Our FOCUS event this month will highlight the impact of the new tax law changes for your business. I cannot speak with any authority on that topic, but, in my opinion, the tax changes simply highlight the importance of strong financial stewardship of your business. We spend a lot of time as business owners focused... View Article
In 2014, my family had a once in a lifetime opportunity to live abroad for a couple of years. When my husband first presented this idea, my immediate response was, “Yes!”. Following that first reaction, we had numerous discussions of how this change would impact Equinox. At that time, I felt I had a good... View Article
As the effective date of Statewide Paid Sick and Safe time quickly approaches, I have had several clients say to me, “We are covered by Seattle Sick and Safe, so we don’t have to worry.” This isn’t true for two reasons: 1) Just because you are covered by Seattle (or another city ordinance requiring paid... View Article
As we wrap up the year, I’m trying to stay focused on the important planning tasks for 2018. I’ve been learning about and have begun implementing a program over the past year based on the book “Scaling Up” by Verne Harnish. The program’s core pillars are People, Strategy, Execution and Cash with each pillar leading... View Article
You don’t often find the words “innovation” and “lawyer” used closely together. Lawyers and law firms are known for their aversion to risk and, thus, to change; and innovation requires change. Innovation requires a change in thinking and a change in how things are done. It’s not just lawyers who avoid change. For most individuals... View Article
We know that hiring, mentoring and growing employees can be one of the best parts of owning a business. These folks become like family and it feels great to be able to help them achieve and grow. However, we also know that having employees is one of the most challenging and risky parts of running a business. For... View Article
A Washington federal district court recently ruled in favor of a terminated employee whose employer failed to accommodate for her use of prescription drugs due to a protected disability. The employee worked in customer service, and suffered from chronic migraines, for which she began receiving injections of the opioid Dilaudid. Due to her disability, she... View Article
An essential part of the work we do at Equinox is helping clients to understand the risks inherent in their business and proactively plan to protect against those risks. I have written before on how to think about the tools available to business owners to insulate risk including the use of contracts, insurance, and the... View Article
Your business is doing well – it’s moving along, growing, expanding to serve new clients and markets. You have a professional services team – a business law attorney, CPA, insurance broker, and banker – and contact them when you feel you need their help with something. Sometimes your instinct tells you that you probably should... View Article