Be aware of these overspending traps

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While it’s always easy to say that you want to save money, the act of doing it could be a challenge, especially if there are overspending traps that exist in many personal and social aspects. Here are some examples of spending traps that you should avoid.


Sales: Sales are one of the most common spending traps that consumers always fall for. Strong advertising techniques urge buyers to purchase things when the prices are slashed off, even if there is absolutely no need to buy them. A good way to avoid this trap is to do a bit of research and know the actual prices of things you want to buy, and consider if they are really worth it.


Purchasing with credit cards: According to a research by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, people using credit cards spend twice as much as those who actually pay for cash. Credit card use is responsible for falling into so much debt because one tends to buy things they can’t afford as long as they can “pay for it later.”

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Giving into peer pressure: People spend so much money on going out and purchasing just to keep up with friends who can actually afford to. If you don’t have the money to go out for a night out or for a fancy dinner, resist the urge and try to use the money for necessities instead.


Bharti Jogia-Sattar’s stepping stone in the corporate world was Total Real Estate Management, where she was accountant for three years. Afterward, she got an offer from Glenwood Financial Group, Inc. to be Assistant Controller. Now, she is an independent consultant in the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area, specializing in finance, real estate, and investments. For more articles like this, visit this page.

Why soft skills matter now more than ever in the workplace

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In the work environment that demands well-roundedness and continuing development, technical skills aren’t the only currency of good employees. Soft skills are also highly sought after – they’re people skills or emotional intelligence that establish one’s ability to interact with others. Here’s why soft skills are more important today than ever.


Soft skills are personal attributes that can shape and affect relationships, communication, and interaction with others. They include traits such as presentation, problem-solving, creativity, teamwork, negotiation, and working under pressure. They are an essential component of finding, attracting, as well as retaining clients and customers, and surviving in business, especially in cutthroat industries where service can make the difference.


Soft skills matter because they are harder to learn. While they are teachable and can be learned over time, they are more challenging to develop given the fact that they have little to do with knowledge or expertise but are closely linked to the character. Hard skills are also deemed useless without soft skills – technical know-how alone isn’t enough to be truly effective in most jobs out there.

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The modern workplace is also highly interpersonal, where soft skills such as collaboration, listening, and communication are all greatly valued. Also, customers have begun to demand soft skills, as technology has brought about more competitive prices and convenience and customer service is usually what influences the choice to use or support a particular product or service.


Soft skills are in-demand today more than ever for these reasons and this: the workplace of the future will rely on them, as they fast emerge as the differentiator in the digital economy.


Bharti Jogia-Sattar is a financial executive in the greater Los Angeles metropolitan area with a broad expertise in financial and corporate management. Read more about her expertise in financial and corporate management on this page.

Accounting: To outsource or to hire in-house?

Hiring an accountant is essential for most businesses as their expertise in analyzing financial data, preparing, report, and maintaining financial records, filing taxes, and doing other financial tasks help ensure the financial integrity of the business. Two of the most common ways to acquire the services of an accounting professional are to employ accountants or outsource the services. They offer distinct advantages, namely the following:

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In-house

With an in-house accountant, businesses would have more control over their financial management. This is especially advantageous for organizations that have specific or unusual accounting requirements. If the leaders desire the accountant to share in the same culture, it is better to employ one.


Hiring in-house would also result in more efficient collaboration with the accounting staff because they are always in the same vicinity, and not a phone call or email away.

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Outsource

One of the primary reasons businesses opt to outsource their accounting needs is that they are cost-effective. Rather than have more workers in the payroll and shell out additional overhead expenses, they can save money by just paying a third-party accountant to do the job. There would also be no need to train accounting employees, and instead, allot more time for value-adding activities.


Outsourcing can also help reduce the risk of fraud, as long as the right accounting professionals or companies are hired.


For more accounting articles, visit this Bharti Jogia-Sattar blog.

Rookie accounting pitfalls company owners should look out for

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Many companies have been brought down by the mistakes of their financial officers and accountants. While some business owners could dismiss small accounting mistakes as negligible, their frequency could create huge holes. And then, some mistakes are so egregious, they cause not only financial problems, but legal ones as well. Experienced accountants are wary of these pitfalls. It’s the younger accountants that need to keep their eyes peeled.


Take for instance the common act of mixing personal and company expenses. This is also an easy mistake to spot. While some company owners and execs may try to slip some of their vacation expenses to the company, experienced accountants know that letting this kind of dealing slide may lead to incredibly serious repercussions, especially if the IRS decides to get involved.

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It’s the responsibility of the accountants and financial officers of a company to educate business owners on the serious consequences of the organization getting caught mixing these receipts.


Another rookie accounting mistake is not staying up to date with the tax laws of the state. Experienced accountants know all too well that tax laws are updated every so often. The company should be notified of such changes, and in the frequency they occur. Staying on top of these updates means that the business can avoid paying the wrong amount at the right time and avoid massive fees and penalties.


Bharti Jogia-Sattar is an expert in financial and corporate management and real estate. She has more than two decades of experience as a financial executive and an accountant. For more financial tips, visit this page.