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Health is Wealth: Maintaining an Ideal Weight

The solution to too much or too little weight is solved with generally the same strategies. There are three things needed to maintain an ideal weight: diet, exercise and sleep. Do it right and you stand a good chance of living a long time. Do it right and you increase your chances at high levels of health and happiness. Do it right and your level of happiness should go up significantly. Do it right and you will truly be wealthy.

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How Much You Need to Retire is a Lot Less Than You Think

A common question in the FIRE (financial independence, retire early) community involves how much money you need to retire. Before I became a card-carrying member of the community I would hear the question something short of a dozen times per year. This blog means I hear the question a lot more these days. And people still don’t believe my answer.

There is a great misperception over how much money is needed to cash a check and walk your own path. I’ve consulted with 70 year old men worried they don’t have enough to retire. In the FIRE community younger people are more interested in the same question with a different set of rules.

Social Security changes all the rules. The 4% rule is wildly off the mark because they forget two simple facts; facts we will cover right now.

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Teach Children to Follow Their Dreams

From a young age I knew exactly wanted to do. Then I changed my mind.

Such is youth. My dad had different plans for me. My childhood was spent on the family farm and it was an awesome life. My dad owned an agricultural repair business and the plan was in place for me to slide right into the company. There was only one problem: I hated the work.

My children are now adults. One is in China while the youngest just graduated high school. My fondest hope was that at least one of the two would be interested in tax and accounting work. No dice.

Forcing your children into a family business is always a bad idea. The kids might love the work and they should then be welcomed with open arms if they do. But most kids don’t want to follow in their parent’s footsteps. Their dreams are different. Most often they follow their parent’s path because they don’t know where else to turn.

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Stalking the Accountant: Groundhog Day

It was an exciting week in the Wealthy Accountant’s world. Facebook decided they didn’t want me to use the name Keith Taxguy. Now if I were a Russian meddling in the election I would’ve had no problems at all. It all ended well (so far).

New policies instituted in the office this year are paying off. For the first time since I showed up in the blogosphere people are surprised how fast I’m getting work done. After tax season I’ll spill the beans on my experience so other tax firms can experiment with the same tools. It should help other business owners and those with a side gig formulate ideas to increase their efficiency. This means less work and more profit. Isn’t the modern world awesome!

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How to Write Engaging Blog Posts

Every writing conference I’ve ever been to has a breakout session titled: PANTSER OR PLOTTER?

Beginning writers flock to these things because they think it’s an important part of the writing process when the question is really a matter of personal work habits.

Many successful writers plant their tail in front of the keyboard and start pounding out copy while others need a detailed plan before the muse flickers to life. Plotters take the risk they’ll plan until infinity before rolling up their sleeves and working; writing from the seat of your pants can lead to rambling pros in need of heavy editing.

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Stalking the Accountant 20 Jan 2018

As tax season approaches I start to fall into a familiar pattern I’ve developed over the years to help focus my attention.

Some people like listening to music while they read; I don’t. I prefer absolute quite, huddled in a dimly lit corner while I devour pages of knowledge or embark on an adventure through space and time.

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The Cost of Yes

At one time or another everyone has experienced the desire to do more things that interest them. It might be traveling the world or trying multiple sports or musical instruments. A few people, prodigies, manage to conquer several musical instruments at once.

In business we see Elon Musk tackling business after business with endless energy. Small business owners are lulled into a false sense of ability when they try to multitask at the same level.

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