July 2014 Newsletter

The Queen recently took a trip to the Great Northwest – home of the Rogue River, with wilderness adventures at every turn.

As I crossed the border into Oregon, time seemed to take a deep breath, exhale, and slow down. Everyone was friendly and helpful – so different from the hustle and bustle in the south. Could it be as simple as “no sales tax”?

In downtown Grants Pass, I discovered Rogue Coffee Roasters. Delicious, organic, fair trade coffee, roasted and prepared by happy people. I chose a coffee and when I approached the cashier, she said, “Oh, yours has been paid for already.” I must have looked perplexed, because she explained further: “Sometimes people pay an extra $10 or $5 as a ‘pay-it-forward’ for the next customer.”

Wow – I was impressed and appreciative! The next day, of course, I had to try it myself. I bought a coffee, paid-it-forward, and sat down to watch the next customer’s reaction. She was thrilled! She even came over to say thanks, and we ended up having a nice conversation.

Since then, I’ve tried to pay it forward at places where I spend money in Marin County, but the cashiers all said they didn’t have a way to keep track of it in the register. The POS systems couldn’t handle humans being gracious! That’s scary.

So I telephoned the Rogue Roasters and asked them how their cash register was able to handle pay-it-forward. The barista explained, “It’s simple. I just write down with a pen on paper what was paid forward and then cross it out until it’s used completely.”

Oh my – what a concept: not depending on a computer to get through the day.  Can we survive?

Pay-It-Forward is important as a concept in accounting, too. It:

• Implies that you plan ahead.
• Is positive.
• Is an example of proactive accounting, which produces the best results.
• Demonstrates that you are in charge of your accounting, not the computer.
• Supports the Queen’s axiom in accounting – Do It Right, Do It Once (then go play in the sun).
• And it makes everyone feel better!

QuickBooks Hot Tip: This one has been driving the Queen around the bend for quite some time … but now I have it figured out.

• When you create a new company in QuickBooks, this one just kind of sneaks in – and later it creates problems.
• Questions asked in the setup may automatically create settings you do not need or want. Adding the income tax line to the chart of accounts is one of them.
• It’s hard to get rid of the income tax line when you print out your pristine copy of your perfect Chart of Accounts.
• The format does not allow columns to be rearranged or deleted (File/Print Register – when viewing the Chart of Accounts).
• On the Word menu: Go to Company/My Company/Edit/Report Information/Income Tax Form Used – choose {other/none}.

And now, you can email me your perplexing issues and questions about QuickBooks. If I don’t know the answer, I’ll find it.

It’s time to start thinking about fall classes. These will all be offered at Redwood High School in Larkspur, CA. Registration opens in August.

Introduction to QuickBooks:

• September 16^th to 30^thTuesdays 6-9 p.m.Course/Class Number: 120200/46120
• October 2^nd to 23^rd (no class 10/16)Thursdays 6-9 p.m.Course/Class Number: 120200/46122
• October 28^th to November 18^th (no class 11/11)Tuesdays 6-9 p.m.Course/Class Number: 120200/46121

Intermediate QuickBooks:

• October 7^th to 21^stTuesdays 6-9 p.m.Course/Class Number: 120208/46123
• October 30^th to November 20^th (no class 11/13)Thursdays 6-9 p.m.Course/Class Number: 120208/46124

1099 Workshop:

Learn all the important aspects of processing year-end 1099s in this one workshop. These are required tax forms for companies. Watch for upcoming workshop date in late November.