But it’s not only her unique voice. The book is organized in a very logical and helpful way. Each chapter, beginning with Chapter 1: The Small Business Checklist, has a To-Do List and Questionnaire to review before you read the chapter. At the end of each chapter is a complete list of resources to make it easy to get even more information and do research on the topic at hand. If you are short on time, you could get a lot of information by just reading these two sections. However, it would benefit you to read through the chapters. Rosenberg is a tax expert and there are many gems of tax wisdom contained in the chapters where you will find yourself thinking, “Oh, I didn’t know that,” or, “Great idea, I think I will incorporate that tax strategy into my business.” It’s a workbook, so get out a pen and take notes where needed!

The book is really a small business bible, not just a tax book. The chapter titles tell the story: Business Plans You Know and Trust; Entities; Record Keeping; Income; Common Deductions; Office in Home; Vehicles: Everyone’s Favorite Deduction; Employees and Independent Contractors; Owner’s Fringe Benefits, Retirement, and Tax Deferment; (the dreaded) Estimated Payments; Online Businesses; and Audits. Ms. Rosenberg really wants you to set up your business right, from the start, for growth and profit! And we all know that taxes play a big part in the outcome.

You can download worksheets from www.YourBusinessBible.com that will help you stay on track as you complete the tasks in the book. She provides a different password to the site each month that you can only retrieve by owning the book. Clever!

I plan to keep this book nearby as a reference for those questions I often get from my business-owner clients. And if you are a business-owner yourself – whether you’re just starting out or not –  This book is a must-read.

Please note: This book was provided to me free of cost by McGraw-Hill. Even so, this is an honest, objective review of the book!

Carol Moretti (seated) and Lisa Deane

In my living room sat an architect, a CPA, a healthcare executive, a innovation consultant, a marketing and branding expert, a retired attorney, a writer for the Huffington Post, a clutter coach, an interior designer, a home staging specialist, a jewelry designer, a technical writer, and a newspaper columnist. We were joined by an IT manager, a freelance interactive producer, an owner of a cooking-party company, an owner of a company specializing in culinary health education for kids, a development director, a yoga instructor, a marketing consultant, a personal fashion stylist, a trade marketing manager and a business student. All women. All interesting and accomplished.

Women are as diverse as any other group of people in their career choices and in their lifestyles. But women also share distinct attributes: They are great communicators, relationship builders and nurturers. They also share unique financial planning needs. For example, many women are concerned that they will be old and poor and alone. Look at these facts:

• Eighty percent of American women will find themselves the sole keepers of their personal finances at some point during their lives, However, most of those women feel financially insecure, despite controlling more wealth, having more education and being more involved in financial decisions.
• Women still make less than men make in similar occupations.
• Women’s careers are often interrupted by family needs, such as childcare and eldercare, which limits their opportunity for income and retirement savings growth.
• Many women fear losing everything and becoming bag ladies (and it doesn’t seem to matter how much money they have or make).
• Two-thirds of women over age 65 rely on Social Security as their primary source of income. Consequently, women are twice as likely as men to live out their golden years at or below poverty levels.

In my living room, we nibbled bites of grilled salmon covered in sesame seeds, ginger chicken, and artichoke frittata while sipping champagne cocktails. Everyone listened attentively to presentations on serious topics such as the 2010 tax relief act and the new healthcare law, but also to fun topics such as the top ten wardrobe essentials and how to save money on your wardrobe. In between speakers, we women did what we are great at: connected, made new friends and perhaps got a business lead or two.

About Cathy Curtis
Cathy Curtis, the writer of this blog and owner of Curtis Financial Planning, specializes in the finances of women, their families and their businesses. You can find out more about her on her website www.curtisfinancialplanning.com and follow her on Twitter @curtisfinancial, on Facebook Women and Money and on LinkedIn Women and Money.

Alison Covarrubias,Julie Abrams,Cathy Curtis,Ayesha Mathews-Wadhwa

It was my pleasure to moderate a panel of women who have made it part of their life’s work to help and support women entrepreneurs. Julie Abrams as CEO of Women’s Initiative; Alison Covarrubias as Co-Founder of The Hatch Network; Baat Enosh of  NCWIT and Women 2.0 and Ayesha Mathews-Wadhwa as a Director of Savor the Success.

We started our discussion by exploring the popular notion that women will “rule the world” and that the economic recovery will be largely led by females. We went on to discuss the challenges women face securing funding for their companies, the conflicts inherent to being a parent and running a company, and the unique circumstances that women of color face on their road to successful entrepreneurship.

The panelists agreed that a gender war wouldn’t do anyone any good, but that bias still exists. Until influential men become more balanced and realistic in their opinions about women’s abilities, change will be slow – particularly in the area of venture capital funding. The fact that so few women are partners at venture capital firms is a roadblock,  as people tend to invest in people they are most comfortable with and more women V.C.’s invest in women owned businesses.

On the positive side, studies indicate that women-owned businesses are run more efficiently, achieve a higher return and are focused on more than just the bottom line  – usually with an additional mission benefiting the greater good in some way. The current recession may be the catalyst that women need to be recognized as leaders with unique qualities that are necessary to gain an edge in our increasingly competitive and global world.

You can view the entire discussion on a series of youtube videos, here are the links.

Opening Comments and Introductions of Julie Abrams and Alison Covarrubias

Introductions of Baat Enosh and Ayesha Mathews-Wadhwa

Women Will Rule the World?

Funding Your Business

What About Women of Color?

Can Women Do It All?

Final Words of Wisdom

Please comment and share your views!

Last week I had the pleasure and satisfaction of watching six women entrepreneurs present their business stories to their peers and loved ones at the Slate Gallery in Oakland’s Temescal District. Each woman had just completed a 12 week course in entrepreneurship developed by the Hatch Network, a new, San Francisco-based company whose mission is “to be the absolute best provider of entrepreneurial education and services for women in the world.”   

What the Hatch Network does, besides provide the curriculum, is to establish a network that connects experienced business veterans – the mentors – with ambitious business owners – the students.  Once those connections are established, the teaching/mentoring begins.

When Hatch Network co-owners, Allie Covarrubias and Claire Fontana asked that I become a mentor in their network, I didn’t hesitate. I was already familiar with their skills as leaders and visionaries and I wanted to become a part of their new venture.  Mentoring women entrepreneurs seemed like such a great complement to my financial planning practice, where I focus on women, their families and businesses.My initial concerns about time committments (I’m a solo practitioner, self employed) proved to be premature. This was a rich and rewarding experience.

So, back to the graduation celebration at the Slate Gallery in Oakland. The 12 weeks of classes are structured so that at the end, students are prepared for and required to present their business story as if they were presenting to investors or clients. They outline the who, what, when, why and how much of their business. The challenge is meant to help them achieve clarity over important business questions. Who are we? What do we provide. Who are our clients? Why are we unique? What benefits accrue to our customers? How much does our service cost? How much will we sell? And most important, how much will we make? 

As you might expect, each of the six women were as nervous as a long-tailed cat in a roomful of rocking chairs. Public speaking was a daunting prospect, added to the writing and technical skills needed to pull together a dynamic  8-10 minute presentation. But when they each took their turn, it was as if they had been practicing for days….each more polished and professional than the next. It was truly gratifying to watch them and to have been a part of their story.

Who are these ambitious women and what are their businesses? 

Pascale Teysseire
Owner,  Funding for College 
Provides a personalized college funding search to assist students/parents in attaining financial aid: scholarships, fellowships, and grants –  necessary to attend the college of their choice.

Jane Inch    
Owner, Jane Inch Life Coaching:  Reveal Your Inner Sparkle (website coming soon!)
Provides lifestyle and business design programs for the midlife/empty nester who is seeking clarity and is ready to launch “what’s next” in her life. 

Linzi Oliver
Owner, Doggy & Me Fitness
Provides an outdoor fitness class for you and your dog. 

Feleciai Favroth 
Owner,  The Art of Bathing
Provides handcrafted creams and soaps with the finest natural ingredients including shea butter
olive, jojoba, coconut and essential oils.  

Elizabeth Husserl 
Owner, Inner Economics
Facilitates  processes of awareness and change around people’s relationship to money.

Anne Cavazos 
Owner, Cavazos Environmental Consulting
Provides high quality and cost effective environmental consulting services.

Congratulations, ladies!

If you’re interested in becoming a Hatch Network student, my next class starts in January and will be held in Oakland, California. Here’s an abbreviated course syllabus:

Week 1:  Evaluating your Entrepreneurial Opportunity
Week 2:  Identifying Your Ideal Customer
Week 3:  Scoping Out The Competition
Week 4:  What Are You Selling
Week 5:  Building your Brand
Week 6:  Your Company Message
Week 7:  What To Charge
Week 8:  Marketing Focus
Week 9:  Sales 101
Week 10: Finding  the Money
Week 11: Book Keeping, Briefly Legal, Insurance 101
Week 12: Be the Boss Lady:  Team Building, Leadership
Week 13:  Your Business Story

If you would like more information, go to The Hatch Network’s website or email Cathy Curtis
at cathy at curtisfinancialplanning.com

Hatch away!

Women in the Food Business at the San Francisco Commonwealth Club - From left to right: Kathy Wiley, Christine Doerr, Malena Lopez-Maggi and Mindy Fong

I recently hosted two panel discussions that focused on women entrepreneurs in the food business. Participating were eight vibrant businesswomen in their 20’s and 30’s.  Each had the entrepreneurial bug from an early age, each has boot strapped their business and most had no written business plan before they launched.

Of Passion and Practicality

Molly Fuller of Hands On Gourmet and Kathy Wiley of Poco Dolce are self-described pragmatists. “I wanted to make money,” said Molly. “My father always told me to do it myself, that was the way to make money.” Kathy Wiley said her decision “came down to the stable shelf life and high price point” of high-quality artisanal chocolate. Other participants cited their love of good food, and their lifelong desire to start a food business.

Fire, Ready, Aim

Kika Besher of Kika’s Treats and Christine Doerr of Neo Cocoa are graduates of La Cocina, a food business incubator in San Francisco where eligibility requires a business plan. Kika’s current business profile no longer resembles her first plan and she wishes she had a new one. “So many things change,” she said. Christine Doerr said her plan has changed and there’s a lot of “fire, ready, aim” in her business.  Kathy Wiley (Poco Dolce) started a number of business plans, only one of which she came close to finishing. Malena Lopez-Magg of The Xocolate Bar said, “I did write a long business plan but it was obsolete as soon as it left the printer.”

Recurring Themes

-    Understand the numbers, but don’t get hung-up on producing a document.
-    If you make a plan, be aware that things change and the plan may need updating.
-    Pay attention as you go and you’ll learn.
-    If you are self-funded, the decision to create a business plan is in your hands.

A Different Take

I have no doubt that these amazing women will succeed. Street smarts and passion can take a business a long way. However, as a financial planner I see what bootstrapping can do to a business owner’s personal finances and I am duty bound to counsel caution. Here are  my three reasons why you should consider developing a business plan.

Writing a business plan compels you write down the numbers and
decide which are most important to your particular business – then it’s
up to you to watch them like a hawk.

Taking shortcuts doesn’t work when it comes to growing a business.
Writing a plan helps you to think strategically and decide what’s best for the company in the long term. This can even include an exit strategy.

Assumptions change and circumstances change, but don’t make that an excuse to avoid having a plan.  Even if you launched on sheer gut instinct, step back and create a plan now. You’ll be rewarded with clarity and peace of mind.

What do you think?  Is a business plan an integral first step to launching a business? As always, your comments are welcome. If you have any topics you’d like to see here, feel free to let me know.

Women Entrepreneurs in the Food Business Panel
Molly Fuller, Hands On Gourmet http://handsongourmet.com
Nona Lim, Cook! S.F.  http://cooksf.com
Gabrielle Fuersinger, Cake Coquette http://www.cakecoquette.com
Kika Besher, Kika’s Treats http://www.kikastreats.com

Women and Chocolate – A Natural Combination Panel
Malena Lopez-Maggi, The Xocolate Bar http://www.thexocolatebar.com
Kathy Wiley, Poco Dolce http://www.pocodolce.com
Christine Doerr, Neo Cocoa http://www.neococoa.com
Mindy Fong, Jade Chocolates http://www.jadechocolates.com
Dayna Macy, Author  http://daynamacy.com