Our Insights

Theatre performances are great.  All the actors, singers and dancers knowing where they are, where they're meant to be and playing their parts with enthusiasm and aplomb.

Now if only business people had the "stage presence" to recognise where their business is at and what needs to be done accordingly.

And depending on what stage the business is at, the owner could be experiencing a few different emotions - excited, proud, disillusioned and frantic are just a small example.

Negative gearing, the tax benefit of having more deductions that income on an investment (generally property), has been around for a long time but has also been in the cross-hairs to feel the axe of tax reform for a while too.

The latest swipe has come from the Murray Review of the Financial System.

Whats it all mean?

When you state a position, take a stand or offer an opinion, unless theres overwhelming evidence or information that shows you're wrong then you need to stick with what you've stated.

A great, and unfortunately tragic, example of this is the 1986 Challenger space shuttle disaster, where the vehicle exploded less than 2 minutes after take off as the world watched.

So what happened?

Service is a part of every business that customers and clients seem to either rave or rant about.  Mainly when it comes to retail and food, but it certainly goes much broader than that.

How important is it?  I say much more important than you might think!

The number of self-managed super funds (SMSF) has grown sharply over the last few years.  And its in no small part because SMSF's can borrow to invest these days.

Like any investment theres risk.  Is the risk worth it?

We've all got desire in our lives.  Desire to own something, to eat a food, to go on holidays, or be with that one you've fallen for.

I think desire to achieve a result is more important, and probably covers all the above anyway. What do I mean?

This morning on my way to work I stopped at the local petrol station to fill up. I paid with my work Visa card and was handed my receipt. 

One of the complaints I get from clients is that everything they do is taxed by the government. They go to work and loose a good percentage in tax. Put money in the bank and your interest is taxed.  Buy and sell an investment property and the gain on sale is taxed!

Reality - between 50% and 75% of new businesses wont make it past the first 3 years!!

So why is that?

Don't fear end of financial year and tax time. Just plan and be prepared.

And take note of our Top Tax Time Tips.