The panel that I created and pitched for SXSW, The Broke Diaries: Blogging and Twittering about Living on The Cheap, will be on Friday, March 12 at 2PM

The panelists:

Larry Chiang Duck9.com

Hayes Davis CheapTweets.com

Emily Farris KC FreePress

Faye Penn Brokelyn.com

Moderated by me (Nichelle Stephens)

I just found out that October is Women’s Small Business Month.  A new study shows that small businesses run by women are growing the economy.

The benchmark study, The Economic Impact of Women-Owned Businesses in the United States, showed that women-owned companies generate some $3 trillion in revenue and employ 23 million Americans–nearly double the number of people employed by the 50 biggest U.S. companies.

“Women-owned firms employ or generate a total of 16 percent of the jobs in our nation’s economy,” said Gwen Martin, executive director and director of research for the Center for Women’s Business Research.

Women-owned businesses were defined as privately held companies with at least 50 percent ownership held by women.

Read more about the study on Small Biz Daily.

Women & Wine: Summer Networking Social

WITI’s passion is for the unique ability women have to connect and create solutions both personally and professionally. Please join us for a relaxing summer evening at Olana Restaurant in the heart of the Flat Iron District. This will be a perfect time to deepen the friendships and business connections while also enjoying a sampling of wines from Olana’s extensive wine list. Event Date and Venue
This event will be held from 6:00pm -8:30pm on Tuesday, June 30, 2009 at:

Olana Restaurant
72 Madison Avenue (btw 27th/28th)
New York, New York 10016

Tickets are $25 for member and $35 for nonmembers. Register here.

The first week of June is Internet Week here in New York.  I know “internet week” is 52 weeks a year, but June 1-8 will focused on doing business on the internet.

As part of Internet Week, I will be speaking at a womENT panel about personal and professional branding. womENT is an initiative whose mission is to “womENT Empowers female entrepreneurs through discussion of the challenges they face. We encourage women to strike out on their own by fostering an open and honest dialogue. Women from all walks of life are taking advantage of social media platforms to create a Network while building their businesses. We believe women entrepreneurs will Thrive individually by coming together as a community”

April 15 is only a week away! Where did the time go? Here’s some tax links to help you out. Hopefully, doing your taxes will be just as fun as eating bacon-wrapped scallops. Yum!

For small businesses, filing an extension is not necessarily a bad thing.

Avoid errors on your tax return. IRS has a list of common errors. Forgetting to sign your return is one of them.

Don’t believe the hype: Hiring a CPA will not guarantee that you will not get audited.
Do It Yourself for Free. Free File. Check out the IRS’ site.

Tax Act is good to use as well and you don’t have to download any software. I personally used it last year on April 15th with no problems.

Check it twice. HR Block offers a second look review for $29 which may ease your doubts if you plan to prepare your returns.

Are you kinda rich?! Then you’re probably subject to the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT). The IRS has a guide to help you figure out if you qualify.

If you absolutely positively cannot file by April 15th, then file later.

Girlfriend can we talk? At the beginning of the year did you make resolutions that you have yet to jump start? You may have said you were going to make more money this year, start a business, get your financial crises RIGHT, etc. February is already here so what is going on..what are you waiting on?

In reality you are not alone. Only 10% of people who make resolutions for the New Year actually stick to them. Challenge yourself, cause you have it in you to be a part of that 10%. Oh yes you do have it in you, push that thing called fear right out of the way. What you need to succeed in your life and business is already inside of you.

Actions are the key to your success. If you start to take action, even small action it will propel you forward. Commit to an action a day that helps you take a step toward your goal There is nothing wrong with taking baby steps to reach your goals.  Nothing is to small of  a step as you venture on your quest for success.  What happens is you will notice that those baby steps become big steps. After the steps you begin to jog, then eventually you running in the direction you want to go.

Dust off that list of resolutions and take a good look at them. Add things to the list or change them if you need to. Now put a deadline next to the resolution. A deadline turns that resolution (dream) into a goal. Knowing that you have a deadline gives you something to shoot for versus a thing that you will get to when you have time.

This is your year to start that new business, get your finances in check, basically it is time to get it together. 2009 is your year to shine! You know it, so own it. Take ACTION today.