Simply Junior

If you are a small business owner and you want to get an intern, then you are already on the right track to growing and expanding your business. Unlike larger, more established businesses, small business owners don’t have a human resources department that can help create an internship program. To further complicate the matter, most small business owners are so busy that they don’t think they have the time to manage an intern even if they got one. Internships come in many different forms, but there are certain steps that everyone must take to ensure that the internship is a valuable experience for both the employer and the student. In this article, we are going to cover the legal issues surrounding internships, how to effectively structure the internship program, and some quick tips on how to mentor and manage an intern.

Before you start hiring interns, you are going to want to seek the advice of your attorney to make sure the internship opportunity is in accordance with the Department of Labor’s (DOL) regulations. The DOL outlines the legal requirements for compensation that distinguishes between an intern and an employee. If you plan on hiring interns for paid positions, then you shouldn’t have too much to worry about with legal issues. However, if you plan on hiring interns for unpaid positions or offering to help them receive academic credit, then you need to be extremely careful when designing the internship. The debate about unpaid internships is currently a very hot topic, so you should always consult your legal representative before you create an internship program.

Once the legal requirements are out of the way, you can create an internship program. One of the biggest things colleges look for when approving employers to offer internships is honesty in the job description. Many small business owners try to get an intern to help relieve them of some of their busy work, like filing or organizing mail. Most colleges will instantly deny a request like this because they want their students to get real world experience related to their major. A good rule for employers to follow is to have the intern spend no less than 75% of their time working on real projects. If you don’t have a ton of work for the intern on a particular day, you can always let the intern sit in on meetings and conferences. This may sound trivial to you, but it can be a major learning experience for the intern. Structuring your internship to be learning based will be mutually beneficial to both you and the intern. You get an intern to help you on your projects and an extra set of ears in case you miss anything from meetings. At the same time, the intern gets to work on real projects and gain professional experience.

One of the top reasons that small business owners say they don’t hire interns is because they don’t think they have enough time to manage an intern. However, the amount of productivity that an intern can bring to a small business is worth the time to get an intern. By giving feedback and guiding the intern in the right direction, you can make sure that you are receiving high quality work. Many companies hire interns with the end goal that when they graduate they will be able to be promoted to a full time position. By being a good mentor, you can establish a professional relationship with the intern and understand their capabilities better than you ever could through an interview.

So sometimes as we are paying and preparing our taxes online we realize something; we need to file an extension. Sometimes it happens because have a financial situation where we may not be able to pay on time, sometimes if you are like me you may have lost your job due to economic problems, so you want to save your money to pay off other bills as well such as the utility. If you need to file for a tax extension, you should file for a free online tax extension. It is much easier than filing in the old fashioned method and you won’t suffer the consequences of paying your taxes late. So in hard times, the best thing to do if you are worried about filing taxes and still having money to pay the other bills is to file for a tax extension so that way, no punishments come such as fines and you can do it online so that way you save time and money.

If you file a tax extension in the old fashioned method using pen, paper and actual forms; you have to actually pay to file the extension. If you do them online, then they are free. The free online tax extension is also much easier to do and much more convenient. There is no need to take time to go to the local IRS, pick up the forms after searching for who knows how long to find the proper form. All you need to do for the free online tax extension is go on the IRS website, select the form very easily and download the PDF. After you fill out the form you email it to the IRS and they will send you an online confirmation. This is much quicker than going sending by standard mail which could take a much longer time to be recieved by the IRS.

When there is a free online tax extension form on the internet, no one should have to suffer the consequences of paying their taxes late. If you pay your taxes late without filing, the IRS will not be happy. They may charge you a fine and make you pay even more as a result. Not only is this bad enough, but they could also deny you your refund; imagine how terrible that would be…especially if you really needed it to help pay the bills. Now the extensions are free, so everyone should take advantage especially during these harsh times.

The free online tax extension is a great tool we have know for filing taxes. We should use it to the fullest in hard times so that way we can still be able to support ourselves. Remember, no one can screw around with taxes because in the end, they are the ones who will lose.

All of us have a million things we’re trying to pack into our day, and there are only so many hours free for running errands after a long day of work away from our families. After scheduling dinner dates and arranging for after-school rides home from sporting events, the last thing any of us want to think about is filing our taxes.

Previous experience probably makes you cringe at the mere thought of going down that road again and filing your own taxes. The last time you tried to tackle this task yourself may have been back when the only tools available were a calculator, scrap paper for jotting down notes, and your receipts for itemizing deductions. The whole process took hours to complete, you had no idea if you really got it “right” because there was no easy “check” on the work you’ve done, and then you had to put all those valuable documents into an envelope and cross your fingers that the envelope doesn’t get lost in the mail! Whew. It’s no wonder you’ve been having your taxes prepared by a professional so they can deal with the hassle of filing taxes. Sure, the service might be costly, but avoiding the hassle of filing taxes on your own time is worth it, right?

Wrong.

Filing taxes has gotten so much easier. Gone are the days when this process had to consume an entire afternoon of your time. You no longer have to wait for your tax booklet to arrive in the mail before starting. You don’t even need to know which forms you have to chase down to get started. Taking this process online means you get to file your taxes on your time. You’ll discover that there are several programs that can assist you with the process, and depending on your financial situation, you can be finished in well under an hour. This might take less time than your actual drive to see your tax professional, discuss your financial situation for the year, and drive back home. No appointment is needed when filing taxes online – http://www.taxfiling.net

The cost associated with filing your own taxes online is minimal, and may not cost you anything if your income falls within certain brackets. Even if you do have to pay, it’s a lot less than paying a professional and you don’t have to wait until they find time to work on your taxes.

With some many reasons to file your taxes online, it’s hard to find a reason to do it any other way.

An neglected federal tax lien on ones credit report can cause serious problems with his or her credit. Liens are included in public records and have a substantial influence on your credit rating. The IRS is different from other creditors. They only give debtors ten days to fulfill a tax debt before notifying credit bureaus and creating a federal tax lien. Fortunately, you may be able to successfully have the tax lien eliminated.

Dispute Inaccurate IRS Liens Found In Your Credit File

An intense study conducted by the Public Interest Research Group of The United States revealed that nearly eighty percent of American citizens have mistakes on their credit files. Unfortunately, the mistakes you find may be more serious than an address that does not belong to you or the misspelling of your name. Some are even stunned when they find a federal tax lien placed on their credit file that does not belong to them.

A direct dispute is very effective for situations like these. Were you aware that the Fair Credit Reporting Act grants every consumer the opportunity to dispute inaccurate or unrecognizable information found in their credit reports? You can file the dispute with the tax lien by mail, on the phone, and even online. The Federal Trade Commission recommends that individuals file their dispute by mail because it is easier to furnish the credit bureaus with written documentation to support your claim in saying that the tax debt is not yours.

Make Payment On the Tax Debt and Endure the Reporting Period

Many people prefer to pay on their tax debt and give the IRS lien enough time to be removed from their credit reports. Annoying tax liens stay on your credit for a period of seven years after they are paid. Leaving a tax lien unpaid will result in it remaining on your report for fifteen years. This is a mistake that can hinder your chances of establishing a decent beacon score. It is advisable to pay it off in the beginning.

There is a small time period revolving around the ten-year mark where paying off your tax debt will lead to it staying on your credit for a longer time period. The lien can only be enforced for ten years unless the IRS renews it. This is highly unlikely, but it does happens on some occasions. Paying off the tax debt will result in it being on your credit for seven years thereafter. This can leave the tax lien on your file for seventeen years rather than fifteen.

In order to survive a recession a small business needs to adjust to a new reality.

Operations:

The fact is that your customers are still spending money, they are just being more careful and tend to do more research before they are buying anything.

Customers are shopping around for the best deals. They will also be more willing to postpone a purchase or buy a less deluxe version of something. Depending upon the type of business you operate you can counter this by offering temporary price promotions, quantity discounts and smaller pack sizes. In tough times lower prices will tend to attract more customers than sweepstakes or mail in offers.

If you buy inventory, be aware of discounts and specials offered by your suppliers. Look for early payment or cash discounts, extended financing and more generous return policies. More than ever value your employees. Emphasize that you have made it through bad times before and you are going to survive this recession too. Make sure that they understand the importance of maintaining quality and servicing your customers.

Marketing:

Remember that the very nature of marketing has changed dramatically over the last decade. Mass media like newspaper ads, radio and TV ads are no longer the kingpins of an advertising program. The Internet and social marketing are coming of age as the new powerhouses.

Your marketing research will help guide you on how to adjust your marketing to this new world. Make sure that any paid advertising that you use is closely monitored. You need to make sure that you are getting actual benefits from it.

Remember that during a recession most businesses will cut back on their advertising. That means that great deals are out there if you ask so always remember to ask for discounts on newspaper ads and printed materials.

You should also try more ways than ever before to generate your traffic. Small businesses should look to multiple sources of new traffic: referrals, advertising, direct sales, mailers, web site, search ads.

Now is also the time to be more creative in your marketing efforts. Look for low cost opportunities to get your name out. Look around you for creative ideas in other industries that you can adapt for your business.