July 2014
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Elite Level Cuisine

 

Elite Level Cuisine is a full service catering company supplying a variety of gourmet foods and cuisines. From family and social gatherings to corporate and public events, Elite Level Cuisine has the expertise and resources necessary to fulfill the most demanding requirements. Menus are custom designed to each customer's tastes. When available, all foods are fresh and in season. Elite Level Cuisine believes that delicious food and exceptional service makes a great and memorable event for everyone.

 


Contact Elite Level Cuisine Today!

Online: elitelevelcuisine.net

Phone: 678-876-5474

Email: elitelevelcuisine@gmail.com

 Dollar$ and $ense

Home office as a tax deduction

To qualify your home office as a legitimate business expense, it must be a place that is used exclusively for business activities. If your kitchen table doubles as your work desk, you won't be able to deduct it. But, if you've got a dedicated room for an office, or even a portion of a room, you'll be able to deduct some of your housing costs.

 Example, Michelle uses a spare room in her rental apartment as her office. The apartment is 2,000 sq. ft. and the office is 200 sq. ft. (10% of the total square footage). She's able to write off 10% of certain home expenses including her rent payment and renter's insurance. And if she painted the room, she'd be able to deduct those costs as well.  The other option is the new simplified option for claiming the home office where you don't have to calculate a percentage. In this method, you can claim $5 per square foot of the office up to 300 sq. ft. and is inclusive of all expenses.

You may have heard that the home office deduction is a big red flag... and the IRS is more likely to audit the self-employed who take advantage of it. However, if you're legitimately entitled to the deduction, take it. It can be one of your most significant annual expenses.

 

Are you looking for a FREE alternative to the Microsoft Office application for your business?  Apache OpenOffice is the leading open-source office software suite for word processing, spreadsheets, presentations, graphics, databases and more.  It stores all your data and can also read and write files from other common office software packages. It can be downloaded and used completely free of charge for any purpose. 

  
  How The Best Entrepreneurs Think

 

 

 

If you just observed the actions entrepreneurs take, you would conclude there isn't that much to be gained from studying them. Each entrepreneur's behavior is as idiosyncratic as they are. You would have to be Larry Page and Sergey Brin to start Google GOOG -2.02%Oprah Winfrey to found Harpo Productions.

 

But-and it is a huge but-if you look at how they reason, you see remarkable similarities.

The process just about all of them follows in creating their companies looks like this. They: 

 

 

How To Build (Or Find) The Startup Of Your Dreams: Wakefield And Uncubed Cofounder Tarek Pertew Breaks It Down
 
Tarek Pertew is much cooler than me. At least that's the first thing I thought when we met back in early 2012. Arms tatted, jawline speckled with stubble, Tarek speaks with the kind of resounding intensity that's become a trademark of the bold and ambitious. Spend five minutes with him, and you'll be convinced: Tarek Pertew knows what he's doing.  
 
Mark your Calendar!
The Edge Connection's First Annual Family Picnic will take place on Saturday, August 9th, 2014, from 11am-3pm. You don't want to miss this! Business Plan Competition winners will be announced while you and your family enjoy a day of food and fun. 
 
The Edge Connection's staff will be preparing hamburgers and hot dogs, and other treats will be available. We will also have games and activities for kids of all ages! Fun for the entire family. Be sure to watch for more details as the event approaches! You won't want to miss out!  


Women Entrepreneurs Fight for Their Piece of the Pie

 

On a clear Friday morning in April, in a room near the top of the New York Times building with a humbling view of lower Manhattan, the world's financial epicenter, eight groups of women wait to pitch their businesses.

They're vying for $25,000 in early-stage investment by five so-called angelinvestors. First up is Miki Agrawal, who speaks casually, convincingly and fast. She has done this before. She locks eyes with the five investors, one by one, as she describes something every woman in the room can relate to-the fear of period leaks.
 

 Click Here to Learn More 

   
Why Investing In Women Investment Bankers Pays Off

 

Growing up, I consistently noticed the lack of women leaders featured in the fields of math, science, engineering and business in general. The accepted assumption was that women preferred other pursuits. However, trends are changing.

 

As more companies realize the benefits of nurturing the advancement of women leaders

Yahoo YHOO -2.82% (CEO Marissa Mayer), Campbell Soup CPB -0.44% (CEO Denise Morrison) and GM (CEO Mary Barra) - opportunities and doors start to open for everyone involved.

 

 
The Edge Kitchen Recipe of the Month 

 
Three-Pepper Pork Tenderloin with Peach-Cucumber Salad
 
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for grilling and rubbing
2 teaspoons ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Kosher salt
2 pork tenderloins (about 1 1/2 pounds each), butterflied and lightly pounded
 

Click here to learn more  

  

  

 

Spicy Grilled Sweet Potatoes

 

3/4 teaspoon
 ground cumin

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoonsalt

1/8 teaspoonground red pepper

1 tablespoonolive oil

1 poundpeeled sweet potatoes, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices

Cooking spray

2 tablespoonschopped fresh cilantro

  

 

 


Grilled Asparagus Salad

1 pound asparagus

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing

Salt

Freshly ground pepper

4 lightly packed cups mesclun

1 seedless cucumber, cut into 1/2-inch dice

1 cup grape tomatoes, halved 

 

Click here to learn more

 

If you missed The Edge Connection's big fundraiser event you won't want to miss next year's event! From a delicious breakfast to encouraging words from our key note speakers, we had a blast! Thank you to all of the sponsors and supporters that contributed and helped us make the Champions for Change event possible. We hope that next year's event will be bigger and better.

 

Thanks to James Bailey for his inspiring key note address and Anna Cablik for her uplifting story of her entrepreneurial journey! 

 


 

Acknowledgements

 

The Edge Connection would like extend our appreciation to those who have made the Champions for Change event possible through their considerable contributions of products and/or services.

Connor Strickland                                                                      Voice Over Talent 

Marketing and Venue Design                                                         Gwen Edwards 

 

Video Production                                                                        Total Linen Pros

Tim Samuel                                                                                   Linens

 

 

Exhibits South                                                                              Atlanta Tribune 

Printing, Event Signage                                                                   Advertising  

 

 

SoVerse                                                                                    Elite Level Cuisine 

Web Design                                                                  Catering-Edge Connection Entrepreneur

 

 

Artisan Foods Bakery & Cafe                                  Jack Nadel International (Ryan Chappell)

Baked Goods                                                             Promotional and Marketing Products 

 

Kennesaw State University 

Volunteers 

 

Butta Soft Shea (TiAunnie Calhoun)                             Spiked Jellies (Allison Barnett)      

Event Bag Giveaway                                                        Event Bag Giveaway 

Edge Connection Entrepreneur                                         Edge Connection Entrepreneur 

 

 

 

UPCOMING CLASSES, WORKSHOPS, SEMINARS
Mark Your Calendar For Innovative, Relevant,
and Inspiring Classes and Workshops!!

 

One on One Exploring Entrepreneurship with Jaime Fulsang
Our program manger Jaime Fulsang will be teaching one on one Exploring Entrepreneurship course during the month of June. Call 770-499-3228 to schedule an appointment!
Course Fee: $35

  

Website Workshop  
Jay from Soverse will be teaching participants the basics skills you need to create an effective business website. For more information about Jay and Soverse visit soverse.com!  
Join us on July 16th from 6:30 p.m.-9:30 p.m. Free!

  

Inside the Vault Workshop: An Insider's Guide to Access to Capital

Bill McDermott, founder and CEO of McDermott Financial Solutions, will give you an "Inside the Vault" experience by revealing the secrets of the banking industry to help you with loan preparation to access the capital you need to move your business forward.

After three decades working for both national and community banks, Bill uses his expert knowledge to assist small businesses with finding financing and working through problems with loan negotiations to help them grow and expand their businesses. He can help you get what you want out of your banking relationship by giving you the insiders advantage of knowing which banks are lending and how to break through barriers to expedite the process of acquiring the financial help your company needs.

Join us on July 9:00 a.m.-12:00 p.m. Cost: $10

Sign Up Today 

  

Advanced Social Media Workshop  

Social media is an essential part of business today.  Many business owners know the basics but lack some strategic planning and skill to help make their efforts effective in driving customer loyalty and increasing revenues.  This workshop, led by seasoned marketer, Miller Finch, of Miller Finch Media will discuss how to most effectively use social media for your business' desired outcomes.  She will discuss issues such as:

When is it time to purchase a promoted post?

What are the trends in social media that directly affect small businesses?

How are platforms changing their relationships with businesses?  And, how do these changes affect business' relationships with their customers/fan base?

What strategies can I use to create strategic, effective campaigns that raise awareness and revenue. 

These topics and many more will be covered in this informative workshop that may transform how you're doing social media. Make plans to attend!  

Join us on July 10th  from 6:30 p.m.-8:30 p.m. $25 for Edge Connection members! $75 for Community members
  

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Funded in part through a Cooperative Agreement with the U.S. Small Business Administration.
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