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In 2006 American businessman Warren Buffet made the largest charitable donation in US history by giving over 37 billion dollars to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.  Buffet was once asked if he felt that people should follow his model and build their business and personal wealth first, then make a substantial donation to charity once they are able. His answer was no. He explained that unless you are a proven expert at growing money dramatically and can generate massive amounts of wealth (far beyond what you might generate in the housing or stock market), you'll be doing more good by giving a smaller amount today. 

You don't have to be a billionaire to make a difference, and although most of us may never break any records for charitable giving, we can all incorporate giving into our businesses no matter what our financial picture looks like.  According to Richard Jolly, chairman of Giving USA, the bulk of the approximately 300 billion dollars donated by Americans to charity each year comes from individuals rather than corporations. Most of that money is generated through small donations, and when it all adds up it really makes a difference.

As a small business owner, a great approach is to make an affordable donation to charity every month. Even a tiny, struggling business can afford a $10/month donation to charity. Over time your small donations can really add up.

Monthly giving can become part of your routine operations, and will give you an immediate and visible reward for your business efforts. Rather than donating on a whim and worrying about whether it's enough or too much, a monthly donation has the advantage of being planned, predictable and easy to manage. Your recurring monthly donations can be an automated, so that the whole process requires minimal effort on your part. Monthly giving also has the benefit of bringing charitable giving into your monthly bookkeeping routine, thus making donations a real part of your business rather than an occasional event.

Over time, your business will grow and hopefully your donations will grow along with it. You may choose to increase your monthly donation (which will make your accountant happy!) or you can take advantage of the many opportunities to 'give back' with your business.  You can donate your time, your services, or your old computers. Along the way, your CPA can advise you on how to make the most of your charity dollars and optimize the tax reduction aspects of giving to charity.

Can your business afford $5/month to help charity? If so, why not start today and start giving. If you aren't ready for the monthly commitment, you can make a single donation to CARE International by clicking here, and the minimum is just $5.

One of the most common requests that we get from our clients is for support in the incorporation process. In most cases, this starts out as a 'corp. vs. LLC' conversation, and quickly turns into a high-level discussion about the business's objectives and plans. Clients usually come to us expecting that we will recommend they create an LLC online and go on their merry way. In the majority of cases, however, the best option may be a corporation or even to remain a sole proprietor while you determine the absolute best way forward.

Dissolving (shutting down) a business entity requires some paperwork and will usually have fees involved, so it can be quite an expensive mistake to choose the wrong entity. In addition, a business entity usually needs to have its own taxes filed at the end of each year (except for a single-owner LLC,  in some cases) and even if you decide to close the business you'll probably still wind up paying an accountant to prepare the returns. So, better to get it right the first time!