Category: business

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Ah, the Case Act

Assuming that Trump actually signs the huge bill that includes the CASE Act, something that has not yet happened as I post this (and, knowing how crazy he is, it’s not a for-sure thing he will), the much-touted bill will become law. **UPDATE 12.28.20: he signed**
What does it change in copyright law and what does it mean for the average creator? Here’s my take…

First, the CASE Act changes nothing in existing law except that, before, you absolutely had to have a timely registration to get any statutory damages but you can get some without it under CASE; also, you can file a claim without having your certificate as long as you have filed an application for registration. For statutory damages, if you choose to use the small claims system without a timely registration, you can get very limited ones—up to $7500 per infringement but with a maximum per case of $15,000. That maximum limit means, for example, if one infringer used 3 of your photos, you can’t get more than $15K total, even though 3 x $7500 is more than that. As for the application/registration issue, you can file a small claim as long as you have applied for a registration and that application has not been refused. Under existing law, you must have a certificate in hand (or a refusal) to file suit. Under the CASE Act, if the registration application is later refused, the claim is dismissed but can be re-filed later (for example, if the registration is later fixed and then approved, file again). 

Besides those changes, the existing copyright law is left pretty much as it was, only added to with the small claims system regulations. For example, you can still get actual damages and the infringer’s profits attributable to the infringement in the small claims system, you still own the copyright from the moment of creation, the exclusive rights are still the same, the statute of limitations doesn’t change, etc.

What do you give up if you use the small claims system? Besides procedural things like the number of witnesses, discovery limits, etc., which are all lawyer stuff, really, here are the things people need to know they are giving up if they choose to use the new system:

  • The constitutional right to a jury trial
  • Increased damages for willful infringements
  • Appeal in the regular courts (there are appeal-ish procedures, in the small claims system, but no appeals or re-litigation in regular court)
  • Attorney’s fees, except for bad faith situations (notoriously hard to prove up) and then generally limited to $5000.

Also, you can’t bring claims for CMI removal or false assertion (§1202 claims), in the small claims system. That is a big deal, in my opinion, since you’d be giving up a minimum of $2500 (and up to $25K) per violation, and attorney’s fees, if you chose to use the small claims system. While this may change down the road (the bill requires study of issues in three years, including probably the §1202 one), for now, you have to let go of those claims. That is walking away from money.

Here’s the other thing: any party can opt-out, so you could be throwing away at least $100 (filing fee) and likely more (service costs, etc.) often, as your infringers say, “Nope, I won’t do the small claims court—sue me in regular court if you want to bring a claim!” and there is nothing you can do about it. 

But let’s say the opposing party doesn’t opt-out, and it’s a big enough company that it has in-house counsel or is willing to pay an outside attorney to represent it. If you were planning on going without an attorney, you’re going to get your ass kicked, more often than not. No matter how much the powers-that-be try to simplify the system, copyright lawyers simply know more than you and know how to use that knowledge to make the right kinds of arguments to other legal pros (those making the determinations in the small claims system). That means you’ll have to find counsel. If you can only get a maximum of $7500 and probably no attorney’s fees, it’s going to be much harder to find an attorney to take your matter on contingency or your going to have to pay an hourly rate that’ll eat up your award quickly.

I wrote a lot about how I didn’t like the CASE Act, as a litigator and counsel to copyright plaintiffs, in a post more than 3 years ago. My reasons still hold in regards to its final form, today. But if this is the new reality, I will, of course, work within it. As will we all. 

So, here’s what I still recommend for all creatives: apply for copyright registrations as soon as possible after the creation of your works. Just like before, this is still the best thing to do. Post-CASE, it is even more so. If you have a timely registration (effective date is either before the infringement started or the registration is made within 3 calendar months of the first publication of the work infringed—see here for more), and you choose to use the small claims system, the maximums increase to $15,000 per infringement and $30,000 total per claim. That’s double the amount available if the registration is untimely. 

Most importantly, a timely registration gives you much greater leverage to negotiate a settlement without filing a claim at all because your opponent knows you can file in regular federal court where the maximums are as they have been ($30K non-willful, $150K willful, per infringement and no maximum overall total, possible attorney’s fees). Also, you don’t have to give up your CMI-related claims (which, by the way, are not dependent on timely registration, see more here). When it comes to settlement negotiations, those timely registered factors and the CMI-related ones give a creative a much stronger starting position, which will generally result in more settlements, less litigation, and lower attorney’s fees (contingency fees often go up when any sort of litigation starts). More money in your pockets.

Now I know lots of creatives see the CASE Act as a good thing, and I get where they are coming from. It sounds great and it does open a door to getting some money that didn’t exist before. But I still think the downsides are significant. I also know that when I talk to other copyright lawyers who actually litigate, their positions have been much like my own.

As in all things legal, talk with your own attorney to learn what may be the best for you.

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Copyright Registration Suggestion

I’ve written a lot on the importance of registering your copyrights and, no, this won’t be another nag on that topic. Instead, I want to talk about something you aren’t required to do when you register, but which would be potentially very helpful down the line: make copies of your deposit copy uploads.

Often, an infringement defendant will demand proof that the work was submitted to the USCO as a deposit copy in the registration cited. Now, it’s not the plaintiff’s responsibility to provide that proof[1], particularly if the registration is before or within 5 years of the first publication of the work, but it does help shut up a defendant if you can whip out screenshots of your upload pages along with the works so that they can see, yup, that work was indeed included in the deposit copies submitted to the USCO.

Keeping a folder of everything you submit to the USCO for a registration is a great idea, and if you aren’t doing that yet, start. I suggest you keep copies of the titles list (for group registrations), the actual files submitted, any correspondence you get from the USCO (or send in reply), etc. When you get your certificate, make a scan of it and include the whole thing in that folder, too. Making screenshots of things like the upload page(s) and confirmation(s) takes little time but completes that folder[2]. Then, when the infringer tried its “prove the work is in there” you can not only show the list of title names on the certificate, you can show the work as it was submitted. That’ll shut ’em up… at least on that point.

Basically, the idea is to take away as many of the BS defenses defendants try to assert whenever they’re caught ripping off work. For example, use a proper copyright notice on or adjacent to each work you publish on your website and then no one can claim “innocent infringement” (more on that, here). This “is it in the registration” issue can be a big block with some defendants; removing their ability to claim the work isn’t part of a cited registration can significantly help move negotiations forward.

The more evidence you have to support your claims, the more likely your attorney will be able to negotiate a good settlement for you, so it’s worth the minor effort to make those copies, even if it isn’t your legal responsibility to do so.

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[1] This point was again made in the recent Iantosca v Elie Tahari, Ltd. No. 19-CV-04527 (MKV), 2020 WL 5603538 (S.D.N.Y. Sep. 18, 2020) where the court noted “It is the Defendant’s obligation, during discovery, to contact the USCO and request deposit copies to be used to rebut the validity of the copyright registration.”

[2] Remember, when you make the screenshots, the metadata about their creation date, etc., will be in those screenshot files, too. More handy proof in case they try to claim you created the screenshot, nefariously, later (and yes, they might).

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Estimated Taxes With a Twist

[UPDATED 9.10.20]

It’s almost that time again… time to make your third quarter estimated tax payment to the IRS (and to your state, if it does that). Despite COVID and everything else, the IRS is still expecting you to make your payment by September 15, as usual. That’s next Tuesday.

This year, though, there have been twists every quarter. First there was a deferral for first quarter 2020 payments and payments for any taxes owed from 2019. Then, you had to pay all those taxes as well as your second quarter estimated taxes in July. Now, the Mango Mussolini has declared that all workers, including the self-employed, can skip paying payroll/self-employment taxes, for now.

For the self-employed, not having to pay 15.3% (self-employment tax is both parts of FICA) sounds fabulous! But, contrary to the spin on this move, this is not a good thing.

What isn’t being made really clear is that this is only a deferral of the payment of those taxes, not that you won’t owe them eventually. Trump claims he wants to make these cuts permanent, but that would gut Social Security and Medicare and be incredibly harmful to people who already rely on those systems as well as those of us who haven’t yet aged into them. It is not likely to ever get approval even by his henchmen in Congress, but if he stays in power, he intends to do just that. See this article for more of the gory details.

Also, it may not actually apply to self-employed people, as this article points out, and it starts September 1, so no one seems to know if that means you still need to pay the whole thing for this 3rd Quarter payment or not (my bet is yes, you do).

For the average creative worker, cashflow is probably a big issue right now; so taking the deferral will be very, very tempting. Although I am not a CPA (at all!), I would counsel against giving in to that temptation, if you can. There is an old saying: money now is cheaper than money later. In this situation, paying your full boatload of taxes now rather than taking the deferral is going to save you heartache, bookkeeping hell, and the need to somehow come up with more money later when you might not have it.

For those of you who are employees, you might consider asking your employer NOT to defer withholding your FICA payments. It’s all going to make for real bookkeeping nightmares down the line but, just like for the self-employed, better to have that money already paid than to have to come up with the tax equivalent of a balloon payment later.

Times are tough for so many of us and it is easy to be seduced into making short-term choices that hurt in the long term. This scheme is just such a seduction. Don’t be fooled. Cut back on other things (like Netflix, etc.) if you need to, but pay your tax bill in full next week, if you possibly can.

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One Thing to Save Your Business

If you could do one thing that you know would save your business, would you do it? Of course you would. There is such a thing–an easy one, in fact: back up your computer and project drives.

Taking care of your data and your projects should be your number one priority. If you lose your files, you will have angry clients (at best) and you will lose money because you will have to recreate whatever you lost. Remember, time is money. 

I just went through this. Over the weekend, my computer died. My trusty MacBook, that has served me so well for the better part of a decade, turned into a brick. We’re talking a power issue—possibly a fried motherboard—who knows. It won’t make so much as a peep or ding, much less actually turn on, despite the various tricks tried by me, Apple, and my tech-savvy brother. It is so dead, that recovering anything from its drive is probably going to require an expert and lots of money. 

Dead-dead-dead-y-dead. 
The MacBook is dead, long live the new MacBook.

Okay, you get it. 

Anyway, I would be so terribly screwed…except that I regularly back up. I’m religious about it and it totally saved me here. Every week, I back up on two separate outside drives plus I have some things backed up to the cloud with every change, too. So, instead of losing a ton of data (like client files…eeek!), I lost very little—like a couple of screenshots, it seems. 

So yeah, I’m still out the cost of a new MacBook and my Sunday was all about trying to fix my old one, then getting a new one (thank heavens Apple delivers via courier here!), then doing the migration from one of the drives. Still, I’m up and running, mostly normally, this Monday. Whew.

More importantly, my clients will be virtually unaffected by the failure. That is both a client management issue, like it would be for anyone in any business, and an ethical one for us lawyers (I have a duty to protect my clients’ files/data). 

If you are not backing up regularly, start today. Best practice is the 3-2-1 system: three back-ups, on at least 2 separate media (2 different drives, 1 drive + cloud, whatever), and 1 copy kept off-site (the cloud can be this). Then, do it every week at minimum. 

A backup plan is just like insurance: we hope we may never need it but, boy howdy, we’re glad it’s there when we do. 

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Your Creative Business is (surprise!) a Real Business

Yesterday, I read a tweet about how artists must see themselves like start-ups—they are in business and must treat their business as, well, a business. While the author was referring to musicians, the point is absolutely true for all artists—writers, photographers, designers, et cetera. 

Self-employed does not mean you don’t have a job or that you are not in business. In fact, it’s the opposite. You are more closely tied to your business than regular employees. Being self-employed myself, I know whereof I speak (I’ve not had an actual employer since the 20th century). There is a special intimacy between the worker and the work and the money it brings in that doesn’t, or at least doesn’t usually, occur in employees. 

I think for artists, that intimacy may be even deeper since, generally speaking, you are expressing something inside you in your work. Or at least trying to, when you can, even when you’re making commissioned work. 

Sadly, though, too often that intimacy includes a mingling of Artist and Artist’s Business, especially in the financial sense. This, dear readers, is a really bad thing.

From a legal perspective, it can make for lots of issues. For one example, mixing the personal and the business can affect any corporate veil you may think you have because you have an LLC or incorporated. When the finances are mingled and corporate formalities are not followed, someone suing you has a much better chance at getting to your personal assets (“piercing the corporate veil”). 

More importantly, though, if you don’t treat your business like a business, there will come a day when it will bite you in the butt—like when you are trying to get credit for some major purchase, like a car or, more importantly, real estate.

When you want to buy a house (or even rent one in some places), proving your income and your business’ viability is crucial. Self-employed folk generally have to provide extra documentation to prove they are a good risk.  We have to provide P&Ls, balance sheets, and bank records. Since we all try to get our taxes down through deducting every possible business expense, (self-employment tax is a pain) our tax returns might show we make less than we actually do. If you’ve been claiming some personal expenses as business expenses, this will be even worse (and it’s illegal). 

Now, with COVID, it’s even harder to get a mortgage if you are self-employed. Fannie Mae has imposed extra hurdles to make sure potential borrowers aren’t faking it. I know because I have just been through this.

My partner and I had been pre-approved for a loan larger than what we ended up asking for; but we just learned that we had a real chance of not getting the loan we needed because of those new proof requirements. The requirements are changing often right now and, lucky us, the newest changes happened just as we went into contract. Surprise! On top of the usual pile of documents, I needed to prove that I had more business in the pipe, so to speak, and that my business has income fluctuations throughout the year, and that those trends are fairly consistent over time. Holy cow!

Now, I’m religious about my bookkeeping and records-keeping and keeping my business and personal finances truly separate (not to mention my firm’s trust account separate from it all, too) so, luckily, I could produce the extra reports and statements necessary. Short answer: we got our loan. But I know too many artists who do not take the time to keep things separate or to even do some effective bookkeeping. Yikes! Those artists would be totally screwed. 

Keeping accurate business records and keeping them and your accounts separate from your personal ones, is vital. If you treat your business like a business, your records will be there when you need them. Don’t beat yourself up if you haven’t been doing this—just start now. 

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Control

I know… I suck… I haven’t been keeping up with posting here. In my defense, my boyfriend and I are in the middle of selling his condo and buying a house. In San Diego. In the middle of a pandemic. Which brings me to the theme of today’s post: you can’t control others but you have control over what you do.

Real estate transactions are one of the most stressful things in life. Several articles like this one point out that home buying ranks above planning a wedding, becoming a parent, or even losing a job, for being stressful. In San Diego, like other very expensive places, I think it is even more so. For example, we looked at a 1300 sq. ft. house the other day that was priced at $825K (like most properties here, it will likely sell for more, but not from us); its ceilings were practically falling in and its floors were warped from water damage, amongst other problems. Almost a million dollars for a fixer-upper. INSANE!

We did find a house we loved and submitted an offer. The owner countered in a totally greedy, irrational, and frankly insulting manner. First, we got pissed; then we remembered that we can’t do anything about how a seller acts. In this situation, we let go of the hurt feelings and walked away. Let someone else over-overpay. Now, we’ve found another and just submitted an offer. It’s likely we won’t get the house because the owners are flippers and will only care about making bank, but we submitted a generous offer with terms that both make it more attractive and yet still protect us in the process. Still, I suspect someone will out bid us and do so without an appraisal contingency and maybe even “as-is” and even without an inspection contingency. We can’t control the other offerors nor the sellers, so we’re not going to worry about it. Either we get this house, or not. 

Leaving off contingencies makes an offer stronger in the seller’s eyes. However, what it does for the buyer is put them in an unreasonably risky situation. For example, the appraisal contingency protects you in case the house is overpriced. An appraisal is necessary so that the loan provider knows it can make money if you default on your loan by making sure it will hold enough equity in the house to make money on a foreclosure. See, if the house is sold at $800K but appraises at $750K, without an appraisal contingency the loan company will only fund up to $750K and you’ll have to make up the difference somehow… like in cash. If you make a large downpayment, a loan company may forego the appraisal and tell you it’s okay to waive the contingency, but that’s because it knows that it’s going to make money selling your house if you default because its loan to you was only $400K (50% down), not $640K (20% down) or more. But you are still overpaying for the house.

If our offer is countered with contingency removal demands, we’ll just say “no” and walk again. We may end up renting for a while, but we will not pay a huge sum for a house without protections in the process. It would not be good for us and we can only control what we do. 

I bring all this up because what I’m hearing from sellers is just like what creatives hear all the time, and what creatives must learn to say “no” to. That is, you’re told “everyone does this” or “sure, the doc says you are assigning us your copyrights but we’ll let you use the work” or “it’s industry standard to have a 90 day pay window,” or “you have to get releases from everyone you shoot at this event or indemnify us against claims if you don’t,” etc. Whenever someone in a financial transaction with you says one thing but the paperwork says another, go with what the papers say. Always. Your clients, no matter how nice, are not on your side. They can’t be—they are negotiating for their best deal, not yours. You can like them, but don’t ever trust their word over what is on the page.

Moreover, the terms they are insisting on are good for them and they do use them, or the terms would not be there. Always. So when they are saying “oh, we never do this thing the contract says we can do” and they won’t take it out, then you know they want to do what they claim they never do, and will if they can.

If your client/buyer tells you “my way or the highway,” take the second option, for sure. Bullying and fear-mongering is pervasive in the creative industries. Threats about not getting work are just manipulative bullshit. You didn’t have the gig and lose it by saying “no,” they just wanted to scare you into accepting a bad deal. Walk away. Use the time to get a better client.

But don’t bother trying to fix them or teach them the errors of their ways. Like the real estate situations mentioned above, you can’t control what your clients/buyers do and you’ll drive yourself mad if you try. But, you can control what you do. 

The first thing is to know where your boundaries are. You can negotiate lots of things, but you should always know what lines you will not cross and respect those limits. You set your own limits; and you should do it before any negotiations so that you know what they are. Write them out like a list if that helps: will never sell copyrights; will only indemnify for my own actions; will not lower my price without getting something in return (besides the gig); etc. Once you have your limits defined, then you can respond rationally to whatever demands are made. So, for example, if a client insists on owning your copyrights created for the project, you can say “No” if you’re line is ownership, or “Not at this price—if you want full ownership, that will cost $X” if you’re willing to sell but for the right value. 

You can use your list for contract negotiations of all kinds: time to pay, deposits, usage license terms, indemnification clauses, you name it. You set your limits. You have that control. Stick to them because they are best for your business. 

Saying “no” to bad terms and bad deals does not make you a jerk, it makes you a smart businessperson. And, although standing up for your rights and what is best for you and your business is not always easy, it is vital. 

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What Are You Waiting For? 2020

[NOTE: This is a re-working of an old post of mine, from 2013–you’ll see it’s fitting today]

When I first wrote this piece, it started off with this:
Yesterday, I saw that a promising reporter was killed in an auto accident in Los Angeles. He was 33. This morning, there was news that a best-selling novelist had died of an aggressive cancer. He was 47. And now, as I sat down to begin writing this piece, the news confirmed that James Gandolfini (star of The Sopranos) had died. He was 51.

Today, we see the same kind of news, plus all those lost from the pandemic. As of today, almost 70,000 Americans have died from COVID-19. Young and old, healthy and not. Gone.

I share this data with you not to depress; but rather to remind you that life is unpredictable and often way the hell too short. We don’t have much time–and yet we spend so much of that in fear and acting our of that fear. That, as the saying goes, is a god-awful shame. In the words of Mame Dennis Burnside (see Auntie Mame): LIVE! Life’s a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death! So, really, what are you waiting for? Do you expect all the planets to align to suddenly show you a safe path that will lead to happiness? That’s stone stupid. Won’t ever happen. You have to let go of your habitual reaction to living with fear. It’s always going to be there, but what you choose to do about it, well, that’s up to you.

Are you afraid of failing? Why? What is the worst that will happen? You’ll lose your home and end up living under a bridge someplace, and you have kids?
Lame excuse.
You read me right, that is just lame. Guess what! You can do everything right and that dark, bridge-living future can still happen. Have you noticed lately how many people are facing that or worse? One pandemic and, boom, the business is dead. So, it doesn’t do any good to be afraid of failing since not failing won’t save you.

You have one chance at this life (well, one conscious one, if the Hindus and Buddhists, et al., are right) and you have no control over when it will end. So, I ask again, What are you waiting for?

You chose to be an artist and with that came the requirement that you have faith. Not faith in a god (not that you can’t have that) but faith in yourself, in your art, and that somehow you’ll make it all work. That’s fabulous. It’s amazing. It’s actually empowering, if you stop shaking in your boots long enough to remember it.

Being an artist requires you actually acting on that faith. You can’t say I choose to be a photographer/designer/writer and then play it safe. You have to do. You have to leap. You have to try and fail (or succeed) and try again and fail (or succeed) and keep doing that over and over again. Success and failure will cycle throughout your business, just like in the rest of your life. So you have to risk and push and do and try and fail and keep the hell at it.

For the rest of your life.

That is the bargain you agreed to when you chose to be a professional artist. You have to make, and do, and (sometimes) make do.

The one thing you cannot do is wait for things to be perfect before taking the next step. I’m sick of hearing artists say I can’t send the promo because the site isn’t perfect or I’m not sure my list/promo/portfolio/edit/studio/haircut is perfect so I can’t____. I can’t. I can’t. I can’t.

If you make some excuse for not doing, even now in the pandemic, then (when you can) get a “normal” job; you don’t deserve to call yourself an artist. You don’t have the guts.

I say that with love (you know that, I hope, by now), but it is true. Besides, I bet dollars to doughnuts you do have the guts. You must have had at some point or you never would have chosen to be an artist. You just need to re-find ’em. Now is the perfect time for that.

Now, in the pandemic, is the perfect time to take a good, long, hard work at your work and your business. Are you making YOUR work, not chasing someone else’s (including the “market’s”) trend? Are you valuing it enough? Ask yourself, What would I do differently if I knew there was no way to play it safe?

Frankly, this is true for any profession. It’s as true for me as it is for you. We have to get out there and do. We can’t be bound up by the fears of getting stuff wrong (which, by the way, has much worse ramifications in my profession than yours) or failing. We have to do and leap and try. Every bloody day. And these dark times give us the downtime to check in on ourselves to make sure we are still honoring the choices we made, like to be an artist.

Not only will doing this give you your best shot at being successful (and it will), it will make you happier in the process. Following your dream, doing what you love, isn’t that worth the risk of trying? Why be an artist if you never make your own art, the stuff that lurks deep in your soul? Do it.

Life is (sadly) short for too many people. We are really learning this truth in this pandemic. We don’t know when our last breath will come. No matter how well we treat our bodies, it is ultimately out of out control when Death will say “Howdy.” So we can’t control that, but we can control what we do while we’re here on this Earth. Each of you deserves to love the life you have, every bit of it but especially your work in it. The only way for that to happen is to try, to do, to make your art, to follow your dream, to risk, to fail, and to do it all again the next day.

So, what are you waiting for?

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Things to do During Stay-at-Home

If your state or city hasn’t issued an official stay-at-home order because of COVID-19, it’s likely only a matter of time before it does (or it is being run by a terrible leader, and you should stay in anyway). If your work is usually not at home or even if you are someone who usually works at home, you can make good use of this time “off.” I have some suggestions…

  1. Review your standard paperwork. Estimate forms, invoices, contracts, releases, licenses… if it’s paperwork that you use in business, now is a good time to review it and make updates and changes. Maybe you’ll need legal help for this, maybe it’s just a case of fixing the format so it reads more clearly; whatever, this is a great time to get your paperwork in better shape.
  2. Consider updating your business insurance. One thing lots of people have already learned in this crisis: not having business liability insurance or disability insurance (etc.) is unwise.
  3. Related to #2, inventory your gear and update (if needed) your insurance coverage. Whatever your gear is, take photos, update serial numbers, make sure you have enough coverage for your critical tools and gear, including computers and software. At worst, doing the inventory will give you a clean list you can have for later claims (keep a copy off-site!).
  4. Register a bunch of your work with the USCO. Now is a great time to play catch-up with your copyright registrations.
  5. Work on a (new) marketing plan. Eventually things will start to work again and you want to be top-of-mind with your targets when that happens. Now is a good time to look at what will get you there.
  6. Check in with clients. Don’t contact them to solicit work but rather call or email your contacts, personally, and wish them well. Simple, generous, kind human interaction now will be remembered later.
  7. Check in with your vendors/crew. Like clients, your vendors and crewpeople will appreciate the kindness, even if you can’t hire them or buy from them right now. If, though, you can buy something from them now, consider doing so to make sure they are around later.
  8. Give yourself a personal project to work on. I mean a creative project, whether that is in your usual medium or not. Some photographers and other creatives are using their art to document their experiences, which is fine, but I suggest something that is non-virus-related for this. You can do both, of course, but something creative that isn’t about the crisis would probably be good for your stress levels, too.
  9. Give yourself permission to do less. Lots of people are trying to work full-time from home and do all the other stuff that they now have to (like taking care of kids, for example) and are getting burned out fast. Give yourself a break and be flexible.
  10. Related to #8, give yourself permission to be imperfect. Too many people are trying to be perfect in this crisis–stop it. You’re going to have days where you won’t get any “work” done or that your kids won’t have formal lessons or the dishes don’t get washed… if you hold yourself up to your usual standards of perfection (like you do in your creative work), you will burn out faster. Embrace the suck, as a good friend says.
  11. (because of course it goes to 11) Do something specifically for your mental health. Meditate. Take long walks/runs (alone). Do yoga or other exercise. Watch a comedy film. Sing to the radio. Dance in your living room. Play with your dog/cat/kid/lover. Write a journal. Bake cookies. Eat cookies. Simply find something that brings you peace and equanimity, and do it. Yes, this is good for your business as well.

There are difficult times, sure, but they will not last forever. The suggestions above can help you feel more in control even when we seem to have little of that.

Wishing all of you well, safe, and happy.

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COVID-19 and Your Taxes

You may have already heard that your federal tax return is not due on April 15, as it usually is. The deadline is now July 15, 2020. You can file now, and probably should if you are due money back, but you don’t have to.

Relatedly, and maybe even more important for we self-employed folks, the first quarter federal estimated tax payments are also being deferred to the same July 15, 2020 date. Huzzah! Note, however, that (so far) it is only your first quarter estimated tax payment that gets deferred, even though the deadline is after the second quarter’s due date (June 15, 2020).

For more info, see here: https://www.irs.gov/newsroom/payment-deadline-extended-to-july-15-2020

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Coronavirus: What To Do

No one teaches us what to do when there is a crisis like now. I’m not going to lie to you: it is very likely that your business is going to take a hit from the coronavirus. No one can effectively predict how big or how bad it will be, but there will be an effect. The worst part for many of us is feeling the lack of control we have over any of it, especially because creatives, like lawyers, are notoriously control freaks. 

I don’t have good legal-y advice to give you here. This is very much uncharted water for everyone. You can’t contract your way out of this (so to speak) so, as a lawyer, there isn’t a lot I can do to help you through it beyond my usual service offerings. But I do think there are things we can do now that will make this difficult time a bit better, both individually and for us all, so I’d like to suggest them here.

First, breathe. I know, that sounds patronizing but, seriously, take a conscious, mindful breath now and then. If you meditate, keep it up or even add some extra sessions. If you don’t yet meditate, consider starting a practice. Calm breathing and meditation help to reduce stress and does all sorts of good for your body and mind. This is science, not superstition (see, e.g., https://nccih.nih.gov/health/meditation/overview.htm). Exercise works, too.

Second, if business is slow, use your downtime well. Get up, get dressed, go to work, and create. I think one of the best things you can do for your business is create new work and this slow time is an opportunity to play creatively—take advantage of it! Creating new work now will make you more competitive when things start picking up, because you will have fresh work to show your targets. Besides, playing creatively will make you feel better now, when things are tough. It will give you something else to focus on, something you can control more, and keep your head out of the doom and gloom of the news.

Third, read books. Put down the news, the social media, and pick up a book—preferably a novel (at least occasionally). Most people complain that they want to read more—now is your chance. It also will help keep you out of the dark places our current reality inflicts. 

Fourth, and maybe I’m burying the lede here, but this is really important: support others however you can. It may sound counter-intuitive but, helping others will help you more. It’s easy to fall into the fear-based and selfish hoarding behavior, but you can’t buy enough toilet paper (or potatoes or milk…) to make yourself safe. During WWII, people understood that hoarding was one of the worst things you could do while buying war bonds, donating, recycling, growing victory gardens, and generally thinking about the greater good would win the war. They were right. It’s also right now.

You can support other small businesses now by doing things like buying gift cards for later use. The businesses get the revenue now, to support them while their customers can’t or won’t visit. This is particularly needed for small service providers like salons, spas, as well as artists of all sorts. You can buy music (actual vinyl, cds, or downloads—not streaming) and merchandise from musicians, who now can’t even make money touring. Buy books (or gift cards) from indy booksellers, many of whom will ship, to help support writers. Buy a subscription to a decent newspaper, to encourage and support their reporting. 

And if you want to get really massive karma points, buy (some of) these things and gift them to people working in healthcare right now. Those people are risking their lives for us. You could order some pizzas (or whatever, especially anything chocolate) for your local ER staff, just to thank them for being on the front lines. 

Things are going to be tough for many people. You won’t be alone if you struggle. But, if you keep in mind that we are all in this together and that the virus and its effects are not permanent, you’ll get through it. 

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