In light of this weekend’s Super Bowl game (go Steelers), Inc.com has a slideshow featuring 13 of the NFL’s best post-football entrepreneur success stories. Who says professional athletes don’t perform well off the field?

From Joe Montana to Simeon Rice, many hard-nosed football players have transferred their competitiveness to the business world. Here’s a look at some of the biggest NFL success stories off the field.

Tags: Super Bowl, NFL, entrepreneur

Bookmark to:

Handshake Device to Replace Business Cards

Information can be transferred by optical electric field sensors, travel through the body as a small amount of voltage and end up in cell phones or other mobile devices. The 50-gram device is the size of a matchbox, and must be worn by both parties.

Wait… did this article just say that this device would send a small amount of voltage through my body? Hmmm…

If two people each wear [the device], they could receive each other’s details into their cellphones or other mobile gadgets simply through body contact.

Other uses of the technology include allowing people to unlock a door by touching the door knob.

I like the doorknob idea, but the swapping contact information by standing next to someone is a little out there. Especially when you can use your (free) vocal cords for an old fashion “Hello, my name is Chris. What is yours?”.

I’m all about technology making our lives easier, however, in business there is no substitute for a little human contact.

Bookmark to:

Income tax amounts to the other half of total taxes owed each year by small business owners. How much you owe is determined by how much you made after expenses and deductions.

This post will show you how to estimate your income taxed owed in equation form.

First, you should determine what tax bracket you will fall into. Your tax bracket is used to estimate the amount of additional tax you’ll pay if your income increases — or the amount you’ll save if you can claim a deduction.

• View 2005 Income Tax Brakets
• View 2006 Income Tax Brackets

So for instance, you are married filing jointly and your taxable net earnings is $55,000.00. You will be taxed at the 15% rate.

Don’t forget: The IRS allows you to deduct half of your estimated self employment tax away from your net earnings.

The equation for estimating your income tax looks like this:

(((Net Earnings - (SEtax / 2)) - Income Min. Limit) * Tax Rate) + Minimum Tax

So assuming your estimated net earnings is $55,000 @ 15% (before deducting SEtax) the equation would be figured as:

((($55,000.00 - ($7,771.25 / 2)) - $14,600.00) * .15) + $1,460.00
((($55,000.00 - $3,885.63) - $14,600.00) * .15) + $1,460.00
(($51,114.37 - $14,600.00) * .15) + $1,460.00
($36,514.37 * .15) + $1,460.00
$5,477.16 + $1,460.00

Income Tax = $6,937.16

With net earnings of $55,000, your estimated total tax owed (incl. self employment tax) would be:

Itax + SEtax = Total Estimated Tax Owed

$6,937.16 + $7,771.25 = $14,708.41

Disclaimer: Tax results submitted to the IRS should be figured by a qualified accounting professional. This method is only for estimating what you will owe to be better prepared.

Recommended Reading:

• Your Tax Bracket
• Your Income Tax Bracket

Bookmark to:

Yesterday I spent a good part of the afternoon attempting to estimate my tax liability for 2005 while looking ahead to 2006.

As all small business owners know, self-employment tax is a major part of your total tax liability each year. It represents 15.3 percent of your net earnings from self-employment as reported on Schedule SE.

The tax consists of two portions:

12.4% for Social Security - $11,160.00 maximum (2005).
2.9% for Medicare - no maximum.

According to the IRS, net earnings from self–employment generally represent 92.35% of your net income. eHow.com offers this equation for estimating self-employment tax:

Net Income * .9235 = Net Earnings
Net Earnings (up to $90,000 in 2005) * .124 = SStax
Net Earnings (no limit) * .029 = MCtax

SStax + MCtax = SE Tax

Assume your company earned $55,000 net income. Your estimated self-employment tax is figured as:

55,000 * .9235 = $50,792.50
50,792.50 * .124 = $6,298.27
50,792.50 * .029 = $1,472.98
$6,298.27 + $1,472.98

SE Tax = $7,771.25

Good news: you can take one half of your self-employment tax amount as a deduction against total income on your Form 1040.

Disclaimer: Tax results submitted to the IRS should be figured by a qualified accounting professional.

View the equation for figuring income tax along with tax rate brackets for 2005 and 2006.

Recommended Reading:

• IRS.gov - Self-Employment Tax Discussion
• TurboTax.com - Self-Employment Tax

Bookmark to:

IRS experts have pulled together an overview of common tax issues in one convenient place — Publication 17, Your Federal Income Tax.

From stock sales to student loans, this 300-page publication holds the answers to many of your questions.

To get a copy, visit www.irs.gov/publications/p17/index.html or call 1-800-TAX-FORM (1-800-829-3676).

Bookmark to:

Finding good employees can make or break a small business.

Better employees mean better production and more success for your company. On the other hand, bad employees end up costing you time and money.

AllBusiness.com offers this list of 8 ways to find good employees:

1) Temporary personnel agencies
2) Employment agencies
3) Headhunters
4) Internal candidates
5) Bounty rewards
6) Your Web site
7) Want ads
8) Job Web sites

Read more: Finding Good Employees

Recommended Reading:

Closing the Deal: How to Get Prospective Employees to Sign On
Hiring and Retaining Good Employees
How to Find the Right Employees for Your Business

Bookmark to:

We all know money is everything when starting a new business. Fortunately there are many groups that are pleased to give you money for starting up a legitimate business.

Ken Yancey, CEO of Score.org, offers 5 steps on the topic:

1.) Consider city, county, or state assistance programs for qualified small businesses. Some examples include tax abatements, urban-renewal set-asides, rural access, workforce training, and economic development.

2.) Contact your state senator’s or representative’s office. The staff there can be helpful in pointing you toward state funds or programs for businesses.

3.) Take advantage of “in-kind” credits. Like cash, these can be used as matching funds. In one case, a state program counted a company’s $200,000 local property-tax abatement as part of the matching requirement.

[Read more…]

Recommended Reading:

How To Fund A New Business
Look to the States for Small Business Grants
SBA.gov - Federal Grant Resources

Bookmark to:

Interactive marketing takes the act marketing a step further by engaging the audience to gain and hold attention.

Interactive marketing is designed to keep the audience occupied while you subliminally advertise your product.

Mike Yapp of iMediaConnection.com offers us the top 10 best ways to create an interactive marketing scheme.

1) Multimedia
2) Opt-In
3) Personalization
4) Tell a Story
5) Include a Compelling Offer
6) Make it Immersive
7) Usability
8) Effective ROI
9) Reshaping the Brand
10) Send to a Friend (Viral Marketing)

10 Best Interactive Marketing Practices

Recommended Reading:

Upcoming Interactive Marketing Events 01/06
InteractiveMarketing.com - Marketing Tips
Create an Interactive Online Experience for Clients

Bookmark to: