Weight of the World: Newsletter August 6, 2021

Hello All,

Anyone who has been following the Olympics has undoubtedly heard of the trials and tribulations of Simone Biles. An exceptional gymnast and winner of 32 Olympic medals, she rivals Michael Phelps and Usain Bolt as one of the top athletes in recent memory. Expected to clean up at the Tokyo Olympics, she unexpectedly withdrew from several events citing her mental health as the reason and explained that she felt the “weight of the world on her shoulders.”

Many of us can relate to this sentiment. Unfortunately, it is difficult for business owners to simply stop working because of our mental health. Not because this isn’t an absolutely valid reason , but doing so has consequences that can impact our livelihood. Business owners, unlike employees, often cannot take sick leave and have someone else pick up the slack (although employees are also not immune). Wearing the many hats of business requires that they be accessible most of the time not only to generate revenues but perform various administrative functions. You have to book meetings, invoice your clients, create content, respond to customer queries, prepare packages to be shipped, fix the app on your computer that has inexplicably stopped working and on and on. It can be difficult to turn off thereby increasing mental exhaustion which ultimately, for some, results in burnout.

Combatting this can be challenging as mental exhaustion often happens in tiny increments. The best thing you can do for yourself is to take non negotiable days off (by which i mean at least 24 hours). My weekly day off is Saturday. I don’t allow myself to turn on my computer, I ignore work emails on my phone and completely avoid any other work related communications. The result of this is that I feel significantly more relaxed and it allows my brain to release some of the stress. I also try to take Sunday off, but I am a bit less rigid about this.

The other solution (in conjunction with the day off) is to book vacations well in advance. You don’t necessarily have to go somewhere (although it helps) but doing so means you can be well prepared, start notifying customers and making arrangements (and setting your out of office email!). When you are on vacation, it is also important to take the time to completely separate yourself from work.

Finally, as I’m sure many of you have read, you should take scheduled breaks during the day. Lunch is a good one where you reserve at least 30 minutes where no work is done. Some form of physical activity is also good as, similar to a cup of coffee, it helps to invigorate (especially when you are feeling listless as I was earlier today before taking a short brisk walk)

None of my advice is revolutionary or even novel, but it does help to be reminded of it occasionally as it can help to alleviate the mental load that comes with being a business owner and reduce the weight of the world that is resting on many of our shoulders.

All Canadians whether they are employees or small business owners are required to pay into the Canada or Quebec Pension Plan (CPP or QPP). As an employee a certain amount is deducted from your paycheque while the employer pays the other half. A small business owner, conversely, has to pay both portions which can be a significant obligation. My articles gives you insights into how CPP/QPP works, the related tax obligation and provides a calculator where you can determine how much you will have to pay along with your taxes at the end of the year.

Small Business Articles/Tips

A survey of Canadians’ travel plans : According a CPA Canada survey, 30 per cent of Canadians are not planning to take a vacation this summer, 35 per cent are still undecided or delaying their vacation decisions, 15 per cent plan to take vacations within the area they live and only 22 per cent plan to vacation outside of the area where they live. The article further breaks down those who are planning to take a vacation between local and international travel, and other ways in which Canadians plan to spend the summer.

Tax Tip : The Canada Hiring Recovery Program (CHRP) was introduced as part of the federal budget in April of this year. It is being offered alongside the Canada Wage Subsidy Program (CEWS) , which means you might qualify for one or the other. The CHRP, similar to CEWS, is based on payroll except that it relates to incremental payroll costs over the previous year. It is therefore an incentive to employers to increase their hiring. To qualify you must have had a decrease in revenues, similar to CEWS. To see all the details including eligibility and calculators, check out the Govt. of Canada website and calculator

QBO Tip: Rules are a powerful feature that apply to transactions downloaded through banking. Rules are available in the transactions/banking dashboard and allow you to create certain criteria which will automatically apply to all transactions that fulfill the criteria. For example you could set up a rule that applies every time the word “fees” are in the description of transactions downloaded from your checking account. QBO will then automatically categorize these transactions at bank charges saving you the time and hassle of doing it yourself.

Books and Resources

Small Business Tax Guide: If you want to know more about tax in general, small business taxes and how to do your own small business (unincorporated) tax return

Small Business and Your Dividends: Provides a detailed understanding of salary vs dividends, how they apply to your business and how to prepare and file your dividend declarations.

Start Your Business: is a step by step guide for those whose goal is to start a business or become self employed

Coming Soon: QuickStart your Quickbooks which explains all the features in QBO that every business needs to know and how to navigate QBO as a beginner. You can sign up here to be notified upon release. (it’s in the final editing stages so I hope to have it by the next newsletter)

All three books are also available at Amazon in both ebook and print format.

Save 25% by using the discount code “special” on our website.

Some free downloads to help you with your business journey:

Start Your Business Checklist
Dividend Declarations Checklist
Small Business Tax Return Checklist
Business Tax Deadline Calendar

If you have recently subscribed, you can take a look at my previous newsletters.

Reviews/Feedback

For anyone who has purchased my books through Amazon or even directly, and have found it valuable, a review directly on Amazon would be hugely helpful.

I would also love to hear your insights into existing blog posts, topic ideas for new blogs, feedback on my products/website or anything else that you want to talk to me about. You can use my feedback form or email me directly. I’m always looking for ways to improve or provide value (to the extent possible) and this will be most helpful.

Hope everyone has a lovely weekend!

Ronika