Did you ever play the game “telephone” as a child? Do you know you might still play it today? I’m not talking about gossip. I’m talking about misunderstanding. One person hears something and shares it with someone else. That person shares what they think they heard and by the time you get to the end of the “line” the last story bears no resemblance to the original story.   Jumping to Conclusions I know people who get their best exercise jumping to conclusions. Successful sales people lead their prospect to a buying conclusion. Why do I say this? Because I find that I am just as guilty as the rest of the mice following the Pied Piper out of Dublin. What does this mean? I “reported” that the winner of the last biggest Powerball multi-sate lottery had purchased the ticket in Arizona, but  lived in Maryland, not Arizona. I had seen with my own eyes on local television news a jubilant man jumping up and down in a convenience store in Maryland. We all thought HE was the big winner. He might have been “A” winner. But the “TRUE” big winner really was from Fountain Hills, Arizona. He lived just miles from where that winning ticket had been purchased. In Arizona the winner’s last name and city of residence must be made public. This winner did the wise thing. He laid low for a few days. He consulted with his attorney. He consulted with his financial advisor. He made smart plans for his financial  future. And THEN he came forward to claim his prize.   Enter Due Diligence In my profession I must use “due diligence” in making my determinations. I must do the absolute best to apply the tax laws properly. I am all about helping you pay your lowest legal tax and not a penny more. And I rely on you to help me help you. If a client tells me something that does not add up, I have to research. I have to ask questions. I do a pretty good job of that. But in the case of this Powerball story I fell into the popular view promoted by the news. I take this as a personal reminder to watch myself. The rest of that story was sound. I did the Sergeant Joe Friday thing and stuck to the facts, just the facts. Please use these tax-fact filled blogs to help yourselves learn the rules so you can play this tax game to win!   As always, to your lowest legal tax,   Nellie Williams, EA