 Degrees of Taxes website includes an Ask a CPA feature.  The worst thing to do is not to ask.  

Q.        What is the fastest way to get a refund?

A.        Direct deposit: If you choose to have your refund directly deposited into your bank account, you’ll receive it considerably faster than a paper check.

Q.        What can I do to speed up processing my tax return?

A.        Review! The most common mistakes made by taxpayers – incorrect Social Security numbers and bad math calculations will slow down the refund process. The good news is that they’re also the easiest to correct if you take the time to check your return before it’s filed.

Five ways to know when you’re done

Submitted by Dottie DeHart of DeHart & Company Public Relations
Click here for a review of Your Best Just Got Better

Hoboken, NJ (March 2012)—There simply aren’t enough hours in the work day (or even the work week!) to accomplish everything on our to-do lists. Worse yet, when we finally do get on a productivity roll, there always seems to be a distraction (or two, or three) waiting in the wings to throw us off course. But the reality, says Jason Womack, is that we could actually accomplish a lot more each day if we would just learn to recognize and acknowledge when we’re done with what we’re doing.
“One of the biggest time wasters we all face is spending too much time on those things that don’t require it,” says Womack, a workplace performance expert, executive coach, and author of the new book Your Best Just Got Better: Work Smarter, Think Bigger, Make More (Wiley, February 2012, ISBN: 978-1-118-12198-6, $24.95). “It often seems that we put off the most important things on our to-do lists until we feel like we have the ‘time’ to work on them,” notes Womack. “When you learn to recognize when you’re done with projects, big and small, you’ll immediately find that you have a lot more time than you thought you did. Time you can use to focus on those things that truly matter.”

Stop majoring in the minors. Many of us spend a lot of time on those projects and tasks that are easy for us. Then, we convince ourselves that we “just didn’t have enough time” to get to the harder stuff. But when it comes to knowing when you’re done and freeing up time during your day, completing these easy tasks quickly and efficiently is essential.
“Before you start your work day, think about what your high leverage activities are and what your low leverage activities are,” says Womack. “For the low leverage activities, force yourself to move through them as quickly as possible. With these tasks—for example, writing an email to a colleague—perfection isn’t necessary, and there’s no need to waste time wringing your hands over every word. When you can accomplish these minor tasks more efficiently, you’ll have the time you need to do those major tasks justice.”
Don’t overwrite emails. Much of your time—probably too much—each day gets eaten up by email. Make a conscious effort to keep your emails as short and sweet as possible. “Get to the point quickly and use action verbs in subject lines so that both you and the recipient know what needs to happen before the email is even opened,” advises Womack. “And while long emails waste the time it takes you to write them, keep in mind that the person receiving the email doesn’t want to have to spend so much time reading it either. Chances are your boss doesn’t want or need a three-paragraph rundown of how your client meeting went. He just wants to know if the client is happy and continuing business with you.”
Quit over-staying at meetings and on conference calls. Often meetings and conference calls will take as long as you’ve allotted for them. Set an hour for a meeting and you’re sure to go the full hour. “Pay close attention to how much of your meeting is actually spent focused on the important stuff,” notes Womack. “If you spend 15 to 20 minutes at the beginning or end of the meeting discussing your coworker’s golf game, then next time reduce the amount of time allotted for the meeting. And always know the meeting’s or call’s objectives before you begin. That way you can get to them right away.”
Set your own deadlines and stick to them. It’s very easy to get distracted or sidetracked by things you think you should do or things others think you should do. “Having a self-imposed deadline will help you ignore those distractions,” says Womack. “If a colleague calls you about a non-urgent task, you can let him know you’ve got a 3:00 p.m. deadline that you have to meet. There’s no need for him to know that it’s self-imposed! And then as 3:00 p.m. draws near, start wrapping up that particular task.”
Know when it’s time to ask for help. Have you ever been stumped by a certain project or task? Did you walk away from it for a while and then come back to it hoping you’d suddenly know what to do? Sometimes knowing when you’re done is knowing when you, specifically, can’t take a project any further. “You simply might not have the right expertise to completely finish a certain project,” says Womack. “And that’s okay. Wasting time on something you’re never going to be able to figure out is much worse than asking for help!”
“When you put in place steps to help you know when you’re done, you’ll be surprised and pleased with how much, well, you can get done,” says Womack. “It will truly free up time in your day that you can use to focus on areas where it’s really needed. As a result, you’ll have a more gratifying work day and you’ll be happier overall.”
For more information, visit www.womackcompany.com.

Sending photos to The Oakland Press

Working at a newspaper, I receive many emails with photos. It’s nice that people typically email them as .jpg files. Those are the best. (We can also use tiffs). The quality of submitted photos is usually pretty good but sometimes not good enough for the process that photos go through to end up on a newspaper page. The printing process can stress the quality of a good photo.

For starters, the size of the photo needs to be 300 KB or larger, unless it’s a portrait picture of an individual. Even those need to be larger than 50 KB. We can't use photos that are copied from a website.

The next big thing is focus. If it is blurry to look at it, it will not print well. Digital cameras are great and inexpensive. But there is one thing people often don’t realize. You need to depress the shoot button slightly, to engage the automatic focus before taking the snapshot. That makes a sharper photo.

Photos with people in them are always preferred. We need the names of anyone in the photo, from left, unless there is more than 30.

As far as composition, check that there is nothing distracting or blocking the view of the point of interest. There are other things you can do to make the photo more interesting. If it’s an action shot, give room in front of the direction of movement.

If you have the opportunity for multiple shots, take several and then decide on the best 2 to send to the newspaper. We usually only use 1 photo per story.

 If you have a business-related photo and story, send to kathy.blake@oakpress.com. For a local news story and photo, send to julie.jacobson@oakpress.com. For a feature-type story and photo, send to monica.drake@oakpress.com.
If you have any questions, feel free to call The Oakland Press newsroom at 248-745-4619.

Business calendar

March 6: Detroit Economic Club meets
The Detroit Economic Club presents The Honorable Fred Hochberg, chairman and president, Export-Import Bank of the U.S., 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., Tuesday, March 6. The cost is $45 club members and $55 for guests of members; $75 for non-members. Visit www.econclub.org or call 313-963-8547 for additional information.

March 7: Real Estate Investors host Mr. Landlord
“Mr. Landlord” (Jeffrey Taylor), a nationally known landlording expert and author, will speak on finding qualified prospects, having tenants leave the property in move-in condition and how to increase monthly cash flow when filling vacancies at the regular meeting of the Real Estate Investors Assoc. of Oakland 5:30-9:30 p.m. Thursday, March 8 at Club Venetian, 29310 John R. Road, Madison Heights. The seminar is free to members and $20 for nonmembers. Visit www.REIAofOAKLAND.com or call 800-747-6742 for information.

March 8: HR summit
Walsh College presents an HR Summit 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., Thursday, March 8 at Walsh College 3838 Livernois Road Troy. The program will cover the role of management in inspiring, motivating and cultivating employee performance. Walsh Professor of Management Dr. Lee Meadows will lead a panel discussion of best practices. Keynote speaker Gail D. Cober Director, EEOC Detroit Field Office Cober will provide practical advice to employers about dealing with the EEOC. She will also share what the EEOC looks for when they investigate. Tickets are $15 for Walsh students and $45 for all others and can be purchased at thewalshinstitute.com/lchottopics.

March 8: Toastmaster Open House
Farmington Hills Windbaggers Toastmaster Club offers a supportive, learning environment to learn public speaking and listening. The meeting is 6:30-8:30 p.m. Thursday March 8 at Kerby’s Koney Island, 21200 Haggerty Road, Farmington Hills.

March 9: International business plans
Automation Alley, a technology business association, will host a two-day seminar titled “Building Globally Focused Strategic Plans,” Friday, March 9 and Friday, March 23. Hosted in collaboration with the Michigan State University Broad School of Management, this hands-on seminar will provide participants with expert advice and coaching to begin developing their own strategic plans.
The cost to attend is $149 for members and $199 for non-members. Pricing includes both dates. You must attend on March 9 to be able to attend on March 23. Space is limited. Register at automationalley.com or call 800-427-5100.

March 14: Rochester chamber luncheon
The Rochester Regional Chamber of Commerce Business Exchange Luncheon is 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, March 14, at River Crest Banquet Hall, 900 W. Avon Road in Rochester Hills. Early registration is $25. Reservations are required at www.rrc-mi.com or email info@rrc-mi.com . Please be advised that Avon Road will be closed between Rochester and Livernois.

March 14: Mediation luncheon
Mediation Matters luncheon is noon to 1 p.m. Wednesday, March 14 at Oakland Mediation Center, 550 Hulet Dr. # 102  Bloomfield Hills. For more information, call 248-338-4280 or visit www.mediation-omc.org

For more calendar events or to post your own event on The Oakland Press website, visit theoaklandpress.com/calendar