Unleashed - How to Thrive as an Independent Professional

[Note: Today's episode was recorded in January 2020.] Our guest today is Gary Pritts, the President of Eagle Consulting Partners, a firm that was a specialty in helping clients adhere to the requirements of the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, usually referred to as HIPAA. In this episode we discuss how Gary built a thriving practice focused on this specialty, and how they have expanded to supporting compliance with other types of regulation. You can learn more about Eagle Consulting Partners on their website, https://eagleconsultingpartners.com/

[Note: this episode was recorded prior to the coronavirus pandemic.] Our guest today is Sophia Ononye, who earned a PhD in Pharmaceutical Sciences from the University of Connecticut and did a postdoctoral fellowship in oncology at the Yale School of Medicine. Sophia is the founder of The Sophia Consulting Firm, and her focus is in creating value via scientific storytelling, primarily serving pharmaceutical and biotech firms. In this episode we discuss several of the service lines she offers, including strategic marketing, medical affairs, public relations, and scientific communications. You can learn more about Sophia's firm at https://sophiaconsultingfirm.com/

Oscar Wimshurst discusses the content that Bench Accounting has been publishing to answer the questions their customers have been asking on how to respond to the coronavirus pandemic. I learned about Bench when I searched for a good summary of the Paycheck Protection Program on March 28, 2020, the morning after it was passed, and their summary ranked at the top of the first page of Google results. They've had their whole content team focused on generating useful material for their customers – and potential customers – which tend to be businesses with 0-5 employees. Oscar also explains the bookkeeping services that Bench offers. Check out the latest educational material from Bench on their blog.

Today's episode is a recording of a webinar that I facilitated on April 8, 2020, attended by 80 independent management consultants. Ryan Vaughan is a Tax Director at Mazars, a leading global accounting firm, and he answered our questions about the Paycheck Protection Program. Ryan first provides a general overview that pertains to all businesses, and then he gets into our detailed questions about how independent consultants can access the Paycheck Protection Program. Some of our key questions included: If we aren't W2 employees of our own firms, how do we demonstrate "payroll" to ourselves How much of a loan should we be eligible for How does the loan forgiveness work The practical steps of applying for the loan Starting around the 45 minute point, we touch more briefly on the Small Business Administration Economic Injury Disaster Loan. In the first part of the discussion, Ryan reviews several pages of a slide deck. We've posted that document on the Umbrex website, and here is the link. In this episode, Ryan zips through the highlights of the slide deck in about 10 minutes. He's also done a full hour webinar on that deck: watch it here.

You've submitted a proposal to a client and then..... silence. Here are some tips on how to follow up.

Tips on updating your resume. I've looked at 5,000 resumes over the past four years – seen some good ones, and lot of resumes with room for improvement. This episode is particularly geared at independent consultants, but 90% of it is relevant to any professional. Sections covered: Formatting Contact info Summary section Experience Education Publications Public speaking Patents Volunteer activities Technical skills Certifications Media Functional skills Geographic flexibility Personal info Languages Citizenship

Nayla Bahri conducted the research for her EdD on how professionals responded to layoffs during the Great Recession. She discovered that certain behaviors helped lead professionals become resilient and emerge from the crucible even stronger. In today's episode, Nayla shares how the lessons from her research apply to those affected by the coronavirus pandemic, and we discuss practical tips to do what she calls "inner work" and "outer work." Learn more about Nayla's work on her website: https://www.naylabahri.com/ And if you like this episode, check out my earlier discussion with Nayla on Episode 97 of Unleashed.

Note: This episode recorded April 1, 2020. The guidelines on the Paycheck Protection Program are evolving daily. For the latest news, visit: https://www.umbrex.com/resource/paycheck-protection-program-and-sba-eidl-loans/ === Dave Haase runs Peninsula Accounting, which offers bookkeeping, tax preparation, and payroll services to small businesses. Dave's firm is working with ~100 of their clients this week to prepare applications for the Paycheck Protection Program, and in this episode we discuss that program as well as the SBA EIDL loan. Regarding the PPP we cover: The latest guidelines from the U.S. Treasury The draft application form The information you need to pull together to apply How much will your business qualify for? How does the loan forgiveness work? Can you apply for the loan through more than one bank? Regarding the SBA EIDL we cover Documents you'll need to apply How to apply === The U.S. Treasury application form for the PPP is here: https://home.treasury.gov/system/files/136/Paycheck-Protection-Program-Application-3-30-2020-v3.pdf Contact Dave at: dave@peninsulaaccounting.com https://www.peninsulaaccounting.com/services-overview

Maureen Pritchard is a trust and estates attorney based in New York City. In today's episode, Maureen discusses: What information you should gather before meeting with a trust and estates attorney What is the benefit of creating a will? What are the benefits of creating a trust? What are the considerations in designating a guardian for your children? What other documents, besides a will or trust, should be included in an estate plan? How much will it cost to have the documents prepared? Why not use LegalZoom? How to select a trust and estates attorney Maureen kindly shared several documents that can help you get started: 12 tips for guardianship Estate Planning Worksheet Will Design Sheet Contact info for Maureen is on her firm's website: https://www.wpaslaw.com/

Over the past couple decades since I left the Navy, people have often asked me what it was like to serve in a submarine. Well, if you are sheltering in place, here are tips to simulate submarine life at home.