Thursday, September 6, 2012

The things they should teach you in school...



I don't know what it is but I have a huge fear of a man showing up in a cheap suit shaking his finger at me banging on the door, telling me I need to pay my taxes. I guess this is the part of my personality that I love, and I hate. The part where I need to always know what I'm doing, have a process, lists and a system. Once I set my mind on something, I need to know how to do it, why I am doing it and what happens if I don't. This is a great part of me when it comes to being a military wife. I really am great at handling business when it comes to moving and relocating our family ever few years...my lists and processes get us from point A to point B with minimal damage.

But I am terrified at not doing something right in business.

I am terrified because its new to me. Yes, I have owned a business before but never really did anything with it so it went to business heaven and I haven't heard from it since. But things are happening over here and I just want to be prepared.

I was on hold with the IRS today for 2 hours. And thank God for my husband who takes the kids and entertains them for me while I handle this stuff. I finally got the right person on the line and simply just started out the conversation with, " I am simply a mom and a military wife, I don't know what I am doing." She really was annoyed already. And I am a talker, that's how I process things. You can actually find me walking the grocery store isles mumbling to myself, I have caught people staring at me and had to snap out of my self talk. So when I kept interrupting this poor lady to say, ok so your saying I don't owe anything right now right? she got terribly annoyed. And I will say I did shed a few tears at the end.

This moment, today, will be important for me to look back on one day. I really just truly believe that if this story can help anyone out there, or even just my daughters, this will all be worth it. Because I know nothing. Literally nothing. I didn't know anything before I started this either and here I am. Selling art. I am freaked out in the best way possible. I will say it again, I just picked up a paint brush 6 months ago. I am just in awe of what has happened here.

So after hour three today, I don't know if I feel that much more confident with the rules and my responsibilities. And I am deeply sorry for those people that work there that seem to just hate their jobs. But I guess the very fact that I stay up at night analyzing and googling schedule C forms and 1040 ES worksheets makes me on the right track. I'm sure the very fact that I actually care gives me a good start.

I kept repeating, I am just a stay at home mom and a military wife who is trying to do good for her family.

I really think that if I would have learned a little about tax law or small business structures or anything related in school I would be better off today. I really do think it needs to be part of the curriculum in school. But I'm not a teacher and have no idea how that would work...I guess that's what college is for? Didn't do that either.

So I might just be a stay at home mom and a wife but I know I have the Almighty clearing paths, directing me to people and pulling strings for me. I just know it. And I hope that somewhere out there in Internet land some mom finds this post. A mom who wants the very best for her girls...doesn't care much about clothes or shoes, or even vacations, but who cares about being able to put healthy food on the table and help her husband out in a tough economy. A mom who cares so much about being able to give to others but cant...yet. If your out there, this is possible. You can do this. If you have a passion in your heart and a God to lean on, that's all you need.

Everything in between will always work itself out. ;)

2 comments:

  1. As a note from a teacher, there are some schools that do teach a class called Resource Management or something like that. Kids learn about balancing check books, taxes, etc. Not sure that tax laws and small business structures were a part of that though.
    With the prominence of start up businesses at home, I imagine there are a lot of people out there with similar questions. Surely there is a website or something out there about it. Good luck and thank you for the words for others.

    ReplyDelete
  2. oh. my. goodness.
    I AM IN THE SAME BOAT.
    seriously! just started my small photog business and it is soo overwhelming! i feel like i know NOTHING.
    :/

    ReplyDelete

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