Business insurance is an easy expense to cut—since it doesn’t directly contribute to the bottom line like merchandise or raw materials. But cutting insurance can become a costly blunder when a major catastrophe occurs, and the business is not adequately insured. Good news: Nearly every business in America can cut its insurance costs by 10%…

Ask for a discount if you have had your homeowners’ insurance with the same company for at least three years. Many companies reduce premiums by 5% for policyholders who have been with them for three to five years, and 10% for people with them for six years or more. More savings: Review your policy annually…

Five years ago, my job at a major telecommunications company was eliminated. I was in my late 40s and unable to find suitable work in New Jersey. So my wife and I sold our home and moved to northern Virginia. Rather than take another job where I’d have to worry about being laid off again,…

Build the confidence of those who work for you and they will reward you by accomplishing more than even they thought they could. Useful: Stress their past successes, their individual and team accomplishments and regularly review what made those victories possible. Publish a regular list of individual and group/department achievements every month. Make sure the…

Few people who work for small companies realize how easy it can be to buy the businesses that now employ them by using a leveraged buyout (LBO). An LBO is a term the financial community uses to describe the sale of a company to a buyer—usually an executive or manager of the company—who puts up…

When life insurance premiums become difficult to pay, many people consider giving up the policies entirely or replacing them with cheaper ones. But giving up an existing life insurance policy isn’t cheap. When you give up a cash-value insurance policy, there are often surrender changes—which are sometimes very steep—so you’ll likely walk away with less…

Keep an interruption log for one week—to track the sources of your interruptions. Write down the list who interrupts you, when, for what reason, and for how long. Then figure out what you can do to reduce the interruptions. Also: Stop interrupting yourself. Remove distractions from your work area. Keep needed supplies close at hand.…

Time-Tested Investment Advice from David Granger David Granger hadn’t planned a career as a stock picker. But during the 1920s, his two older brothers worked for the family’s Wall Street firm, Granger & Co., and their father wanted all his sons to work together. So in 1925, David Granger joined the firm, and, for $125,000,…

An annuity isn’t a mutual fund that you buy today and sell tomorrow. Nor is it a certificate of deposit, ready to be used at maturity. When you buy a tax-deferred annuity, you are making a 15 to 25-year commitment at minimum. That’s because you could have chosen to buy those same mutual funds outside…

With tax season in our rear-view mirror, let’s take a moment and review the top ten tax filing mistakes from this past filing period, so you can avoid the same traps in 2019. Since most Americans prepare their own taxes, with a high percentage of using an online tax service, these mistakes continue to be…