FlyingSoloSA – The scary stuff
July 26, 2008 by Jamaal
Sarah Rossouw, an accountant for small business, speaks very wisely on accounting and tax matters. She started off saying that after public speaking, most people fear SARS (the South African Receiver of Revenue) most. She asked who has unopened SARS envelopes hidden under other paperwork, and there was much laughter (of guilt?) in the room. She said that the only time you need to fear is after opening the envelope – not before!
Tax and accounting matters are a matter of high interest and concerns to soloists, and many of the people in the room are overloaded with questions. IRP5s, tax returns, PAYE – are all confusing issues for people who are creative thinkers and skilled only in their profession.
People in the room, on the other hand, who have their accountant matters sorted are encouraging others to do the same because of the huge benefits – cost savings, stress relief, and business growth!
Sarah also discussed implications of business entities, especially Close Corporations – and she says that most freelancers have no need to register as a CC, because it complicates things anyway.
One of the questioners also commented that his accountant fees were lower than what the same accountant got back for him from SARS! Wow! Another commented that it’s totally worth the money to get an accountant.
I could have listened to you the whole day. You have really great practical advise to offer and this should be shared. Thank you for the time you gave us at the un-conference.
Speaking of scary stuff – I think the whole web 2.0 world is still pretty scary for a lot of people – so great job of unpacking it for people today Jamaal. Had some great feedback from the people I spoke to at Flying Solo – often people end up more confused than ever before, but you gave a very accessible overview.
Hey there! what a fabulous day of intense new information. I used to always wonder how folks could play with their laptops during a conference – the penny has dropped. Now to explore the worldwide possibilities of virtual collaboration… Definitely an excellent tool for energy efficiency and carbon reduction!
Hi Jamal
Your talk on Web 2.0 was very informative. You talk very passionately about this “new media” . I hope to attend your future talks.
Warm Regards
Hasanain
The WorX Web Design
@Elsa – Thanks for your comment, I love sharing about Web 2.0 because it truly is a passion of mine, and I would love to see more Long Tail business taking advantage of it!
@Vanessa – I agree, I’m speaking to many people who are web designers still in the “Web 1.0″ space, and they’re actually terrified of how things have change – and “nearly” passed them by. It’s really simple though, and once you understand the fundamentals it becomes extremely easy.
@Teri – Lol – yes people actually “work” and “make a difference” when others think they’re “playing” with their laptops! :) There’s a lot of power in technology now, and if you see someone on their mobile don’t be sure that person is wasting time – that person might be changing the world! :)
@Hasanain – Glad you liked the talk bro. I’m still waiting for my invite to play some squash with you guys! lol :)
[...] day kicked off with registration, accountants, tax and other scary stuff which left many of us reeling and reaching for an accountants phone number, but was helpful [...]