Let's be honest: At your revenue level, you're not worried about affording your tax bill. You'll write the check either way.
What bothers you is the nagging feeling that you're leaving serious money on the table—that there's a smarter way to structure things, but you haven't had the bandwidth to figure it out.
Between managing operations and driving growth, tax strategy gets pushed to "later." Except "later" always becomes "too late."
Here's what happens when you cross the million-dollar mark: Your business becomes more complex, but your tax approach stays the same.
The irony? The bigger your revenue, the bigger the opportunity—and the bigger the cost of inaction.
I'm talking about business owners leaving $40K, $75K, sometimes $120K in unnecessary taxes on the table simply because they didn't act before December 31st.
At $400K in revenue, your tax situation was straightforward. Standard deductions, maybe a SEP IRA, basic expense tracking.
But at $1M-$5M? Everything's different:
• Entity structure matters now. S-Corp vs. C-Corp vs. LLC can mean $30K+ annually.
• Retirement vehicles are serious wealth tools. You can potentially shelter $200K+ per year. Most at your level contribute $20K and think they're maxed out.
• Depreciation becomes strategic. Equipment, vehicles, technology—how you handle depreciation can swing your tax bill by five figures.
• Timing is a weapon. You can shift income between years and actually control your effective tax rate.
If you're running 20% margins on $3M revenue, that's $600K take-home. Inefficient tax strategy can easily cost $100K of that. You just gave away 17% of your income to avoidable taxes.
Right now, you're probably here:
Scenario A: Filed in April or October 15th. Done with 2024. Don't want to think about taxes for a while.
Scenario B: Revenue's up 30-40%. Proud of the growth. But dreading next year's tax bill.
Scenario C: So focused on operations you have no idea where you stand financially.
Here's what all three have in common: You have less than 70 days to do something about it.
Business owners who maintain wealth don't have secret havens. They have a system:
• Q1: Map out the year. Optimize structure and retirement vehicles.
• Q2: File last year, analyze Q1 performance, adjust strategy.
• Q3: Forecast the year with real data. Model scenarios.
• Q4: Execute the plan. No panic, just methodical implementation.
The difference at your revenue level? $50K-$150K annually.
Your Q4 Opportunities (Available Now)
Beyond the $66K cap, you might shelter $200K+ through Cash Balance Plans and defined benefit strategies. Setup required before year-end.
Planning equipment purchases? Buy in Q4 and write off 60-100% year one. On $100K, that's $25K+ in savings now vs. $3K-$4K annually.
Defer December invoicing to January. Pre-pay January expenses in December. Optimize across tax years.
Sole proprietor or single-member LLC at $2M+? You're overpaying self-employment tax. S-Corp election deadline: December 31st.
Own commercial real estate? Cost seg studies can accelerate $100K+ in depreciation.
Marcus runs a $3.2M roofing business. December 27th last year: "Best year ever. What can we do?"
My answer: "Almost nothing. You're too late."
Extra taxes paid: $68,000
Not because he couldn't afford planning. Because he didn't spend 3 hours in October.
What's Actually Realistic
I won't promise zero taxes. You're making real money.
But here's realistic:
If you're paying 35-40% combined federal, state, and self-employment taxes, proper structure gets you to 25-30%. On $600K net income, that's $60K-$90K back in your pocket.
These aren't aggressive schemes or gray areas. It's using strategies that exist for business owners at your level—and implementing them before deadlines pass.
Path 1: Do what you did last year. Focus on operations. Deal with taxes "later." Get surprised in April. Promise next year will be different.
Path 2: Take three hours in the next two weeks. Get clear on projected liability. Identify your strategies. Execute before December 31st.
Path 1 costs nothing now, five figures later.
Path 2 costs hours now, saves five figures later.
You make these ROI decisions daily. This one should be easy.
✓ Analyze your YTD numbers (real P&L, not guesses)
✓ Forecast where you'll finish based on Q4 patterns
✓ Model tax liability under different scenarios
✓ Identify YOUR specific opportunities
✓ Build implementation checklist with deadlines
Then execute. Start January knowing you've handled what most don't think about until March.
This isn't about beating a deadline. It's about protecting your wealth as aggressively as you build it.
You've earned every dollar. Let's make sure you keep as much as legally possible.
The difference between a $600K take-home and a $680K take-home isn't working harder. It's planning smarter.
Ready to stop overpaying? Let's talk this week.
