Monday, December 28, 2009
Holiday work parties? Maximize merrymaking
NEW YORK — Conquering the holiday office party doesn’t just mean keeping track of how much you drink. Seasonal social events can be the best opportunity to network within your company, so you may want to consider veering away from the buffet line.
Maribeth Kuzmeski, author of the recently published book “The Connectors: How the World’s Most Successful Businesspeople Build Relationships and Win Clients for Life,” gives these tips:
UThink about which contacts are the most important to you, and make a point to speak to each of them over the course of the night.
UAsk questions, and be sure to have more in your arsenal than small talk. After you’ve asked about how they’ll spend the holidays, move on to more in-depth business questions such as what they see as their biggest work-related challenges, the best thing to happen to their business this year or something they’ve done to change their career.
UBe prepared to pitch yourself in 15 seconds. Resist the urge to give a long introduction, and instead highlight your career and top skills.
Be sure to get tax rewards for charitable donations
NEW YORK — Sure, you give to charity because you’re compassionate. All the same, you want to make sure you get federal tax rewards for your year-end contributions.
The accounting firm Grant Thornton gives these tips:
UFor contributions of cash or property, always get a receipt from the charity.
UUnderstand that deductions are given only up to a certain percentage of your adjusted gross income — usually 20 percent to 50 percent. You can carry over the excess amount for the next five years.
UMake sure your donations are made to an organization qualified to receive deductible contributions. The Web site for the Internal Revenue Service lists most qualified organizations.
Associated Press