Filling the Tax Literacy Gap
Episode 30: In this episode, Timalyn discusses her mission to fill the tax literacy gap. Many people, including business owners, don’t fully understand their taxes and what they sign each year. Timalyn will highlight some upcoming opportunities to help you to learn more.
Welcome to the 30th episode of Tax Relief with Timalyn Bowens. Timalyn begins with some quick stats about podcasts. There are roughly 4,000,000 podcasts. However, in 2022, only 500,000 of those podcasts were considered “active.” To qualify, there only had to be 1 episode published in 2022. Thanks to your interest, this podcast continues to grow.
What is the Tax Literacy Gap?
Timalyn defines this as the space between information people know about taxes, and what they should know. When you sign your tax returns, you accept responsibility for the information contained in those forms. The IRS can and will hold you both liable and accountable for the information you provided.
One of the challenges our society faces is that taxes aren’t typically taught about in school for t individuals or business owners. Nonetheless, you’re expected to understand it because you have to sign documents related to your taxes each year.
Timalyn’s passion is to help the average taxpayer to fill in the gap between what you know and, again, what you should know. She’s been surprised by the reaction some of her clients have when the lightbulbs begin to light up because they actually are beginning to make sense of their taxes. Knowledge is power. Remember, your tax returns are legally binding documents. It’s important to understand what you’re signing and submitting to the IRS.
Another Insight Timalyn Learned
As Timalyn continued to grow her practice, she began to realize that even highly-successful business owners are horrible at taxes. Admittedly, most don’t want to have the same depth and breadth of tax knowledge she has. However, it’s important that they understand the implications of what they’re signing.
Working with Older Retirees
Timalyn comments about some of her older taxpayers who have come to her because they owed taxes each year. Many retirees don’t fully understand how some small changes to their pension and social security withholding can reduce the end-of-year tax liability. Again, it’s the tax literacy gap was showing up.
You Can Reduce Your Tax Literacy Gap
One of the resources Timalyn provides is her Tax Tips with Timalyn blog. She also offers another subscription blog, on the Americas Favorite EA website.
Do you know about Timalyn’s YouTube channel? She has informative videos available for anyone who wants to know more about their taxes.
Timalyn explains that at her core, she’s a teacher. Taxes just happen to be her area of interest and expertise. She’s committed to being even more intentional about providing new and insightful resources this year.
As part of this commitment, she’s bringing back “Writing Wednesdays.” She’s going to have a new blog post available each Wednesday. They’ll be featured on her America's Favorite EA blog, referenced at the beginning of this section. Be sure to subscribe!
Who is she trying to help with this blog?
● The average taxpayer
● First-generation business owners
● Retirees
● Other tax professionals
Timalyn is Launching New Resources
On September 18th of 2023, Timalyn will launch 2 exciting, interactive opportunities.
She’s launching “The Family” for business owners. It’s a 2-hour meeting, twice per month, focusing on tax and financial questions. This is a paid subscription-based program.
“The Cousins” is a different group is a little more intimate. An application for entry into the is required and it will be limited to 5 people per cohort. The program will last for 6 months. It’ll meet twice per month. This will be a mastermind-style experience. Members will have the opportunity to add on a 1-1 meeting with Timalyn as well.
If you are interested in participating in being part of the Family or becoming a Cousin, contact Timalyn via her Americas Favorite EA Contact Page, to let her know. She’ll be happy to provide you with more details.
For Tax Professionals
If you are a tax professional, don’t forget about Timalyn’s Tax Pro Circle. While she teaches other topics, she’s going to focus on instructing other professionals who are pursuing resolution and representation as an area of service. This will also be an application-only program. Please get in touch with Timalyn via her America's Favorite EA Contact Page.
Timalyn hopes this provides a sense of where she’s going over the next 3-5 years, as it relates to filling in the tax literacy gap.
Please consider sharing this episode with your friends and family. There are many people dealing with tax issues, and you may not know about it. This information might be helpful to someone who really needs it. After all, back taxes shouldn’t ruin your life.
As we conclude Episode 30, we encourage you to connect with Timalyn on social media. You’ll be able to subscribe to this podcast on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, and many other podcast platforms.
Remember, Timalyn Bowens is America’s Favorite EA and she’s here to fill the tax literacy gap, one taxpayer at a time. Thanks for listening to today’s episode.
For more information about tax relief options, visit https://www.Bowenstaxsolutions.com/ .
If you have any feedback, or suggestions for an upcoming episode topic, please submit them here: https://www.americasfavoriteea.com/contact.
Disclaimer: This podcast is for informational and educational purposes only. It provides a framework and possible solutions for solving your tax problems, but it is not legally binding. Please consult your tax professional regarding your specific tax situation.