Featured Napkin
1099 vs. W-2 Employee
Bring Home the Bacon
1099s and W-2s are both types of tax forms. If you’re a contractor, you should receive one or more 1099s at the end of the year. If you’re an employee, you should receive a W-2.
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Business Plan
Best-Laid Plans
A business plan is a document that outlines your vision for your business. It describes your big-picture...
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Venture Capital
Nothing Ventured, Nothing Gained
Venture capital (or “VC” for short) is a type of financing for startup companies. Venture capitalists invest...
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SBA Loans
Helping Hand
SBA-guaranteed loans (or just “SBA loans”) are business loans backed by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA)....
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Partnerships
Passing Through
If you’re starting a business with someone else (or multiple people), the partnership is the most basic...
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Valuing a Company
What’s it Worth?
A company’s value is the dollar figure that it might sell for if a person or another...
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Incorporating
Limited Liability
A corporation is one type of formal business structure that entrepreneurs can choose to use when starting...
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Retirement Savings for Contractors
Squirrel Away
If you’re a contractor, saving for retirement can be much more complicated than it is for employees....
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Taxes for Contractors
Welcome to the Gig Economy
A contractor, or freelancer, can be anyone who works for clients on a contract basis rather than...
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Entrepreneurship
Change the World
Entrepreneurship is building a new business from the ground up. It means coming up with an idea...
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Kylie Jenner
Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous
When it comes to money moves, Kylie Jenner knows what’s up. A Forbes profile of the youngest...
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Break-Even Point
Point Break
A company is at its break-even point when its revenue equals its expenses. It is neither making...
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IRR
Crunch the Numbers
The internal rate of return, or IRR, is a measure of an investment’s or a project’s profitability....
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Financial Statements
State of Affairs
Financial statements are reports a company puts together to measure how it’s doing. Companies create their financial...
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Crowdfunding
Pound the Pavement
Crowdfunding is a way to raise money from many people, thanks to the power of the Internet....
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Profit and Loss (P&L)
The Bottom Line
A profit and loss statement, or income statement, shows the money a company earned and what it...
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Overhead
Keep the Lights On
Overhead refers to the expenses a business must pay just to stay open. Also known as “indirect...
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Business Insurance
Cover Your Bases
A business insurance policy is a contract between an insurance company and a business. In exchange for...
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Bankruptcy
Lose Your Shirt
Bankruptcy is the legal process for consumers or businesses to get help with their debt. Bankruptcy starts...
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Fixed vs. Variable Costs
At All Costs
Fixed and variable costs are types of expenses that businesses pay in order to operate.
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Convertible Note
Take Note
A convertible note is a type of short-term loan for a business. However, instead of being repaid...
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ROI
Many Happy Returns
Return on investment, or ROI, is a ratio for measuring the profitability of an investment. It puts...
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Risk vs. Reward
Double Down
All investments come with risk. With financial investments, risk is usually tied to reward. That means investments...
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Philanthropy
Greater Good
Philanthropy is giving back. It’s paying forward the resources you have—whether your money, or physical goods, or...
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EBITDA
How You Slice It
EBITDA (pronounced “ee-bit-tah”) stands for “earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization.” It’s one measure of a...
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Profit Margin
Margin of Error
A company’s profit margin measures the portion of its total sales that it gets to keep as...
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Financing a Start-up
Sink or Swim
If you’re trying to get a start-up off the ground, chances are you’ll need some cash to...
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Liability
Much Obliged
A liability is something that will require you (or a company) to spend money or resources in...
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How to Start a Start-up
Go Big or Go Home
Although plenty of start-ups fail, the ones that succeed can do so wildly. Beyond a financial payoff,...
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Independent Contractor
Free Agent
An independent contractor is someone who is self-employed and works for clients as a nonemployee. Independent contractors...
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Depreciation
Wear and Tear
Depreciation is a physical asset’s loss of value over time. Just as your once new car is...
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