“I’d run into a burning building, but I couldn’t bring myself to open mail from the IRS”

    I spoke to a prospective client today that’s a firefighter in California. He told me his story about getting mail from the IRS and it stuck with me all day. I always knew how difficult it could be to deal with IRS debt, but it was the way this firefighter put it so succinctly – and so powerfully – that I had to quote him in the headline of this post.

    Fireman running into a burning building

    The gentleman I spoke to had spent his adult life training for one of the most difficult, dangerous jobs you can have, but he could not bring himself to face what the mail carrier brought him each day. Just seeing the those three little letters – IRS – in the top left hand corner would be enough to send him into a mental tail spin. He would run into a burning building to save someone else, but couldn’t bring himself to open the mail to help himself. It just didn’t make sense that someone so brave could still be affected so strongly by his IRS debt. It’s a problem we solve for our clients every day – far less daunting than a five alarm fire.

    Once you can bring yourself to understand this disconnect, it’s clear – the biggest obstacle to overcoming tax debt is psychological. It’s all too human to put off a problem that seems distant and insurmountable. Simply put, it’s avoidance. Our clients and prospective clients aren’t bad people, or “tax cheats”, they don’t intentionally put themselves in this awful position. A couple of unavoidably, unforeseeable bad events happen and you start to live hour by hour to get through the day. You’re not thinking about your 1040 when you’re trying to just trying to survive. You’re not thinking of tax planning when your life is in crisis.

    It also doesn’t help that the IRS moves slow, until one day the hammer comes down. That’s why I recommend you start small. When a problem is overwhelming, just break it down into small, almost ridiculously simple parts. The following is what I told the firefighter, who agreed to let me quote him in this article, because we both thought it could help others:

    First – do the research online to find a reputable resolution and accounting firm. You don’t have to talk to anyone. Read the reviews and get to know the team you’ll be working with. There’s no pressure.

    You can find our reviews online with the Better Business Bureau and TrustPilot. If you check out our newly upgraded website, you can find details on all our licensed professionals, including stories about their own lives. You’ll find Boxelder associates are judgment free, caring, licensed professionals. We’ve been through our own difficulties and we understand that tax debt can happen to anyone.

    Second – When you’re ready, just give us a call. Talk to a licensed professional right away. No online calendar appointments, just immediate, old school professional advice right away over the phone.

    If you’ve read any of my other posts or watched our videos, you know we don’t have a sales team. When one of our licensed professionals isn’t actively working on a client’s case, they man the phones, ready to take your call during business hours. If you’d like a call after hours or on the weekend, send us a text or an email and we’ll call from our cell phones. I actually think are the weekends are the best times to take a deep breath, relax and talk about this issue with a clear-headed perspective.

    Last step – but the most important – decide you want this – and sign up!

    As I tell our prospective clients when they’ve decided to act – the hard part is over. Once we run our initial compliance check, our team pores over your transcripts, and spends the time discussing the specifics of your case. After you’ve signed off on our resolution strategy, the game plan is in place and we just need to execute. We’ll be with you every step of the way. We’ll walk you through each step of the IRS Collections process. After all, we know it inside and out.

    We start small here, so you can continue to get to know our team slowly, without feeling the pressure of a large fee or commitment up front. Our “case investigation” option secures a hold on your account and provides you with the detailed road-map to put this tax problem behind you for good.

    Know that throughout this whole process, you have a dedicated team of professionals right there with you – accomplishing your goals. We know how tough it is because we’ve been through our own battles with the government. But as the saying goes, the bigger they are, the harder they fall. We believe in second chances. Start your comeback story today.

    We’re ready when you are. Call us at 888-573-5775 or 303-317-6111.

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    About the Author

    A company founder standing by Colorado's Front Range

    Tom Conradt

    Co-Founder, IRS Collections Defense Attorney

    Tom Conradt is the co-founder of Boxelder Consulting & Tax Relief, and has been practicing IRS Collections defense law for the past ten years. Graduating from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Tom is the lead IRS Collections Defense Attorney and heads the tax resolution department. Tom’s favorite part about working at Boxelder Consulting is hearing about the relief that clients experience after they sign up and start seeing immediate results on their case. Tom enjoys all the outdoor activities Colorado has to offer, including skiing, hiking and climbing. He is also looking forward to the return of indoor pickup basketball.

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