However, several idolized entrepreneurs emphasize the importance of two other factors when it comes to lasting success. Lifestyle and passive income are two hugely significant assistants that entrepreneurs take control of on the road to their goals. Disregarding these two tenets of life outside work can have a damaging effect on your business and well-being.

In this article, we’ll explore why the lifestyle choices and passive income streams of successful entrepreneurs are more important than many analysts believe. We’ll also take a look at how successful entrepreneurs choose their lifestyles and select the most profitable forms of passive income. By evaluating these choices, you can learn how to employ them on your journey. Let’s get into it…

The Importance of Lifestyle for Successful Entrepreneurs

In his 2012 book ‘Screw Business as Usual, Virgin CEO Richard Branson stated:

"Building a successful business is not just about financial gains; it's about creating a lifestyle that aligns with your values and passions. When you achieve that, the money becomes a byproduct of doing what you love.”

While knowledge of how to set up and run a successful business is essential, having a lifestyle that aligns with your business is just as important. Building a business at the expense of your social life and mental/physical well-being may lead to expedited success. However, the stress and instability that such dedication causes may render the whole endeavor pointless. If you can’t enjoy your success, why try so hard to achieve it in the first place?

But lifestyle isn’t just about enjoying your success. Creating a lifestyle that works in harmony with your business can have a huge impact on your ventures. Some of the benefits of honing a symbiotic relationship between your company and your lifestyle include:

Creativity and Authenticity - A lifestyle that incorporates your business passions can help you generate ideas and find unique selling points. For example, if you operate a pet-care startup, volunteering at an animal shelter could help you find problem areas in the industry that your business could address. Additionally, this experience builds your authenticity when you begin to market to potential customers.

Improved Networks - Similarly, aligning your business interest with your lifestyle can open up new networking possibilities. For instance, perhaps your business sells state-of-the-art at-home gym technology. In this case, visiting your local gym regularly and chatting with other patrons will improve your understanding of your target market, help you generate ideas for future expansion, get expert knowledge from employees, and even find you viable partners who want to take a chance on your start-up.

Sustainable Success - A combination of the above benefits will help you lead a fulfilling lifestyle, as well as run a fulfilling business. This way, you’ll be much less likely to become disillusioned with your business or suffer from stress and eventual burnout. A lifestyle that benefits both your well-being and the well-being of your business will help you stay the course and achieve success at a sustainable rate.

How to Achieve an Entrepreneurial Lifestyle

Next, let’s take a look at how successful entrepreneurs structure their lifestyles to benefit both themselves and their businesses.

1. Define Your Priorities

The easiest way to determine how your daily and weekly schedules should look is by defining your priorities. Understanding what passions truly matter to you will help you allocate your time effectively. This also helps to bolster your motivation and balance your well-being.

2. Set Specific Goals

Whether it be leisure time, personal development objectives, or aims at work, setting goals in these areas will push you to success. Setting goals will also help you develop healthy habits, so completing less fulfilling tasks will become second nature. You’ll also be able to measure your success and make any necessary adjustments to your lifestyle.

3. Foster Continuous Learning

An easy way to achieve a symbiosis between your lifestyle and your business success is by improving your industry expertise. If your business already connects to your passions, this will be a much more enjoyable and fulfilling experience all around. Fostering learning will help you set your business up for great things, as well as better yourself in the process.

4. Build Your Support System

Stress can sometimes seem unavoidable, especially when work and lifestyle are so closely intertwined. A generous and sympathetic support system will help you relax in times of tension and remind you that your entrepreneurial endeavors aren’t everything. This can help you avoid burnout and deal with problems effectively.

5. Delegate and Outsource

As an entrepreneur, your time is precious. Learning how to manage your time effectively can help you stay on top of important business tasks and still get enough ‘me time’ to feel satisfied. A big part of this is delegating tasks that would be better suited to other specialist employees, while you maintain oversight. If your entrepreneurial endeavor does not yet have employees, why not outsource some of your tasks to freelancers?

6. Celebrate the Little Things

While setting up and running a business can be difficult from time to time, overall it should be a gratifying experience. Making time to celebrate, no matter how small your achievement, can remind you of the positives of running a business, and motivate you to achieve further success.

The Importance of Passive Income for Successful Entrepreneurs

In his book "Rich Dad Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not!" entrepreneur Robert Kiyosaki provides the following insight:

“Having multiple streams of passive income is the key to achieving true financial independence. It provides a safety net and allows you to take risks and explore new opportunities without the fear of losing everything.”

The end goal of many entrepreneurs is to get their business to a point where it generates profit with very little interference on their part. Financial independence through business is certainly a common goal, but why wait to achieve this aim? There are countless ways to generate passive income while your business is still growing, which can protect you if a crisis strikes. Other benefits of passive income for successful entrepreneurs include:

Scaling and Growth - Once you’ve created a passive income stream, this money can be re-invested into your main business venture. This means your entrepreneurial success won’t be constrained by time or resources. It also means you can research and expand into new areas, employ expert advisors, and further your reach with dedicated marketing campaigns that your existing budget may not allow for.

Personal and Professional Growth - Finding the most profitable passive income streams will likely take some attention away from your business. However, in doing so you’ll learn a host of new skills and expand your offerings for potential partners or investors. This can strengthen your chances of entrepreneurial success and serve you well in future projects, too.

Freedom and Flexibility - Perhaps the best thing about passive income is that it can enhance your lifestyle. With more disposable income in your pocket, you’ll be able to take up new hobbies, treat your family and friends to experiences, and choose exactly how you spend time away from your desk. As we’ve seen, a fulfilling life outside of work will improve your attitude, and subsequently, your business’s chance of success.

How to Build the Best Passive Income Streams

Finally, let’s explore how successful entrepreneurs select and grow their preferred passive income streams.

1. Find Your Passions and Interests

Though the point of passive income streams is that you can leave them to accrue profit independently, some do take a great deal of setup. This is why it’s easiest and least stressful to select a passive income stream that connects with your passions.

2. Evaluate Your Financials

Next, to determine which passive income stream is best for you, you’ll need to know what resources you’re working with. If you’ve got a pool of capital to play with, purchasing large assets such as rental properties is a great way to go. However, if you’ve got limited investment options, opting for something like stocks may be more viable.

3. Analyze the Market

Passive income streams that involve investment are always going to carry some deal of risk. This is why it can be worth researching the current markets for certain investment assets. For example, investing in whiskey has become a popular option for those seeking passive income. The rare whiskey market is on the rise, with projected returns of up to 20%. However, this upward trajectory may not last much longer.

4. Use Your Existing Business

To save time and maximize resources it’s a good idea to combine your passive and active income streams. For example, if your business has physical premises, why not invest in a few vending machines? Though these will need to be stocked now and again, you can delegate this task and collect that season’s earnings at the same time.

5. Leverage Your Network

If your passive and active income streams align, you can also involve your existing network of contacts. Passive income streams are much simpler to set up with some help. Partnering with others in your network can give you more resources and capital to work with, as well as extra experience in certain market sectors. However, this does mean you’ll need to split the profits.

6. Seek Expert Advice

Finally, before you choose the passive income stream that’s best for you, it can help to consult experts in that area. If you’re investing in stocks and commodities, a reliable and honest stock broker will help you make the right decisions. If you’re writing and selling online courses, input from an academic will up your credibility and your sales.

In Conclusion…

The secrets of successful entrepreneurs extend beyond experienced, business-minded decisions and genius money moves. It may seem simple, but the right lifestyle and diverse income streams can help you achieve success in business.

By aligning your lifestyle with your entrepreneurial endeavor, building your schedule around your priorities, creating a reliable support system, and celebrating the little achievements as well as the big ones, your lifestyle can work in harmony with your business ventures.

Similarly, passive income streams can benefit your business by providing you with a safety net, and ample space to take risks and pursue originality. For the best passive income streams, involve your network and seek expert input during your research. Focus on market trends and choose diverse income streams that take advantage of your available resources.

True success isn’t measured only in numbers. It’s also measured by how much you enjoy the journey and how well your personal and professional lives are balanced. Adopt the secrets of successful entrepreneurs and you’ll be able to set out on a path that leads to financial prosperity and a purpose-driven life.

Sources

• https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Screw_Business_as_Usual/FbPWWtoTqKEC?hl=en&gbpv=0
• https://www.entrepreneur.com/living/why-your-health-is-the-key-to-your-success-in-business/323244
• https://www.entrepreneur.com/en-au/lifestyle/can-your-overall-lifestyle-really-affect-your-success-in/373317
• https://www.performwell.co.uk/balanced-entrepreneur-lifestyle/
• https://www.barrons.com/articles/how-to-live-like-an-entrepreneur-51668361029
• https://www.forbes.com/sites/theyec/2022/08/12/eight-lifestyle-changes-you-can-make-to-become-a-more-successful-fulfilled-leader/
• https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Rich_Dad_Poor_Dad_What_the_Rich_Teach_Th/kRqeDwAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=0
• https://gocardless.com/guides/posts/why-is-passive-income-important-to-a-business/

The post Two Secrets of Successful Entrepreneurs: Lifestyle and Passive Income appeared first on MoneyThumb.

Virtual events are the perfect way to gain followers on social media and customers for your business or to keep employees updated and inspired, withstanding actual in-person presence. However, virtual events do have their drawbacks, and the main one is keeping the interest and attention of your attendees.

The very atmosphere created when a person is at home and not actually present at a meeting or other event offers far too many distractions and a potentially shorter attention span. If you are a virtual event organizer you need to recognize this reality and create a solid engagement strategy to keep attendees immersed in the event experience. For optimal success, you must have a strategy for your virtual event in place from the outset.

Today on the Rules of Thumb blog from MoneyThumb we would like to present some helpful ideas that will help you level up engagement and gain participation from attendees of your virtual events:

• The Platform You Use is Crucial--The most popular platform for virtual events right now is Zoom, but you would be surprised at how many other platforms exist and the perks they offer. This article from Markletic covers 8 different virtual event platforms and lists the advantages of each one. Just remember that at the very least, your platform should have interactive live-streaming capabilities with embedded tools for Q&A, live polls, and comments from attendees. It should also have features for networking between attendees such as:
  • A public discussion forum
  • Meeting scheduling
  • 1:1 video chats.
• Great Content and Well-Known Speakers--The content of your virtual event should resonate with your target audience. You may even want to take a poll of the audience you plan to entertain/educate to see what they really want to know and see. Also, lining up impressive speakers in your niche to take part in your virtual event can guarantee a much bigger audience attendance. You should also make sure before you hold your virtual event that you offer high production quality. Pay attention to your presentation slide design, clear and crisp audio, and high video quality. If possible, you can also explore creating 3D virtual experiences to enhance session quality.
• Offer Unique Things That Make You Stand Out--Especially if your virtual event is not employee-based and mandatory, you need some tricks that make your event irresistible. A few ideas are using gamification and other forms of entertainment, or maybe hosting a virtual dinner or wine tasting as a complement to the serious business of information sharing. Think outside the box and come up with something your potential audience can't resist.
• Have a Detailed FAQ Page--Leaving attendees to find their way inside your virtual event is a sure recipe for them leaving before the event even starts. Savvy marketers and virtual event planners understand the very short attention span of online followers. Most potential attendees will first begin looking for details about the event, what it offers and how long it lasts on the top of their list of questions. Having a very prominent FAQ page that is the first thing they see will prevent losing your audience in most instances. Break the FAQ page into specific topics for attendees so they know how to get started on the platform. For example, help them to understand how to:
  • Join event sessions
  • Participate in polling and Q&A
  • Schedule a meeting
  • Network
  • Participate in gaming activities
  • Point of contact for future communication

The tips above should help make your virtual event, Zoom meeting, or webinar a success. The team at MoneyThumb would appreciate it if you could share this blog post so that your peers can benefit from the information too.

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Today on the Rules of Thumb blog from MoneyThumb we are going to delve into this article from the New York Times, titled The Office Will Never Be The Same. The article explains how many white-collar workers say their lives are now much better since they are working remotely. They have adjusted their schedules to fit their lives, and they’re enjoying it, according to a new, nationally representative survey by Morning Consult for The New York Times.

Leslie Perlow, a professor at Harvard Business School who has spent her career going into companies and convincing them to abolish things like meetings or weekend work — in order to add back only what they truly need — said she never imagined she would see this experiment happen on such a large scale.

“People are seeing a different world,” she said. “That’s going to create the revolution to change the way we work. A lot of this is possible in a way we never knew.”

The post Will Working From Home Become the New Normal? appeared first on MoneyThumb.

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Our most common points of interest at The Rules of Thumb blog from MoneyThumb are accounting, small business, lending, and personal finance. However, today we are going to broach a subject that is of the utmost importance during these trying times, and that is how we can all stay mentally resilient during this pandemic.

Many of our blog readers have suddenly been forced to make the transition from going into the office to working from home, and some have even lost their jobs. These kinds of abrupt changes can be decimating if you are not mentally resilient. Too many people think of the strictly physical aspects when told they need to stay healthy. If you search Google for 'staying healthy' you won't find one single article on the first page about how to maintain good mental health. All of the first page articles are about eating right, getting plenty of sleep and exercising. Those things are very important, crucial even, but without attending to our mental state, we still won't feel optimally healthy.

Unfortunately, as evolved as we consider ourselves to be as a species, people are still uncomfortable talking about mental health, but we have made huge strides in the mental health arena. At least we don't lock crazy Aunt Bertha in the attic anymore. The truth is, when a taboo subject like poor mental health is given room to breathe, it begins to improve.

So how can we stay mentally resilient and make sure we are taking care of our mental health during these trying times?  The Rules of Thumb blog from MoneyThumb has listed proven ways to maintain good mental health below, along with free resources you can take advantage of if you are having difficulty staying mentally resilient these days:

• Listen to podcasts--There are quite a few podcasts that will help you feel calmer, improve your outlook and help you to become more mentally resilient. While taking your daily walk, which is a proven way to improve both your physical and mental health, you can listen to a podcast. Below are a few podcasts we consider helpful:

The Calmer You

The Anxiety Coaches

The Minimalist

Happier

• Read motivational and inspirational books--As a lifelong bookworm and your blogger, I would like to take the liberty today to suggest books that have helped me personally with motivation and inspiration. I am not including links to purchase these because MoneyThumb is not in the business of selling books, but a Google search will quickly lead you to a purchase option. Most of these will have used options and often those don't cost much at all, or you can check them out for free at your local library.....when it opens:

  Man's Search for Meaning
  The Alchemist
  The Four Agreements
  The Power of Positive Thinking
  The 5 Second Rule
  Tuesdays With Morrie
  Don't Sweat the Small Stuff

• Keep in touch With friends and relatives--Maybe this one should have been first because right now for most of us, maintaining connection is crucial. Especially for people who are not used to isolation and live alone, keeping in touch with those you care about can make a huge difference in your mental health. A lot of people use social media to socialize online, some would rather talk on the phone or text, but whatever way you handle it, staying in frequent contact with friends and relatives is very important during these trying times.
• Try yoga, meditation, dancing--If you have never tried yoga and/or meditation, you may poo pa and say it's just new-age nonsense. You couldn't be more wrong. In fact, many forward-thinking companies are incorporating yoga and mediation into their wellness policies. You can practice yoga and meditation at home, although I really do miss my yoga class, it's more fun for me as a class. If you have never practiced either of these arts, here are some guidelines to get you started. Don't feel silly, but if you do just continue and laugh at yourself, which brings up our next suggestion. If you just do not want to try either of these arts, just dance!
• Watch funny movies, TV shows: anything to make you laugh--There is no truer statement than 'laughter is the best medicine.' It has been scientifically proven in fact. This article from Forbes list 6 science-based reason why laughter is truly the best medicine.

• Listen to Music--There's nothing that soothes the savage beast like music. Taste in music is almost as varied as we are, so we won't make suggestions. Follow your musical bliss.

The team at MoneyThumb hopes the above tips will help you stay more mentally resilient in these tough times. We are all in this together and the truth is we will come out stronger and even more resilient as a species when things settle down.

We'd love it if you'd share this blog post on your social media page. Thank you and have a great weekend!

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In an effort to recover the American economy, the U.S. government, after much back and forth debate, has approved a $2.2 trillion economic stimulus package. Below is a complete review of what all the stimulus package contains. We don't get into politics on the Rules of Thumb blog, so we had a hard time finding a thorough review of the package that didn't include bipartisan opinion. In fact, the best coverage of the U.S. economic stimulus package we found that did not also contain political opinion comes from the website of the NAHB, (National Association of Home Builders!) A big thank you to the NAHB for this very thorough article.

The MoneyThumb team would really appreciate it if you shared this blog post with your peers on social media. That way everyone can thoroughly understand what the $2.2 trillion U.S. economic stimulus package contains and how it will affect them, their families, and/or their business.

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act includes several provisions to help small businesses and those engaged in the residential construction sector.

The House is expected to approve the bill on Friday morning and President Trump said he will sign the bill immediately.

At the top level, the CARES Act would:

• Make direct payments of $1,200 to most individuals earning up to $75,000, or $2,400 for couples earning up to $150,000. The amount decreases for individuals making more than $75,000 and payments cut off for those earning above $99,000.
• Provide an additional $367 billion in loans for small businesses to help deal with payroll issues.
• Create a $500 billion lending program for larger companies, including airlines, as well as states and cities.
• Establish an oversight board and inspector general to oversee loans to large companies.
• Provide $130 billion for hospitals.
• Earmark $150 billion for state and local governments.

Here are more details of how this aid package would help members of the small business community and housing sector:

Small Business

Small business owners in all U.S. states and territories are currently eligible to apply for low-interest Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) of up to $2 million that can provide vital economic support to help overcome the temporary loss of revenue due to the COVID-19 response. Applicants may request an advance in the amount of $10,000 to be delivered within three days of the request. This advance must be used to:

1. Provide sick leave to employees unable to work due to the effects of COVID-19;
2. Maintain payroll to retain employees;
3. Cover increased costs of materials due to interrupted supply chains;
4. Make rent or mortgage payments; or
5. Repay other obligations that cannot be met due to revenue losses.

An applicant will not be required to repay this advance if it is used for these purposes, even if they are subsequently denied a loan under the EIDL program. Qualified businesses can apply online at disasterloan.sba.gov/ela/. For application assistance, please contact an SBA customer service representative at 1-800-659-2955 or email disastercustomerservice@sba.gov.

Small and medium-sized businesses (with fewer than 500 employees) are also eligible to apply for SBA’s expanded 7(a) loan program. This program is not provided through SBA directly, so the first step to qualifying for a 7(a) loan is to find an SBA approved lender in your community. Your lender can guide you through the application process and determine which 7(a) loan product will work best for your business.

Allowable uses of these loans include:

1. Payroll costs;
2. Certain costs related to the continuation of group health care benefits;
3. Employee salaries (including commissions);
4. Mortgage, rent and utility payments; and
5. Interest on any other debt obligations that were incurred before the covered period.

A loan recipient may be eligible for forgiveness on a covered loan used for costs including payroll, mortgage and rent obligations, and utility payments.

If you have questions about the 7(a) loan program, you can contact the SBA at 1-877-475-2435 or email 7aquestions@sba.gov. If you are having issues with the EIDL or 7(a) loan application process or if your application was denied, please contact Alex Strong at NAHB at 1-800-368-5242 x8279 or Heather Voorman at 1-800-368-5242 x8425.

Tax

The CARES Act provides a number of tax provisions aimed at providing financial relief to most American taxpayers as well as new tools to aid struggling businesses. The centerpiece of the bill is a $1,200 “recovery rebate” that will be distributed to all eligible Americans. But the bill also includes needed tax relief to small businesses, including an employee retention tax credit; the ability to delay certain payroll tax payments; providing advance refunds of the new sick and medical leave tax credits, and relaxing rules related to net operating losses.

More detail is provided below.

***NOTE: NAHB is providing this information for general information only. This information does not constitute the provision of legal advice, tax advice, accounting services, investment advice, or professional consulting of any kind nor should it be construed as such.***

New Tax Benefits for Individuals

Recovery Rebates: The tax-related centerpiece of the third economic stimulus bill consists of “recovery rebates” — a $1,200 one-time payment (plus $500 per child) — mailed (or direct deposited) to every eligible taxpayer in the coming weeks.

• Eligible recipients include taxpayers with adjusted gross income up to $75,000 (single)/$112,500 (head of household)/$150,000 (joint filers). Joint filers will receive $2,400.
• The rebate is phased out for taxpayers with higher incomes and is completely phased out for single filers, heads of household, and joint filers with incomes above $99,000, $136,500, and $198,000, respectively.
• All eligible taxpayers will receive a check, which will be processed automatically based on the taxpayers’ 2019 tax returns.  If the taxpayer has not yet filed a 2019 tax return, the IRS will use their 2018 tax return.
• This is structured as a tax credit that is refunded in advance.  Taxpayers will have to account next year for any “recovery rebate” on their 2020 tax returns.

Waived Penalties for Early, Coronavirus-Related Withdrawals from Retirement Funds: Taxpayers will not have to pay the 10% early withdrawal penalty for distributions up to $100,000 from qualified retirement accounts.

• Taxpayers would have three years to pay taxes on income from such a distribution, and
• The taxpayer may recontribute the funds to an eligible retirement plan within three years without regard to that year’s cap on contributions.
• This provision is only applicable for coronavirus-related purposes. To qualify, the taxpayer must:
  • Be diagnosed with COVID-19;
  • Have a spouse or dependent diagnosed with COVID-19; or
  • Experience adverse financial consequences as a result of:
    • Being quarantined, furloughed, laid off, having work hours reduced;
    • Being unable to work due to COVID-19 related child care issues;
    • Closing or reducing hours of a business operated by the taxpayer; or
    • Other factors as determined by the Secretary of Treasury.

Temporary Waiver for Required Minimum Distribution Rules for Certain Retirement Accounts: For 2020, this waives the required minimum distribution rules for certain defined contribution plans and individual retirement accounts.

Partial Above-the-line Deduction for Charitable Contributions: Non-itemizing taxpayers would be eligible for a deduction up to $300 for cash contributions to churches and certain other charitable organizations. This applies to contributions made in 2020 and becomes a permanent feature of the tax code for subsequent years.

New Tax Benefits for Individuals and Corporations

Temporary Increase in Limits on Charitable Deductions: Prior to the CARES Act, individuals and corporations could only deduct charitable contributions up to 50% (individuals) or 10% (corporations) of their adjusted gross income (AGI). To encourage charitable giving in 2020:

• The individual deduction limit is suspended.
• For corporations, the limit is increased to 25% of adjusted gross income

New Tax Benefits for Businesses

Employee Retention Credit: Eligible employers are allowed a credit equal to 50% of qualified wages with respect to each employee, on a quarterly basis. An eligible employer means any employer carrying on a trade or business in 2020 during which in any calendar quarter:

• The operation of the trade or business is fully or partially suspended during the appropriate calendar quarter due to orders from an appropriate governmental authority limiting commerce, travel, or group meetings due to COVID-19; or
• The trade or business experiences a significant decline in gross receipts, with a 50% decline in gross receipts when compared to the same quarter in the prior year.  Businesses remain eligible until their gross receipts recover to 80% when compared to the same quarter in the previous year.
• Maximum wages, including health insurance benefits, eligible for the credit for all calendar quarters is $10,000
  • For businesses with 100 or fewer employees, generally, all wages of full-time employees are eligible.
  • For larger businesses, only those wages paid to full-time employees who are not providing services due to a suspension of business operations or reduction in gross receipts are eligible.
  • Wages may also include an employer’s qualified health plan expenses allocable to the employee.
    • 501 (c) tax-exempt organizations are eligible.
    • Employers receiving a loan under section 7(a) of the Small Business Act are not eligible for the employee retention credit.
    • Credit is refundable to the extent it exceeds payroll taxes.

Delay of Employer-Paid Payroll Tax Payments: Employers and self-employed individuals may defer payment of the employer share of Social Security taxes they are responsible for paying.

• This allows employers and self-employed to save temporarily on the 6.2% Social Security tax on wages.
• These deferred taxes must be repaid over the following two years.
  • Half of the amount will be due by Dec. 31, 2021, and the other half by Dec. 31, 2022.

Advanced Refunding of Sick and Medical Leave Credit: Under the Family First Coronavirus Response Act, employers are required to provide paid sick leave and paid family and medical leave under specific circumstances resulting from COVID-19. The law created new tax credits to offset the employer's cost of providing this leave. This bill will allow employers to quickly claim credits to reduce financial strain from this new mandate.

Net Operating Loss (NOL) Modifications: For income tax purposes, NOLs arise when allowable deductions of a business exceed their taxable income. Under current law, businesses can carry forward NOLs indefinitely to offset against future taxable income, but losses may not exceed 80% of taxable income in any tax period. NOLs may no longer be carried back and used to offset tax liability in prior years.

• Under this bill, losses from 2018, 2019 and 2020 may be carried back five years from the year in which the loss was incurred.
• This will allow businesses with NOLs to amend prior-year tax returns and obtain refunds to provide additional liquidity.
• The bill also repeals the 80% of income limitation so that NOLs from 2018, 2019 and 2020 may be carried forward to fully offset taxable income in years after the loss.

Modifications on Limitation of Business Interest: For businesses subject to the 30% of income limitation on deducting business interest expenses, the bill increases the limit to 50% for 2019 and 2020.

Banking

The Senate coronavirus economic stimulus bill would provide small community banks with several targeted regulatory relief measures aimed at ensuring that these critical lending institutions for the residential home construction industry continue to keep credit flowing during the COVID-19 crisis.

The legislation would:

• Allow the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to fully guarantee business transaction accounts and provide banks with additional flexibility and streamlined capital requirements to ensure liquidity during the crisis.
• Permit banks to postpone compliance with the Current Expected Credit Losses (CECL) standard, which requires lenders to immediately account for potential losses when they issue loans, potentially tying up much-needed capital.
• Encourage all financial institutions to work with borrowers to modify or restructure existing loans, including forbearance arrangements, interest rate modifications, repayment plans and any other similar arrangements that defer or delay the payment of principal or interest before borrowers are experiencing payment difficulties. The bill would suspend accounting rules so such modifications would not be categorized as troubled debt restructurings.

Single-Family Mortgage Relief:

• The Senate bill would permit anyone with a loan backed by Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, FHA, VA or Rural Housing to receive forbearance up to one year on their mortgage by calling their servicer and reporting that they have a COVID-19 related financial hardship.
• The Senate bill also temporarily bars foreclosures on government-backed mortgages for not less than 60 days beginning March 18, 2020.
• Finally, the Senate bill gives credit scoring relief to those impacted by the COVID-19 crisis, including those taking advantage of government forbearance programs.

Multifamily

The CARES Act includes multifamily mortgage forbearance for all federally backed mortgages (Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac or FHA). Owners may request forbearance for 30 days, with the option of two additional 30 days as needed for a total of 90 days. During that time frame, (by the end of the termination of the national emergency or Dec. 31, 2020, whichever comes first) owners will be unable to evict tenants or charge late fees.

The legislation also calls for an immediate 120-day moratorium on evictions and associated fees for non-payment of rent for all properties insured, guaranteed, supplemented, protected or assisted in any way by HUD, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac, the rural housing voucher program, or the Violence Against Women Act. After the 120 days, owners must give 30 days written notice of eviction. The eviction is specifically only for non-payment. At the end of this period, the tenants will be required to pay all rent due.

Appropriation Supplement:

• Tenant-Based Rental Assistance (Housing Choice Vouchers) — $1.25 billion. This will allow tenants who have had a significant loss of income apply for vouchers and it will assist the tenant in paying their rent in market-rate housing.
• Project-Based Rental Assistance (PBS8) — $1 billion. For multifamily developers who currently have PBS8 projects, this will provide additional funds to help maintain and run operations of these properties.
• Community Development Fund (CDBG) — $5 billion. CDBG is a flexible block grant program, commonly used by communities for a wide range of needs. CDBG is primarily used for activities that benefit low- and moderate-income individuals.
• Section 202 Housing for the Elderly — $50 million
• Section 811 Housing for those with disabilities — $15 million
• Homelessness Assistance Grants — $4 billion. This funding is for homeless individuals, shelters, and Public Housing Authorities (PHAs).
• Fair Housing Act initiatives — $2.5 million. Of this total, $1 million will go for education and outreach and $1.5 million is for enforcement.

There is no funding included for multifamily rural housing assistance.

Unemployment Provisions

The bill contains a significant expansion of unemployment benefits to support workers who have lost their jobs as a result of the COVID-19 health pandemic. Specifically, the measure:

• Creates a temporary Pandemic Unemployment Assistance (PUA) program to provide payment to those not traditionally eligible for unemployment benefits — such as the self-employed and independent contractors — who are unable to work as a direct result of the coronavirus pandemic. Payments through the PUA program are authorized for a maximum of 39 weeks, ending Dec. 31, 2020. This will be a huge economic relief to a large segment of NAHB’s membership.
• Extends traditional unemployment insurance (UI) benefits for another 13 weeks and provides for an additional $600 per week for each recipient of traditional UI or PUA for up to four months.
• Authorizes federal funds to cover the usual one-week waiting period before an individual gets their first unemployment benefits so that they can start receiving payments immediately.
• Funds short-term compensation (STC) programs and allows states to create new programs for employers that are having to choose between laying off or furloughing their employees to receive funding to keep those workers on their payroll. The STC program funding will be available for coverage of weeks of unemployment through December 31, 2020. Temporary, seasonal or intermittent workers are not eligible for those types of benefits.
• Authorizes payments to states to reimburse government agencies, tribes and nonprofits for half the payments they are required to make into the state unemployment fund.

Paid Leave

The bill includes some limiting language on the paid leave provisions in the second coronavirus bill. These include an explicit limitation on the weekly and total amounts that can be paid to a worker for sick leave and family leave related to the COVID-19 health pandemic.

Further, the bill extends access to paid family and medical leave for an employee who was laid off by an employer March 1, 2020, or later in certain instances if they are rehired by that employer. To be eligible, an employee would have had to work for the employer at least 30 days prior to being laid off.

The legislation also allows employers to receive an advance tax credit from Treasury for providing paid leave benefits instead of waiting to be reimbursed on the back-end. This will require a rulemaking or guidance to establish a process for how these advance tax credits can be issued to employers.

The post All The Details of The $2.2 Trillion U.S. Economic Stimulus Package appeared first on MoneyThumb.

To help you with the transition of working in an offline world to working from home the Rules of Thumb blog from MoneyThumb would like to offer some solid suggestions to make the transition less painful and more successful. Our main suggestion is that you treat your morning the same as you would if you were heading into an office. Set aside a designated workspace (even if it’s just your kitchen table), make yourself some breakfast and yes, wear regular clothes, not pajamas. This is all a part of keeping your mind in work mode.

For further steps to make the transition easier and yourself more productive and less stressed, we are referring to an article from The New York Times, How to Work From Home If You've Never Done it Before. Below is advice from that article:

• Keep the Same Schedule--“Try to get up at the same time, and do all the things you would typically do to get ready for work,” said William Castellano, a professor in the Rutgers School of Management and Labor Relations. “Make sure you’re thinking about how you’re going to structure your day similarly” to how you did before. So if you made a to-do list every morning, make the to-do list. If you checked in with the same person every morning, check-in with that person.
• Set Boundaries--Pick a spot for your office. It doesn’t have to have a door, but it should be away from distraction. You don’t need an expensive setup. The boundaries you set up also pertain to other people who may be sharing the same space. This will be especially important if a partner or roommate is also working from home or children’s schools are closed. Sara Perry, Assistant Professor of Management at Baylor University says, “There’s a lot demanding of your time and energy and resources right now. This may mean having conversations with managers about adjusting their expectations, given the extraordinary circumstances."
• Take Breaks--Be sure to take exercise, meals and stretch breaks. If your commute used to include walking, and now you have no reason to leave the house, you might forget to move. When you suddenly lose the pace of your day, everything can start to bleed together. You may be used to relying on cues from your workplace (i.e., other people) to remind you to get up and stretch or get lunch.
• Prepare For Isolation--Even introverts who work in an office can suffer from isolation at suddenly being moved home. Dr. Perry suggested proactively staying in touch with others rather than waiting for someone to reach out. That could mean emailing colleagues more often, having conference calls, video conferences, using chat tools or just picking up the phone. Some at-home workers play music or movies in the background to keep them company or take social media breaks to feel less isolated.
• When You are Done Working, Leave it Alone--For those who are used to working in an office, the evening commute is often a way to end the workday and begin home life. Dr. Perry said it’s important to continue to make the same transition, even if you’re just moving from one spot on the couch to the other. So put your work materials and your laptop away (or just shut work applications if you want to use your computer for something else). She added that this is crucial right now because “you’re already being challenged in terms of your personal resources,” she said. “You still have to take that recovery time from work.”

We are going through some very challenging and strange times, that is for sure, but we are a very adaptive species and we will be ok. If you need further help transitioning to work from home, or you are struggling to find work from home opportunities, leave us a comment below and the team at MoneyThumb will do our best to help. Please share this blog post on your social media pages so your peers can benefit from the information provided.

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Most everyone has heard of TED, but if you have never listened to a TED talk, you are really missing out. TED talks are always informative and uplifting, at the very least. Below is their mission statement from the TED website:

"TED is a global community, welcoming people from every discipline and culture who seek a deeper understanding of the world. We believe passionately in the power of ideas to change attitudes, lives and, ultimately, the world. On TED.com, we're building a clearinghouse of free knowledge from the world's most inspired thinkers — and a community of curious souls to engage with ideas and each other, both online and at TED and TEDx events around the world, all year long."

In our blog post today we are going to share advice for those of you who make presentations from TED's director of speaker coaching, Briar Goldberg in an article from Inc.com. By applying Goldberg's advice to your next speaking engagement you should be able to always make your presentation successful. The following tips will be especially helpful to anyone who is about to make their first-ever presentation or public speech, no matter its purpose.

Tips for a Successful Presentation From a TED Top Speaking Coach

The post Tips for a Successful Presentation From a TED Top Speaking Coach appeared first on MoneyThumb.

Below is the beginning text of the article for your reading convenience, along with the first 3 of 7 tips for success in business and life Mr. Wehmer offers in the article.

"Looking for proof that living with “It’s a Wonderful Life” values can nurture great businesses as well as strong families and communities? Look no further than Ed Wehmer.

As founder, president, and CEO of Wintrust Financial Corporation, Wehmer is widely considered Chicago’s most successful banker. And you could say he’s an even more successful family man — the 35-years happily married husband, father of six and grandfather and in-law to many more has replicated and built upon the large family he grew up in as the fifth of six children.

During a conversation about his path through life, in his wood-paneled office overlooking O’Hare Airport, Wehmer explains that he didn’t intentionally chart this course. Rather, business and personal success followed naturally when he acted on strong values and good advice.

Here are seven tips and tenets that have guided Wehmer along his personal and professional path to success.

1. “Find your passion and make it happen.”

Wehmer grew up in Kenilworth, attending Faith, Hope & Charity grade school, then Loyola High School. He also worked in the Wilmette grocery store his grandfather founded.

By his high school senior year, the only thing Wehmer was certain of was that he did not want to attend the University of Notre Dame — the expected next step in his North Shore Catholic education.

“After the season was over, some teammates and I crowded into a car and took our Holden Caulfield trip, driving across Canada and the United States to explore alternatives,” Wehmer says.

After some soul-searching on his trip, he decided to matriculate to Georgetown University as a business major.

To this day, Wehmer uses that story to inspire others to “find your passion and make it happen.”

2. “If you don’t know what you want to do in business, be an accountant. You get paid to see all kinds of industries and ask dumb questions.”

By his 1976 college graduation, Wehmer knew he did not want to make a career in grocery stores, but he didn’t know what he wanted to do instead. So he acted on sage advice to try accounting, “because I would be paid to learn about all kinds of businesses and ask dumb questions.” He started at Ernst & Young, where he quickly discovered a passion for banking.

This turned out to be a wise move. Following the proliferation of big-box stores, the family business, like so many other independent groceries, folded.

Today, Wehmer is very proud that Wintrust bought the grocery’s Wilmette location for its most successful community bank launch of all — North Shore Community Bank.

3. “Learn how to merge.”

Wehmer’s mentor recommended he learn how to merge banks — shortly before a wave of consolidations hit the industry. By age 26, Wehmer was flying around the country helping banks consolidate.

Learning to merge still is great advice. Merging is a variation on collaboration. In these fast-changing times, the world belongs to smart collaborators. Families are stronger when members know how to collaborate effectively too."

The last 4 tips Ed Wehmer offers in the Make it Better article are 4. Marry Well  5. Find the right work/life balance 6. Treat people like you want to be treated 7. Doing right by your community is the secret to success. The article goes on to list dozens of awards Mr. Wehmer has received and his community and organizational involvement.

MoneyThumb especially enjoyed reading the article conclusion so we want to also share that with our Rules of Thumb blog readers in the text below:

"Wehmer’s story serves as the compelling inspiration to follow his example and pursue the “It’s A Wonderful Life” lifestyle, opening doors to a successful future for many more. Wehmer also credits his fifth-grade Faith, Hope & Charity teacher, Sister Seraphia, with providing him lifelong inspiration by teaching him the poem “It Couldn’t Be Done” by Edgar A. Guest, an excerpt of which he gleefully recites from memory to this day:

“Somebody scoffed:

‘Oh, you’ll never do that;

At least no one ever has done it;’

But he took off his coat and he took off his hat

And the first thing we knew he’d begun it.

With a lift of his chin and a bit of a grin,

Without any doubting or quiddit,

He started to sing as he tackled the thing

That couldn’t be done, and he did it.”

If you enjoyed this blog post, please do us a favor and share it on your social media page or email it to a friend. Sharing is caring. Have a great weekend!

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Let's Talk About Mindfulness and Personal Development

Even though we have evolved as a species, there are still those whose minds instantly picture a guru in an ashram when they think of mindfulness. They may even believe that the practice of meditating and being mindful are silly things done by people with their heads in the clouds.

Today we are going to debunk that myth with words and advice on mindfulness and personal development from a couple of well-known people who have found success by concentrating not on the endgame but on the journey, on mindfulness and living in the moment, and are enjoying their lives and their successes-even their failures-in a way they have never before experienced.

Let's start with an article that discusses exactly what was expressed above; Even though we have evolved as a species, there are still those whose minds instantly picture a guru in an ashram when they think of personal development. They may even believe that meditating and being mindful is a silly thing done by people with their heads in the clouds. 

Mindfulness, Myths and More has this to say, "Mindfulness has become perceived as this “practice” this “thing” that we “do,” and schedule time to “do,” where we sit cross-legged on some fluffy cushion in silence for hours, even a full day, and then go brag about it to the rest of the world.  The sitting on the cushion practice especially irritates me."

The website counters this myth by adding the evidence of what research shows mindfulness does for our lives.

• Increases awareness and attention
• Reduces stress and coping habits
• Increases happiness and well-being
• Increases morale and collaboration

Side note: On a personal level, I have been following what they today call "Gurus" for over 30 years, who back years ago were simply considered teachers helping people to live a better life. Life coaches like Wayne Dyer, for instance, and Tony Robbins, even Dr. Phil. These professional lifestyle coaches helped me through many trying times and also motivated me to strive for personal development and thus, success. That is one of the reasons I feel so strongly about this subject. I know that mindfulness works. 

Now, onward with our journey to discover advice from a few other successful people and the tactics they have used to improve their personal lives and business success through mindfulness:

Since I brought up Tony Robbins, if you are curious and/or new to the practice of mindfulness as it relates to success and personal development, here is an article from the Master himself, THE NEW BRAND OF MINDFULNESS: 6 WAYS TO BE MINDFUL IN THE MODERN WORLD.

One of my favorite passages from the article is this one,  "Throughout the day, be mindful of where your thoughts, feelings, words and actions are coming from. Ask yourself, is this coming from my ego? That is, my need to be special, better and unique? Or is it coming from a place of love? If it is coming from a place of love, then this is your authentic self.

Is it love, or is it ego? This question can be applied for everything from why you want to pursue a certain goal, to how you react when your partner does something you don’t agree with. Either way, it will help you shed the layers that mask your authentic self, and help you understand who you truly are on a more intimate level."

As I write this, I realize that this article from Huffington Post covers many experiences and opinions from those who have used mindfulness to improve their lives. The article is titled The Daily Habit Of These Outrageously Successful People, and the very first sentence proves the point of this blog post I am writing, “Meditation more than anything in my life was the biggest ingredient of whatever success I’ve had.” That’s what Ray Dalio, the billionaire founder of Bridgewater Associates — the world’s largest hedge fund firm, had to say about personal development and success.

If you have any questions or comments concerning this blog post, please don't hesitate to let us know below. Also, would you share this on your social media channels? Your peers who are on the journey to a better way of living would appreciate and so would we!

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