So how was your tax season? For myself and Dunkirk Systems, LLC, it was not bad, namely because we have a certified public accountant (or CPA for those of us acronymically inclined) who is also a certified QuickBooks consultant. As a result of the guidance and consulting he has provided over the years, year end is extremely straightforward.

When I started out in business, I realized I knew my strengths, and numbers isn’t one of them. I am not completely inept at accounting, but I just didn’t want to be laboring over numbers, I wanted the numbers to be laboring over me! I sought out such a professional, found one, and it is one of the best decisions I made.

There are many ways to run your business, and many ways to not run your business. Having a firm grasp on the numbers – not just your bank balances but what you owe in taxes as well – can be one of the best indicators on how you are doing on a day-to-day basis, as well as telling the overall health of your business. We hire lawyers for legal help and we go to doctors when we are sick. A good CPA who understands your business and how you manage it financially can be a trusted partner to your success.

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The next likemind coffee will be next Friday, May 16, 2008 in dozens of cities around the world. In Chicago, it will be at Gallery 37 Cafe, 66 E. Randolph, at the corner of Wabash in the Loop in the Gallery 37 building. Note it opens at 8.

I call likemind a gathering of creative-minded people, from various disciplines including Internet, advertising, art, et. al.

We will experiment again with some form of social networking for those who can't make it. You can follow us on Twitter @likemindchicago. No RSVP is required but is always welcome, and you can by commenting to this post or at the likemind Chicago Facebook group. Business • (0) Comments • Permalink

Have you ever been alone in a crowded room? It can happen to anyone, and the remedy is to engage in the conversation of the room. So not to look like a bull in a china store, you put yourself out there, introduce yourself, listen and participate. Soon you will shed the wallflower costume.

Broaden the scope of the room to the entire planet, and that is the idea behind the book The Age of Conversation. If you are reading The Hot Iron or other blogs, you may have seen the word “conversation” used a lot. Rather than people posting static comments on a Web site, they (as done here) open it up to comments, thus making the post a topic of conversation and comments the interaction of the conversation. In this book, Gavin Heaton and Drew McLennan posted a topic – on conversation itself – and received 103 comments, which are compiled and presented in book form.

My greatest takeaway is that, at a high level, conversation online is not much different than offline. Norms of having a dialogue with people you have just met or really don’t know still apply, and the idea is to engage with others. Of course the online medium provide greater advantages you don’t get offline, such as engaging with people on the other side of the planet or typically untouchable CEOs.

Another takeaway is that we tend to gravitate to people we share a common opinion or approach with; likeminded individuals. With 103 ideas presented, naturally you won’t agree with the content or approach of all of them, and that was the case with me. Ideas presented by people that were practical or less prophesizing resonated with me more as I tend to take a more practical approach.

A final takeaway was the need for such a book. More and more I find myself explaining social media and networking to people, whether they are friends, clients or colleagues. In the grand scheme of things it is still a new topic. A book like this can serve as an introduction to what you can gain from having such conversations, as well as be a catalyst for creating your Facebook account once and for all.

I recommend The Age of Conversation for both folks in the conversation and not. It is not all words either – there are several illustrations, with my favorite being from my friend AJ in Sydney, Australia. Interestingly, through AJ I met Gavin Heaton several years back. Through this book, I have reconnected with him, as his name rang a bell when several other people recommended the project behind it to me. Which is the whole idea, isn’t it?

Book Take-Aways • Business • (5) Comments • Permalink

In my never ending quest to rid myself of as much unnecessary paper as possible and replace it with PDFs, I ran across the final newsletter for the Boston Computer Society from October 1996. Of course I pulled it apart and scanned it, and I am offering it to the public here.

The Society, or BCS, is how it was in the “old days” - large computer clubs that had many special interest groups, or SIGs, on a variety of topics. I don’t recall membership being all that much, maybe $30, and some meetings had a fee and others were sponsored or free. I was only a member for a few years and attended a few meetings and presentations. I recall seeing Dilbert’s Scott Adams at one annual meeting.

Comparing organizations like the BCS to today is like comparing corporate America to a commune. Where things were much more organized, there was also more structure. Today there are a plethora of forums, chat rooms, blogs and Web sites on all aspects of computers and technology, but the only way they are organized are with search engines.

Even if you are not from the Boston area you may still find this last BCS Journal interesting to read, if not for the articles then for the advertisements.

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Today, April 22, is Earth Day. It is the one day designated each year, since 1970, to become more aware of our Mother Earth and how to be better inhabitants.

Myself, I believe I am doing good to my planet. From everyday recycling to the steps I outlined in my draft Dunkirk Systems, LLC environmental plan, I try to work environmental protection into my everyday decisions. Interestingly, these often relate to cost savings.

So what are you doing for Earth Day? If you haven’t come up with anything, allow me to make a suggestion, adding a 4th “r” to the list – reduce, reuse, recycle. By reevaluating decisions you make, this will make the other subsequent steps easier or even moot.

Here’s an example. By deciding not to accumulate grocery bags I decided to get a reusable, durable Reisenthel nylon shopping bag like the one pictured here (I bought mine in Germany, but they carry them at The Container Store too). By reevaluating, I am thus reducing and reusing.

Small steps, done by many, add up to a lot. Please share anything you are doing for Earth Day.

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