It's Not About The Money

Reading a pay stub can be confusing. What are all the things that get taken out before the money hits your bank account? Let’s go through the most common line items on a pay stub and explain what they mean, which ones you can adjust, and how they affect your tax refund. IRS withholding calculator: https://apps.irs.gov/app/tax-withholding-estimator (00:00) - A spreadsheet of pay stubs (05:02) - Federal income tax withholding (06:47) - Social Security and Medicare (09:28) - State and local taxes (11:57) - Other pre- and post-tax deductions (14:06) - What percentage are you actually taking home? (16:59) - How and when to adjust your federal tax withholding --- Steve Nay: https://daybreaktax.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/nsteven/ Tyler Smith: https://www.tylersmith.io/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/tylersmith-io/ 

Todoist, much as we love it, is a task management tool, not a project management tool. What if we treated it that way? Today, Tyler explains a shift he’s recently undertaken in project management that has made it easier to keep the proper perspective and get the right things done. Steve confesses that weekly reviews are probably worth his while. And Tyler unexpectedly falls in love with Apple Mail because of Focus Modes. (00:00) - A list of technologies (02:38) - Steve still needs to do some weekly reviews (06:36) - Project management versus task management (15:20) - Projects in a Todoist Kanban board (22:55) - Lists of descending temporal importance (26:43) - Tyler tried Apple Mail and fell in love with Focus Modes Links: Carl Pullein: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJZkYNlp_bA Slow Productivity by Cal Newport https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/197773418-slow-productivity  --- Steve Nay: https://daybreaktax.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/nsteven/ Tyler Smith: https://www.tylersmith.io/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/tylersmith-io/ 

This one is a bit, um, wide-ranging. And nerdy. It’s a window into the minds of your esteemed hosts. We talk about email management and apps and workflows. We talk about podcast management and apps and workflows. Tyler agrees to try an experiment with Apple Mail. (00:00) - The travails of corporate job email management (07:28) - Newsletters and email open statistics (11:57) - Apple Mail (18:31) - Email before bed (23:03) - Tyler acknowledges that he might be an "Apple person" now (24:35) - Podcast listening --- Steve Nay: https://daybreaktax.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/nsteven/ Tyler Smith: https://www.tylersmith.io/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/tylersmith-io/ 

We take a few minutes to look back on the interviews we had during the “Many Hats of an Entrepreneur” series over the past few months. Steve resonated with growing slowly and intentionally. Tyler learned a lot about marketing. And we’re both looking forward to future episodes with just the two of us: book clubs, nerdy deep dives into our tech stacks, reports of home maintenance projects, and probably at least one mention of McDonald’s. (00:00) - Retrospective on the Many Hats of an Entrepreneur interviews (00:05) - Tyler started another business (04:11) - Retrospective of the Many Hats of an Entrepreneur series (07:00) - Steve's takeaways (10:57) - Tyler's takeaways (16:12) - Future episodes: just Tyler and Steve --- Steve Nay: https://daybreaktax.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/nsteven/ Tyler Smith: https://www.tylersmith.io/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/tylersmith-io/ 

You know you need a website, but maybe it’s a daunting task. Today’s guest explains everything you need to know to get started on your business website, whether you decide to DIY it, hire a professional, or something in between. James Hagen is a web designer who works with business owners and budgets of all sizes to make sure the right thing gets built to do the right job for the right customers. We discuss: Using analytics to guide where you invest your time and money in the design process Understanding your buyer’s needs and expectations Wix, Squarespace, WordPress, and Webflow And many more great tools James Hagen: jameshagen.design Timestamps: (00:00) - Business website design, with James Hagen (02:33) - Tyler is a tinkerer, and James suggests using data to guide the tinkering (07:38) - Empathy: Understanding your buyer (10:10) - Web design trends and home renovations (16:14) - Tools and platforms for a DIY website (20:32) - What does all this cost? (24:43) - Webflow (31:16) - Website analytics (34:54) - Don't forget about the cookies Links:Tinypng.com Lucky Orange Hotjar Fathom Analytics Termageddon Webflow Wix Squarespace WordPress --- Steve Nay: https://daybreaktax.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/nsteven/ Tyler Smith: https://www.tylersmith.io/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/tylersmith-io/ 

Whether you think you're a good storyteller or not, it's a skill worth developing. Today's guest, Stephen Steers, is the author of Superpower Storytelling. He walks us through how to get better at storytelling and why it's such a powerful tool in sales, in business, and in life. Along the way, we discuss why it's so important to reframe sales not as a battle to be won with the right pressures and tactics but as a collaborative problem-solving exercise that helps everyone. Stephen Steers:https://www.stephensteers.com/podcast https://www.linkedin.com/in/stephen-steers Stephen's book, "Superpower Storytelling": https://www.amazon.com/Superpower-Storytelling-Tactical-Telling-Stories/dp/B0CH26LR56 (00:00) - Tyler gives a sermon, and our guest uses his book as a business card (05:13) - Golden age of radio (13:03) - What if you're not "good" at storytelling? (18:01) - The P.E.A.R. Method (21:49) - The A.R.E.A. Framework (22:57) - The Magnificent Seven Reasons People Buy (30:18) - Structuring a great sales call (40:24) - What Stephen does: context selling --- Steve Nay: https://daybreaktax.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/nsteven/ Tyler Smith: https://www.tylersmith.io/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/tylersmith-io/ 

For the business owner, transitioning from being a soloist to being an employer is tricky and full of potential pitfalls. How do you navigate it successfully? On this episode, we speak with Vanessa Gutierrez, a human resources expert who helps startups implement, streamline, and optimize their people operations. That covers everything from writing job descriptions and offer letters, to keeping employees apprised of local labor laws, to making sure payroll runs properly. If you're thinking it might be time to hire someone--whether full-time or part-time, W-2 or contractor--this conversation will give you some ideas to explore and some questions to ask as you evaluate your options. Vanessa Gutierrez: https://fractionalhrops.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/vanessayourhrpartner/ (00:00) - Human Resources Operations, with Vanessa Gutierrez (03:31) - The role of a fractional HR expert (08:12) - When is it time to hire for a solopreneur to hire? (11:43) - Contractors vs. employees (14:16) - Hiring overseas (16:51) - What policies and procedures do you need before you hire? (19:48) - Posting labor laws (23:02) - What are the bottlenecks in your business? (26:53) - Fractional HR vs. Fractional HR Operations  --- Steve Nay: https://daybreaktax.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/nsteven/ Tyler Smith: https://www.tylersmith.io/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/tylersmith-io/ 

Health insurance can be intimidating, especially when you first go out on your own and don't have an employer-sponsored plan to fall back on. In these transitions, having a health insurance broker can be a huge help. Today, to discuss the complexities of individual health insurance, we speak with Mitchell Underwood. He helps solopreneur and small business clients evaluate their options in private insurance as well as government-subsidized marketplace insurance. What do you need out of a health insurance plan? What is your budget? Where do you live? What doctors and networks are available in your area? When do you need coverage to start? These questions will help guide you toward the right choice for yourself, your family, and even your employees (if you have them). Mitch walks us through each of them and their implications. Mitchell Underwood Find him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thehealthadvocate/ (00:00) - Navigating health insurance as a solopreneur, with Mitchell Underwood (01:34) - Making the jump from an employer health plan to an individual health plan (08:23) - How price is determined (11:15) - What Mitch does for his clients (17:34) - Open enrollment periods and qualifying events (20:41) - How do insurance brokers get paid? (27:25) - Mitch's ideal client  Links: Mitch's interview with Paul Ranieri on Tax Strategy Digest: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/mastering-health-insurance-paul-ranieri-oyjic/ Mitch's "thanks so much for being honest" post we discussed at 24:17 https://www.linkedin.com/posts/thehealthadvocate_thanks-so-much-for-being-honest-this-activity-7199799949079846912-hwep/ --- Steve Nay: https://daybreaktax.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/nsteven/ Tyler Smith: https://www.tylersmith.io/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/tylersmith-io/ 

You're probably already allergic to manipulative sales tactics, and your customers are too. So how do you get better at sales without pushing prospects away? Today we interview Landon Pitcher, Co-Founder and Chief Revenue Officer of Listo Global, who has a wealth of sales experience. He talks about transferring enthusiasm, selling without "commission breath," practicing the craft, and keeping your sales pipeline full. Solopreneurs have a particular advantage when selling our services, because we're also the people in charge of delivering the service. We're deeply in touch both with what our customers need and what it takes to get them there. Landon Pitcher, Co-Founder of Listo Global https://www.linkedin.com/in/landon-pitcher34/ [email protected] (00:00) - Introducing Landon Pitcher (02:22) - Sales is the transfer of enthusiasm (13:08) - How to "dequalify" a lead during a sales call (20:25) - Developing your sales pipeline (30:29) - Asking for referrals (38:10) - How Landon became a co-founder  --- Steve Nay: https://daybreaktax.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/nsteven/ Tyler Smith: https://www.tylersmith.io/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/tylersmith-io/ 

While it might be easy to jump straight into marketing tactics (posting on social media, making videos, running paid ads), your marketing will be much more successful with the proper strategy in place. Today, Juliana Weiss-Roessler talks in depth about getting the right business strategy, brand strategy, and marketing strategy for your business. Once you have those, you can follow the experimental process of plan--implement--measure--repeat to find the marketing channels and approaches that consistently find and convert the right kind of clients for you. Whether you need tools to DIY your marketing or you're ready to hire (fractional) help but don't know what you're actually buying, Juliana's advice will get you on the right path. Juliana Weiss-Roessler, founder of WR Digital Marketing https://wrdigitalmarketing.com/ (00:00) - What is marketing? (06:13) - Business strategy -> Brand strategy -> Marketing strategy (11:08) - Social media (16:58) - Marketing channels (21:49) - Stages of the marketing strategy: awareness, consideration, conversion, loyalty (26:00) - How to get started with a limited budget (30:14) - You NEED a website (33:22) - What are you buying when you hire marketing help? (41:26) - Closing thoughts  Links: Juliana's worksheets and resources PeopleFund (nonprofit small business lender and educational resources) Find a Small Business Development Center near you --- Steve Nay: https://daybreaktax.com/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/nsteven/ Tyler Smith: https://www.tylersmith.io/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/tylersmith-io/