I am a business owner....

If you've ever taken Business Practices from me at PMTI, you've learned to say that phrase: I am a business owner. I'm re-learning what that means here in Australia.

I am on sabbatical from bodywork. I did not bring a table and I am seeing/touching no clients. So....am I still a business?

Yes, I am.

I came with a different business intent: to write a book on the business of massage and to work with Ben Risby-Jones to write a book on a spiritual/metaphysical understanding of "healing".

When I am a bodyworker/massage therapist, it's pretty clear what qualifies as a "business expense" -- rent, mileage, oil, linens, my AMTA membership, office supplies at Staples, subscriptions to massage journals, marketing, etc.

So, what are my business expenses here?

I still have some obvious expenses: office supplies (post-it notes, envelopes, notebooks, pens, to get myself set up here in the apartment); transportation (going to and from Ben's place). But I have to think more broadly about what my business is and what qualifies as a deduction.

If I get a massage at the Dome spa at the Marriott with the intention of experiencing "remedial" massage, Australian-style" to broaden my understanding of massage......that's a business expense.

If I take a taxi to the Queensland State Library with the intention of exploring their writers center to see what support is available to me as a writer while I'm here in Australia....that's a business expense.

If I take the owner of the Lightworkers Cottage out for lunch with the intention of talking about how her business arrangement works with her practitioners (especially if I hope to write about it), that's a business expense.

The new type of business deduction I'm learning about here is the per diem. Margo Bowman, queen of massage therapy taxes, has taught me about this one.

The idea is this: when you are aware from your home/office, you can either:

• take a deduction for specific travel-related expenses (food, for example) or
• take a flat per diem deduction

The sweet part is you can choose to take which ever one is more beneficial for you. The IRS publishes a list of per diem rates based on your location in the US or overseas.

For Brisbane in the 2nd half of 2010, my per diem is $98. Since I'm not spending more than $98 a day on travel-related expenses , I'm generally taking the per diem!

What do I have to do to qualify for the per diem? I have to do something here that:

• is related to my business and
• I couldn't reasonably do in the US.

For example, today I had a good conversation with a woman who owns a cleaning company (she cleans our apartment). We talked about how taxes are viewed differently in both countries, the differences in tipping policies, the pros and cons of having big companies as clients, what it takes as a small business to raise rates, and a few other things. I gained some interesting insights into how being a small business owner is different from and yet very much like it is in the US.

I think of conversations like this is on-the-ground research for my book on the business of massage.

Since it would be hard to have this kind of conversation with this kind of person back in DC and this was a legitimate business conversation and it informed my view of being a small business and I intend to use the material in my book....it's a business deduction!

Ergo, today I'm taking the per diem deduction of $98. It's already entered in my Quiken books (aren't you proud of me Margo!).

I am a business owner.
I am a business owner.
I am a business owner.