When Lauryn Luther earns money she is careful to set aside 15 percent in a rainy day fund right from the start. She also saves another 15 percent in an interest-bearing account for big expenses down the road, like college or a car. She then commits 30 percent to charity and spends the last 40 percent mostly how she sees fit – whether that’s on toys, a book or her favorite candy.
She’s a 10-year-old. Lauryn is one of a growing number of children who have learned about money by enrolling in a summer camp focused on financial education. Read Article: http://www.cnbc.com/2017/07/21/more-kids-choose-summer-camps-that-focus-on-finance.html They say that “death and taxes“ are unavoidable, but the irony is that accountants top the list of professionals with the longest life expectancy.
It’s true, and in fact, accountants (and similar white-collar, middle-class professionals) can expect to outlive blue-collar workers by as much as eight years. That means that a male accountant lives to an average age of 80, while a female accountant can expect to live to about 85 years of age. So, why do certain professions like accountants live longer than average? You could argue that most accountants aren’t big risk-takers, but the real secret is in autonomy. In other words, accountants generally have greater control over their jobs compared to other careers like manual laborers, police officers, and waitresses, and this increased control reduces stress and increases workplace happiness. Read Entire Article: https://www.accountingweb.com/community/blogs/mwoodruf99/death-taxes-heres-why-accountants-live-longer As parents, we understand the importance of talking to our children about sex and drugs. We get them involved in sports early to teach them the value of teamwork and physical health. Yet how often do we discuss budgeting, compound interest or debt management? When it comes to finances, we don't want to stress them out, think talking about money is rude, or feel they don't need to understand finance until they are older. Yet every step our kids take from college through retirement will be directly influenced by their ability to manage their finances: student loans, credit cards, jobs, mortgages, savings, etc. Some schools teach personal finances, but a financial literacy test given by the National Financial Educator's Council found that test-takers from 15-18 years old scored an average of only 59.6%. So it's up to the parents to make sure our children have a financial education before going out to the real world, where they will make financial decisions that will affect the rest of their lives. Of course, no child big or small will respond well or retain a sit down lecture on finances, so you have to sneak in the education; make it fun, interactive and relevant. The more you integrate finances and money into their everyday life, the more comfortable they will be with personal finance as adults.
Read Entire Article: https://www.forbes.com/sites/lizfrazierpeck/2017/06/28/how-to-teach-your-children-about-finances-at-any-age/?ss=personalfinance#2311bb46b2fe “Four or five years ago Sports Illustrated did an article on professional players,” he said. “Whether it be football, basketball or baseball, five to seven years after they have retired I think 75 percent of the guys are broke. They never talk to the guys that have been there, trying to get a perspective. I find that when young people get money, they think they know everything. They won’t even come to you guys, bona fide accountants, to try to set them up. I always pay homage to my parents’ guidance. They guided me using common sense. When someone brings me a deal, I try to sit down and I think about it. I was born in Atlanta, Georgia. I was really embraced by a village. I know that’s sort of a cliché, but I had parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles, my peers, my coaches. So whenever I’m faced with a problem, I hear that village. It’s like my mom is always saying, ‘It’s nice to be important, but it’s more important to be nice.’ My grandfather talked about common sense. Use common sense.”
Read Entire Article: https://www.accountingtoday.com/news/walt-frazier-meets-the-accountants?feed=00000158-20c3-d6a2-adfb-70eb31330000 Social Media:
https://www.facebook.com/ScarfoandCompanyCPAs/ https://twitter.com/scarfo_and_co https://www.linkedin.com/in/scarfo-and-company-a18a9a132 Blogs: https://scarfoandcompany.wordpress.com/ http://scarfo-and-company.tumblr.com/ http://scarfo-and-company.weebly.com/ Websites: http://www.scarfoandco-cpas.com/index.html http://scarfo-and-company-info.com/ http://scarfo-and-co.com/ http://scarfo-and-company-cpas.com/ http://scarfo-and-co-cpas.com/ http://scarfo-and-company.com/ Information technology has brought many changes to finance, accounting, and tax operations in the decades since enterprise resource planning systems first appeared. For the most part, IT-driven innovation and transformation have found their champions in finance and accounting. Tax departments have traditionally been more cautious when it came to adopting a new technology.
Recently, though, tax’s role and reputation as a technology follower have quietly begun to change. Recognizing the integral and growing role taxes play in strategic business and financial decisions, many corporate and finance leaders are seeking tax departments’ involvement in executing the enterprise agenda and exploiting technology’s potential benefits. It is a favorable time for tax to be gaining this newfound stature. Current emerging technologies have additional potential to improve operating efficiency and uncover new insights that can drive decision-making and performance. Read Entire Article: https://www.accountingtoday.com/opinion/tax-and-technology-exciting-days-ahead With an increasingly complex universe of financial products and services, how are America's high-school students prepared to manage their money as they enter adulthood?
Not all that well, according to a new assessment of financial literacy from the Organisation for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD). The Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) test measures the financial knowledge and skills needed to make the jump from high school to college and on into the workforce. The results raise several red flags given that one in five American teens fail to meet the level to be considered financially literate. By comparison, only about one in 10 Chinese and Russian students fail to meet that benchmark. American teens haven't improved their scores since 2012. On top of that, teens who continue on to college often must make complex decisions about student loans that can impact their lives for decades. Read Article: http://www.cbsnews.com/news/financial-literacy-us-teens-compare/ Solely relying on free or inexpensive online small-business accounting tools instead of investing the services of a trained professional accountant can be a costly mistake that entrepreneurs make all too often. Don’t be one of them.
Springing for a licensed accountant can be worth every extra penny you spend, says ff Venture Capital chief financial officer Alex Katz. A qualified, certified public accountant (CPA) can tip you off to potentially irreversible financial missteps and brand new tax savings opportunities that you might not know exist. And we doubt most barebones digital accounting solutions could bring red flags like these to your attention as effectively as an accountant. When you do invest in the services of a reputable accountant, it’s important to know what to ask and when -- not only to be sure you’re getting your money’s worth, but also to ensure he or she helps you do what’s best for your business and your bottom line. 1. What’s the best way to contact you and how often should we be in touch? This might seem like too simple a question, but clear, effective and frequent communication is the key to a healthy, beneficial relationship with your accountant. Establish early on how often you’ll connect, either in person, on the phone or online (via a video chat app like Skype, Google Hangouts or Facetime). Decide together if you’ll meet weekly, monthly or bimonthly. 2. How can you help me prepare for (and survive) tax season? Untangling the time-sucking tedium of tax prep is often the number-one reason small businesses hire an accountant in the first place. You’ll want to ask yours which tax credits and deductions you should claim. Also ask him or her if there are any new tax laws you should take advantage of to maximize write-offs. Read Article: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/232841 A wearable robot could prevent future falls among those prone to stumbles.
The new exoskeleton packs motors on a user’s hips and can sense blips in balance. In a small trial, the pelvic robot performed well in sensing and averting wearers’ slips, researchers report May 11 in Scientific Reports. Exoskeletons have the potential to help stroke victims and people with spinal cord injuries walk again (SN: 11/16/13, p. 22) — and even kick soccer goals (SN Online: 6/12/14). But this new model focuses on a more ordinary aspect of the human condition: falling on your face or your rear. “Exoskeletons could really help in this case,” says study coauthor Silvestro Micera, an engineer at École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne in Switzerland. Most exoskeletons guide the movement of the wearer, forcing the person to walk in a particular way. But the new pelvic device allows the user to walk normally and reacts only when it needs to. A computer algorithm measures changes in a wearer’s hip joint angles to detect the altered posture that goes along with slipping. The robot then uses its motors to push the hips back into their natural position to, hopefully, prevent a fall. Read Article: https://www.sciencenews.org/article/new-pelvic-exoskeleton-stops-people-taking-tumbles The transition from studying accounting to practicing it can be an adventure: Instead of pulling all-nighters and wearing sweats, life shifts to sunrise starts and power suits.
There may no longer be homework and tests, but work in the professional realm is monitored and evaluated with even bigger stakes, and "A-level work becomes the norm," said Shabinaaz Mahdi, a Washington-based senior tax accountant at accounting and advisory firm Baker Tilly Virchow Krause. But those challenges, along with those of studying for the CPA Exam and putting in extra-long days during busy season, come with a payoff, of course. Accounting is a rewarding career with plenty of growth opportunities. Accountants enjoy solid pay, ample advancement opportunities, and the chance to serve the broader good, so newbies have plenty of reason to hang in there. Here are some tips for young accountants to ease the transition from backpack to briefcase: Sharpen "soft skills": It's easy to focus only on the academics at school and assume that skills guiding personal and professional interaction will take care of themselves. Employers say many fresh graduates who have grown up in the tech era are less prepared for the human element of a new career. As a result, students who can hold a professional conversation, offer a strong handshake, and make eye contact gain an edge in hiring and promotions. For that reason, make it a priority to polish these skills, said Rina Henning, a recruiting manager with UHY LLP in Farmington Hills, Mich., part of accounting firm network UHY International. "Soft skills play a large part in our company," said Henning, who recruits between 60 and 75 students a year. "Gone are the days of 'I've got a 4.0 and I'm in.'" - See more at: www.journalofaccountancy.com/newsletters/2017/apr/succeed-first-accounting-job.html#sthash.Goz3bJKm.dpuf |
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September 2017
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