The benefits of sustainable buildings go well beyond the financial

4154488050_d71d1b213b_z

Investing in a green office building proves to be a growing trend in the business culture today. Focus has shifted from viewing a building as a necessary place to perform work to understanding the environmental impact of the structure and the way it operates.

Also known as sustainable buildings, green buildings are defined as a structure and process that are environmentally responsible from location and construction to use and demolition.

Continue reading

Changes to the 2016 Tax Code

A variety of United States tax forms with a pencil

 

We all start getting tense and tight as we get close to tax time, worrying about whether we will owe and if so how much, or worrying about whether we will get enough back to do the things we want and need to do.  One way to have some control over the outcome is to be so familiar with the tax changes that are in effect for  2016 that we make maximum use of any opportunity to minimize the pain and maximize a positive outcome.

Continue reading

Classic Americana: Charles Wysocki

Art still life - closeup of three oil paint tubes with redgreen and blue colours background for creative art design

Charles Wysocki is an American painter who is known for folksy art and creating scenes of Americana. Much of his art depicts scenes and tells stories of small towns in New England and rural Pennsylvania. He was born in Detroit, Michigan in 1928 to a Polish immigrant father who worked for Ford Motor Company assembly lines for more than 35 years.

Continue reading

3 Lazy Work Habits That Are Literally Killing You

Funny Skeleton working on computer

By MJ Plaster

You might not know your work is killing you. I didn’t either until a couple of years ago when I stumbled upon the killer that we all have in common. If you work outside the house, you probably don’t eat as well as you could at work. You might even hate your job.

But neither of those is the No. 1 workplace killer. In fact, those of us who work at home are probably at greater risk because we may have fewer distractions than our office counterparts do.

Continue reading

Top New Year’s Resolutions for Your Small Business

Happy new 2016 business year businessman with light bulb and number 2016 retro toned image selective focus.

The new year has arrived, and for many ambitious business owners, this means another year of setting new goals and working tirelessly to achieve them. If you’re a small business owner, you may be wondering what you can do specifically to achieve success in 2016. We’ve got some excellent New Year’s resolutions for small businesses, so you may want to consider pursuing some or even all of these for your company this year.

Continue reading

Last Minute Tax Tips For Small Businesses (And Some For Next Year)

Feel free to use this image, just link to www.SeniorLiving.Org

Feel free to use this image, just link to www.SeniorLiving.Org

Small business owners often face stiff competition, demanding customers and rising labor costs. When tax season arrives, it may cause unnecessary stress over financial worries.

Following these tips below will help small business owners prepare to file taxes this year and plan for the next year.

Continue reading

One Savvy Writer: CheckWorks Turns the Table on Its Writer

 

public-domain-images-free-stock-photos-woman-earth-globe-white-short-out...

In an end-of-year twist, CheckWorks interviewed its writer, MJ Plaster (www.onesavvywriter.com).


How did you get into writing?
A funny thing happened on the way to my journalism degree. I was an airline brat, and I lost my pass privileges, my freedom. What I had once taken for granted (free travel) became a fixation to the exclusion of everything else.

Continue reading

1,001 Killer Life and Business Lessons in 5 Easy Books

 

stack of books on the dark wood background. toning. selective focus on the middle book

By MJ Plaster

A-thousand-and-one lessons? At least! Successful people distill knowledge acquired through self-education and life experiences into wisdom. As Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel remind us, we don’t learn much of anything important in school. Those who pursue relentless self-education and act on knowledge learned are destined for great things.
Continue reading

Surviving the Workplace: What NOT to Talk About This Holiday Season

Diversity Business People Discussion Meeting Board Room Concept

 

We all know that there are just some things you shouldn’t say at work. Even if you consider your co-workers your friends, when you are on the clock, it is important for everyone that you mind your p’s and q’s. But during the holidays, when everyone is feeling either a bit more relaxed or boiling under the pressure of family commitments and end of the quarter deadlines, it is easy to fall into random topics of conversation around the water cooler.

Continue reading