Business Growth Strategies » Healy

Between the Idea and the Doing

Ryan M. Healy — Tue, 30 Nov 2010 18:52:50 +0000

Many times throughout my life I’ve been seized by the idea of doing something that (at the time) seems fascinating and exciting.

But between the idea and the doing there is often a hidden patch of resistance.

You see, what I’ve discovered is that most of the time I’m really just in love with the idea; I’m not in love with the execution of the idea.

And so, if I pursue one of these temporarily fascinating ideas, it often leads to yet an another unfinished project. Because I love to learn, I may begin by educating myself in the areas necessary to pursue the idea, but then fail to ever move beyond the education phase.

What is important for both me and you is that we learn to discern the difference between an idea we are merely infatuated with… and an idea that we will actually enjoy executing.

By focusing our energies only on those ideas that we will love executing, we automatically raise our chances of success and eliminate waste from our lives.

-Ryan M. HealySimilar Posts:

Big Government Targets Freelancers

Ryan M. Healy — Thu, 03 Jun 2010 15:34:07 +0000

Big government is getting desperate. They’re spending far more than they’re collecting. And now they’re doing whatever they can to bring in more tax revenue.

And that means more taxes, more IRS agents, and more audits.

This time, big government is targeting service providers. If you’re a freelancer, that includes you.

For the past few years, I’ve used a tax loophole to avoid paying payroll taxes on a portion of my income. I file as an S-corp so I can take shareholder distributions, which currently are not subject to payroll taxes.

But it appears this may change as soon as January 1, 2011.

As Megan Hughes reports, the S-corp tax bill has already passed the House.

Diane Kennedy then explains that, if passed by the Senate, the “American Jobs and Close Tax Loopholes Act of 2010″ bill would require service providers who file as S-corps to pay a 15.3% payroll tax on all distributions.

It’s critical that you educate yourself about these potential tax changes, especially if (like me) you’re a service provider who files as an S-corp.

This new tax bill would force me to pay an extra $7,000 per year in taxes, minimum. As you can imagine, I’m not too happy about that.

I see a couple possible ways to skirt the new tax:

1. Since the new law (unfairly) applies only to small corporations with three or fewer shareholders, I could perhaps bring the total number of shareholders from one to four.

2. Since the new law specifically targets service providers, then I could perhaps stop being a service provider and generate my income by selling products.

Just some things I’ve been thinking about since I learned of this new law over the weekend. And please, please make sure you read the two articles I linked above.

Update July 9, 2010: For now, it looks like S-corps are in the clear. According to Diane Kennedy, the S-corp bill failed to pass.

-Ryan M. Healy

P.S. Thanks to Ben Settle for bringing this issue to my attention.Similar Posts:

A Little Direct Response Gold

Ryan M. Healy — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 00:31:07 +0000

Do you know Drayton Bird?

In direct response marketing, he’s a living legend.

After all, not many can say they worked with David Ogilvy. And not many can claim being the top trainer for the biggest direct marketing agency in the world (Ogilvy & Mather).

Plus, Drayton’s experience runs the gamut.

He’s helped small businesses, of course, but much of his work has been with big companies… companies like Airbus and American Express.

The breadth and depth of Drayton’s experience cannot be overstated.

To put it in perspective, think about this:

He had mastered the fundamentals of direct response marketing long before most of us were even born!

Anyway, the reason I bring all this up is because both Drayton Bird and Bob Bly were recently interviewed by Ken McCarthy.

This interview is direct response gold. Yet Ken is giving away the interview for free.

Why is he doing this?

Because Drayton, Bob, and Ken will be doing a special copywriting Master Class on the Monday following Ken’s System Seminar in April.

And the free interview is a taste of what will be presented during the Master Class.

Obviously, if you like the interview, maybe you’ll consider attending The System as well as the Master Class.

But even if you don’t, you’ll still get a lot of value from listening to Drayton Bird and Bob Bly share stories and insights culled from decades of hard-won experience.

Here’s the link to download the interview (opt-in required):

http://www.thesystemseminar.com/319-34.html

Just so we’re clear, this is my affiliate link. If after downloading the interview you decide to attend The System or the Master Class, I will get a commission.

But potential commissions aside, I still think this interview is worth your time. With that in mind, here’s the direct link you can use if you’d rather not use my affiliate link:

http://www.thesystemseminar.com/masterclass/

Enjoy!

-Ryan M. HealySimilar Posts:

Adsense Blogging Makeover – Complimentary Interview

Ryan M. Healy — Mon, 15 Feb 2010 18:30:35 +0000

Ever wanted to monetize your blog with Adsense? Then you’ll definitely want to grab the free Adsense blogging interview I’ve linked to at the bottom of this post.

I’ve tested Adsense a few times throughout the years with a modicum of success. But lately my interest has been rekindled because of some new plugins that make it super easy to put Adsense on WordPress blogs.

(This is in contrast to the old days when I had to cut and paste the Adsense code on every page of my site. Ugh!)

A couple weeks ago, Mark Allen stumbled on my blog and called me up to talk. During our second conversation, he offered to do an Adsense makeover on my blog.

Since I’ve been wanting to switch things up on my blog anyway, and my previous experiments with Adsense on RyanHealy.com have generated very little income, I agreed to the interview.

At the very least, I figured it would be a good challenge for Mark. :-)

Turns out, Mark’s advice is really good. And while the jury is still out on whether Adsense will work on this blog or not, Mark’s advice is already producing good results on another blog I write.

With that in mind, here’s the link to go download the Adsense makeover interview from Mark’s blog. I hope you get as much out of the interview as I did. Enjoy!

-Ryan M. Healy

Similar Posts:

Hot Date with an Ugly Sales Letter

Ryan M. Healy — Sun, 14 Feb 2010 17:16:47 +0000

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Since my wife and kids are sick today — bad coughs because of some respiratory bug — there won’t be a lot of romance going on here today.

But I’m not going to let that stop me from cuddling up by the fire with another sales letter… maybe yours!

=========================
I’m looking for a hot date with an ugly sales letter! Can
you help? >>> http://www.ryanhealy.com/copy-critique
=========================

As you may recall, I’m currently offering 8 copy critiques at 40% off the regular price. You pay only $300 for your copy critique.

Just yesterday I finished the first critique. He ordered it on Feb 8 and I finished it on Feb 13, well under my 14-day turn-around guarantee.

Here are some relevant stats:

I inserted 18 comments right into his sales letter pointing out trouble spots and areas for improvement.

I wrote 2 new headlines for potential testing.

Plus, I wrote 1,397 words — 5 pages! — of feedback that was sent in a separate document. (The sales letter was 2,512 words, including testimonials. I wrote more than HALF that in feedback.)

Of course, I can’t guarantee a certain number of comments or headlines or pages when I do your critique.

But I can guarantee I will give you my best suggestions to strengthen your copy so you get more sales.

So what do you say?

For only $300 I’ll get all cozy with your sales letter and show you exactly what changes to make so you can romance more sales out of it.

Click here to order your copy critique.

-Ryan M. HealySimilar Posts: