So, please read and let me know some of your creative ideas!
FatWallet: Charitable Giving on a Budget
photo: istockphoto.com
Monday, March 21, 2011
Charitable Giving
The featured blog post on FatWallet today is about charitable giving on a budget. At different times in my life, I found myself on the tight end.... and charitable giving was the last thing on my mind. I realize now what a loss that was. Focusing my attention on others less fortunate than I would have been a tremendous kick in the butt. A needed kick.
So, please read and let me know some of your creative ideas!
FatWallet: Charitable Giving on a Budget
photo: istockphoto.com
So, please read and let me know some of your creative ideas!
FatWallet: Charitable Giving on a Budget
photo: istockphoto.com
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Thanks, Illinois, For Your Shortsightedness.
 |
| credit: iStock photo |
Feeling betrayed hurts.
I was born and raised in Illinois. My husband and I made the conscious choice to move back here after his time in the Navy. Family, friends, and familiar places and faces all tugged at my heartstrings, and I convinced him this was the place to be. He didn't want to live here.
Time marched on, and we had additions to our family in the form of brothers-in-law, nieces, and a nephew. We found fulfilling, satisfying, challenging work. We contribute to our community through volunteering and monetary support of select charities. The company we work for invested in our community, taking an eyesore in Rockton and constructing a state-of-the-art facility that is comfortable and perfect for our workforce. We bought a house just a few miles away, conscious of the convenience and environmental impact of a short commute.
Today Governor Quinn signs into law HB 3659, which directly impacts our employer. FatWallet's advertising relationships with some large companies, such as Amazon and Overstock, will evaporate if FatWallet remains in Illinois. FatWallet has no choice but to move.
I've watched the debate play out in the press. I walk away from this fiasco more jaded than ever. There was no consideration about what really made sense; there was simply backroom politics, rhetoric, posturing, and in the end, politicians and lobbyists who got richer.
FatWallet will go on. The company will move to another state, and won't look back. Illinois will not realize the supposed gains this law tries to obtain. Politicians will get even more crooked. Big businesses will drive small businesses out of business. Way to go. It's not like Illinois needs the higher-paying jobs companies like FatWallet provide. Not at all. The void left by the 9,000+ affiliate marketers that will be affected can be filled by the wages WalMart pays, right Governor Quinn?
There are so many opinions being thrown left and right, and only a handful of people who truly understand the issue. Even people pushing hard for it didn't understand the consequences to so many legitimate, growing, tax-paying Illinois businesses. Of those who do understand, there are two camps: the people who see the irreparable damage done to the fast-growing, profitable affiliate marketing businesses in Illinois, the opportunities forever lost; and those who see that damage may be done, but feel that taking a stand may encourage other states to adopt similar bills - and ultimately think that the affiliate marketers are bluffing when they say they will leave Illinois.
If you knew that you were going to take a minimum 30% pay cut if you stayed, or you could continue to make the same or more by moving, what would you do?
Personally, I'm saddened by the state of affairs in my home state. I don't believe Illinois would be in the financial mess it is if we hadn't had so many crooks in elected offices over the course of my lifetime. Our government is no longer a government by the people, for the people. It's full of career politicians. It's enough to make me truly understand and feel the Revolutionary War was more than just a story in our past.
Tax Foundation
Blue Yonder - Affiliate Influenza
Performance Marketing Association
Wednesday, March 9, 2011
Women of HR
Since last summer, I've been fortunate to be a part of the Women of HR community. It's a great group of people with varied experiences, making an interesting mix. I'm looking forward to meeting many of them in person at HRevolution in Atlanta.
Today, they're featuring one of my posts. It's titled "Who Signs Your Paycheck?" Please take a look and let me know your thoughts.
Thursday, March 3, 2011
Coping With Sadness
What do you do when you're sad?
Winter - the bitter cold, angry winds, gray skies, short days - sends me into a funk. I tend to fold into myself, becoming more introverted than my norm. Social interactions revert to a minimum. I don't want to leave the house.
One way i try to escape is through books. Curled up under a blanket, drinking tea, I can ignore the harshness of the season.
Music works sometimes, too, but it can be a double-edged sword. So many emotions are triggered by songs that listening to my library on random can be a roller coaster of highs and lows.
I wish I handled sadness in more constructive ways. Clubs or sports? I'll never be a social butterfly, nor will I be any kind of athlete. I'm awkward and clumsy, tripping over my own feet half the time. Would forcing engagement with others help? It is so tiring, exhausting, simply draining when I try.
A brief getaway to Florida last week was welcome and needed, so much more than I realized. I joked while there about absorbing enough sun to hold me until warmer weather hits our area. I didn't get nearly the amount necessary.
I'm hoping for a change in weather very soon. Are you?
Winter - the bitter cold, angry winds, gray skies, short days - sends me into a funk. I tend to fold into myself, becoming more introverted than my norm. Social interactions revert to a minimum. I don't want to leave the house.
One way i try to escape is through books. Curled up under a blanket, drinking tea, I can ignore the harshness of the season.
Music works sometimes, too, but it can be a double-edged sword. So many emotions are triggered by songs that listening to my library on random can be a roller coaster of highs and lows.
I wish I handled sadness in more constructive ways. Clubs or sports? I'll never be a social butterfly, nor will I be any kind of athlete. I'm awkward and clumsy, tripping over my own feet half the time. Would forcing engagement with others help? It is so tiring, exhausting, simply draining when I try.
A brief getaway to Florida last week was welcome and needed, so much more than I realized. I joked while there about absorbing enough sun to hold me until warmer weather hits our area. I didn't get nearly the amount necessary.
I'm hoping for a change in weather very soon. Are you?
Sunday, February 27, 2011
My Soc Me Picks
So you're wondering what the heck I mean by Soc Me picks. In honor of the Oscars, I'm sharing my thoughts on who I consider the stars of the HR social media space. These people know how to deliver jabs and uppercuts, and can tell it the way it is.
First on my list is Laurie Ruettimann, the Cynical Girl. Why? With a routine Google search for employee handbook, Punk Rock HR popped up on my screen. Her take on the subject, Punk Rock Employee Handbook, is pure and simple genius. I was hooked.
Jason Seiden is next. Want leadership or personal development advice? You'll find it, no holds barred, at Fail Spectacularly! Plus, he occasionally throws in free mp3 downloads of his very talented sister, Jackie.
Frank Roche has a no-bullshit approach on his blog, KnowHR. I still have his list of what he believes - and doesn't - about HR hanging on my office door.
Charlie Judy and his Trench HR outlook is practical, realistic, inspiring, and brave. Why brave? Actually, all these people have the courage and determination to change the profession for the better.
Lisa Rosendahl, Trish McFarlane, Shauna Moerke and all the Women of HR push the boundaries of accepted beliefs and practices in the HR field every day.
To hear the stories and beliefs of many more progressive HR folks who really get it, all you have to do is tune into DriveThruHR with Bryan Wempen and William Tincup every weekday, or listen to HR Happy Hour on Thursday evenings.
Of course there are many, many more people I could mention. These are the ones who originally inspired me; made me laugh, think and change my opinions.
First on my list is Laurie Ruettimann, the Cynical Girl. Why? With a routine Google search for employee handbook, Punk Rock HR popped up on my screen. Her take on the subject, Punk Rock Employee Handbook, is pure and simple genius. I was hooked.
Jason Seiden is next. Want leadership or personal development advice? You'll find it, no holds barred, at Fail Spectacularly! Plus, he occasionally throws in free mp3 downloads of his very talented sister, Jackie.
Frank Roche has a no-bullshit approach on his blog, KnowHR. I still have his list of what he believes - and doesn't - about HR hanging on my office door.
Charlie Judy and his Trench HR outlook is practical, realistic, inspiring, and brave. Why brave? Actually, all these people have the courage and determination to change the profession for the better.
Lisa Rosendahl, Trish McFarlane, Shauna Moerke and all the Women of HR push the boundaries of accepted beliefs and practices in the HR field every day.
To hear the stories and beliefs of many more progressive HR folks who really get it, all you have to do is tune into DriveThruHR with Bryan Wempen and William Tincup every weekday, or listen to HR Happy Hour on Thursday evenings.
Of course there are many, many more people I could mention. These are the ones who originally inspired me; made me laugh, think and change my opinions.
Sunday, January 9, 2011
Illinois Slaps Residents. Again.
I'm disappointed in my home state of Illinois. Again. As if having multiple governors in jail isn't enough, the politicians still in office continue to prove they do not understand nor empathize with ordinary folks.
The recent lame duck session of this state's legislature lacked transparency and is an attempt to push through massive tax hikes. The Americans for Tax Reform site has written some informed posts on the sessions. The majority of voters - small business owners and individual taxpayers - oppose these tax hikes. I love one of the lines in the letter ATR sent to Governor Quinn: "To ignore the will of the voters by ramming a massive tax increase through as the legislature walks out the door is a slap in the face of those who choose to participate in the democratic process." I know I personally feel slapped.
My disappointment about the tax hikes does not begin to approach the feelings I have about the Affiliate Nexus Tax proposal, however. House Bill 3659 would require any out-of-state retailer to collect sales tax on online purchases by Illinois residents, if the retailer has a relationship with an Illinois affiliate. To say the bill is shortsighted is an understatement.
Online retailers with a physical location in Illinois, whether it be a brick-and-mortar stores, warehouses or offices, are required to collect the state sales tax at the time of purchase. Retailers such as Amazon and Overstock do not have to collect Illinois sales tax, as they do not have any physical holdings in the state. This bill proposes that a relationship with an affiliate makes them liable for collection and remitting - overhead, paperwork and headaches. If you were Amazon, what would you do? You'd say screw it, and sever your affiliate relationships. The fact of the matter is, you're still going to sell to Illinois residents. You just won't have to collect sales tax. It's not going to hurt Amazon's bottom line in the least. In fact, Amazon and Overstock have already informed their Illinois affiliates that if this bill passes, they will be terminating the relationships. I know. I've received one of their letters.
I'm not a very active Amazon affiliate through my blog, but I am disappointed this choice is being taken away from me.
In multiple articles, I've read the following: "The point is that someone is supposed to be collecting this tax," said John Patterson, spokesman for state Senate President John Cullerton, who pushed for the change. "All other retailers in Illinois have to collect the sales tax. They're at a competitive disadvantage from online retailers. The motivation is to create some tax fairness among retailers in Illinois."
Wow. Talk about not being able to see the big picture.
Illinois residents will still buy from online retailers. This bill does NOTHING to level the playing field, as they claim. Instead, it hurts the affiliates with legitimate, thriving businesses who employ Illinois residents.
Let me say it again, but louder: ILLINOIS RESIDENTS WILL STILL BUY FROM ONLINE RETAILERS, BUT THOSE RETAILERS WON'T HAVE TO COLLECT USE TAX.
State Senator Dave Syverson, R-Rockford, understands this concept. In an article in the Rockford Register Star, he states, “With this bill passing, Amazon and Overstock, they’ll just cancel their contracts with all the companies like FatWallet.com, and you and I will go directly to Amazon and Overstock,” he said. “Illinois still won’t collect any taxes, but we will lose jobs.”
This affiliate nexus is a stretch. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that a retailer that does not have a physical presence in a state cannot be required to collect sales tax for that state. For Illinois to claim that an affiliate relationship - which is basically an advertising relationship - is a physical presence is laughable.
I work for FatWallet Inc. I'm not happy about the discussions we've been having recently. I hate the thought of moving our company out of state, away from the very employees who have helped make us successful. Away from the community we actively support. Seems wrong, doesn't it? But if this bill passes, do you think we can afford to employ these same people when our revenue drops by 30 - 40 percent?
The Chicagoist said it well in the post, "The Bad Math of the 'Amazon Tax'":
What that means is that if out-of-state online retailers continue business as usual, the total increase in use tax collected will be zero. Also, those affiliate dollars earned are taxable, so the state loses out on that income tax as well, resulting in a net loss in revenue. To make matters worse, companies like BradsDeals.com and FatWallet.com, which make most of their income from affiliate marketing, have indicated that if the bill goes through they'll be forced to leave the state, taking their money and jobs with them. Chief executive of Fat Wallet Tim Storm was quoted as saying, "The reality is that as a business owner with 52 employees, we're not going to just get shut down because of a law Illinois passes. Our customers don't care whether we're in the state of Illinois."
The recent lame duck session of this state's legislature lacked transparency and is an attempt to push through massive tax hikes. The Americans for Tax Reform site has written some informed posts on the sessions. The majority of voters - small business owners and individual taxpayers - oppose these tax hikes. I love one of the lines in the letter ATR sent to Governor Quinn: "To ignore the will of the voters by ramming a massive tax increase through as the legislature walks out the door is a slap in the face of those who choose to participate in the democratic process." I know I personally feel slapped.
My disappointment about the tax hikes does not begin to approach the feelings I have about the Affiliate Nexus Tax proposal, however. House Bill 3659 would require any out-of-state retailer to collect sales tax on online purchases by Illinois residents, if the retailer has a relationship with an Illinois affiliate. To say the bill is shortsighted is an understatement.
Online retailers with a physical location in Illinois, whether it be a brick-and-mortar stores, warehouses or offices, are required to collect the state sales tax at the time of purchase. Retailers such as Amazon and Overstock do not have to collect Illinois sales tax, as they do not have any physical holdings in the state. This bill proposes that a relationship with an affiliate makes them liable for collection and remitting - overhead, paperwork and headaches. If you were Amazon, what would you do? You'd say screw it, and sever your affiliate relationships. The fact of the matter is, you're still going to sell to Illinois residents. You just won't have to collect sales tax. It's not going to hurt Amazon's bottom line in the least. In fact, Amazon and Overstock have already informed their Illinois affiliates that if this bill passes, they will be terminating the relationships. I know. I've received one of their letters.
I'm not a very active Amazon affiliate through my blog, but I am disappointed this choice is being taken away from me.
In multiple articles, I've read the following: "The point is that someone is supposed to be collecting this tax," said John Patterson, spokesman for state Senate President John Cullerton, who pushed for the change. "All other retailers in Illinois have to collect the sales tax. They're at a competitive disadvantage from online retailers. The motivation is to create some tax fairness among retailers in Illinois."
Wow. Talk about not being able to see the big picture.
Illinois residents will still buy from online retailers. This bill does NOTHING to level the playing field, as they claim. Instead, it hurts the affiliates with legitimate, thriving businesses who employ Illinois residents.
Let me say it again, but louder: ILLINOIS RESIDENTS WILL STILL BUY FROM ONLINE RETAILERS, BUT THOSE RETAILERS WON'T HAVE TO COLLECT USE TAX.
State Senator Dave Syverson, R-Rockford, understands this concept. In an article in the Rockford Register Star, he states, “With this bill passing, Amazon and Overstock, they’ll just cancel their contracts with all the companies like FatWallet.com, and you and I will go directly to Amazon and Overstock,” he said. “Illinois still won’t collect any taxes, but we will lose jobs.”
This affiliate nexus is a stretch. The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that a retailer that does not have a physical presence in a state cannot be required to collect sales tax for that state. For Illinois to claim that an affiliate relationship - which is basically an advertising relationship - is a physical presence is laughable.
I work for FatWallet Inc. I'm not happy about the discussions we've been having recently. I hate the thought of moving our company out of state, away from the very employees who have helped make us successful. Away from the community we actively support. Seems wrong, doesn't it? But if this bill passes, do you think we can afford to employ these same people when our revenue drops by 30 - 40 percent?
The Chicagoist said it well in the post, "The Bad Math of the 'Amazon Tax'":
What that means is that if out-of-state online retailers continue business as usual, the total increase in use tax collected will be zero. Also, those affiliate dollars earned are taxable, so the state loses out on that income tax as well, resulting in a net loss in revenue. To make matters worse, companies like BradsDeals.com and FatWallet.com, which make most of their income from affiliate marketing, have indicated that if the bill goes through they'll be forced to leave the state, taking their money and jobs with them. Chief executive of Fat Wallet Tim Storm was quoted as saying, "The reality is that as a business owner with 52 employees, we're not going to just get shut down because of a law Illinois passes. Our customers don't care whether we're in the state of Illinois."
Monday, November 22, 2010
Taking a Leap of Faith
Game changing moments. Turning points. Epiphanies. Everyone has them. I’ve had quite a few in my life, but I have to say the one that’s made the most difference for me in the last twenty years was accepting a job at FatWallet.
Despite what most people might think, it wasn’t an easy decision. You see, I’ve been a good friend to the person who hired me for a very long time - over 25 years at this point. We’re not acquaintances; we’re the I-might-help-you-bury-a-body type of friends. Working in an employee-boss relationship could have changed our friendship considerably for the worse. Thankfully, that did not happen.
At the time, I was working for a non-profit. My salary was tiny. Tim was able to offer a salary that was a third more than I was making. However, FatWallet was not offering health insurance or a retirement plan. I would be betting on a company that was just gaining some momentum, trading security for opportunity. The thought of having enough money to stop scraping by, paycheck to paycheck, was appealing, but the opportunities that were possible with a start-up company were worth far more, in my consideration.
I had recently obtained a Bachelor’s degree in business administration. I knew I wanted - actually, I needed - a job that could challenge me, pull me in directions I’ve never been pulled, yet utilize things I’d absorbed throughout the years. Things that didn’t necessarily have anything to do with the degree I’d just earned. Tim needed someone to handle the nuts and bolts of running a company: organizing, filing, making sure people were paid, etc. It was something I knew I could do, and I hoped it would grow.
I also yearned for a place that was different from anything I had yet to experience. I don’t think I could have told you then what I was looking for, but today I know: I wanted a culture of accountability laced with kindness. I wanted to work for a company that embraced the philosophy of “Treat others the way you would want to be treated.”
I wouldn’t say that Human Resources would have been my first choice in careers; I don’t believe it would have been in my top 10. Over the years, I’ve learned, stretched, and gained experience. I’m comfortable in the role, and I do have a passion for it: a passion gained by seeing what companies are like when HR is handled poorly.
FatWallet has given me choices in life that I didn’t have before. I earned these choices by proving myself, proving my worth. I no longer worry about struggling paycheck-to-paycheck. I have confidence in myself and my abilities.
My job has changed many times in the past eight years. I’ve handled and supervised customer service, HR, payroll, accounting, and facilities. In the process, I’ve assembled furniture, cleaned restrooms, answered phones, researched, created processes, scrapped processes, implemented benefits, supervised, hired, fired, talked about company strategy and talked about company game days. Every day has held something different, and I’ve found I fit here. Perhaps this is because I’ve helped create the culture; perhaps it is because I’ve grown up a bit. Whatever it is, I know that my life changed for the better the day I took a leap of faith, accepted Tim’s job offer and embraced FatWallet as my home away from home.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)