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Grants give accountant leg up, big windfall
Early seed funds helped her begin, now for next step
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
 Click here to enlarge this photo Staff photo by EMILY BARNES
Tiffany Washington, CEO of Washington Accounting Services, at her office in Waldorf.
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When Tiffany Washington quit her job a few years ago to work for herself, she hadn't dreamed she would get so far.
Last month, Washington received a grant of $30,000 in recognition of her entrepreneurial skills. Washington, of Waldorf, is self-employed as the owner of Washington Accounting Services.
It all started in 2008, when she won a $3,000 business development grant from the National Association for the Self-Employed.
One of 18 businesses nationwide selected out of hundreds of applicants, she used the money to buy tax software, get a short-term lease on an office and hire an assistant.
With that leg up, "I tripled my income, and they said they were impressed with that," Washington said.
Impressed by her ability to manage the money, NASE invited her early this year to apply for the larger grant, and she won.
"I honestly didn't think I would get it. I know there are so many companies out there and businesses, so I didn't think I [would be] selected," she said.
Washington's plans for the money include updating her Web site to make it more user-friendly. She also hopes to include more tax information on the site and create "tax seminars" to help her clients stay informed.
"I'd like a tax seminar to help educate my clients, so that's definitely something I'm going to use to get the information out there, to give them that information so at tax time they don't come with all these questions — they have an outlet so they can receive the money at any time," she said.
Kristin Oberlander, public affairs manager for NASE, said her organization opted to give the large grant to Washington because she had used the first award so creatively.
"We run a business development grant program, and she was chosen out of the people who were awarded the initial grant because we felt she made the best use of her grant. So we gave her more money," Oberlander said.
Washington praised NASE for sharing its resources with her.
"It's a lot of stuff really dedicated to helping self-employed individuals. This would be good because I'm new at this," she said.
Two years ago, Washington quit her job at a construction company to strike out on her own, intending to take on several part-time jobs. She worked with nonprofit groups that build affordable housing and that experience blossomed into her company.
"I just wanted to do something different. I wanted to touch different people, and I knew if I had a regular job, I couldn't do that," she said. "… It was never my intention to start a business, and I'm grateful for it."
Washington is also working toward a master's degree in accounting from the University of Maryland.
She plans to stay self-employed for the rest of her career.
"Definitely, this is definitely it," she said.
