132: Drop This Fear Before The Tax Deadline Whether You Are Starting A Business Or Side Hustle
132: Drop This Fear Before The Tax Deadline Whether You Are Starting A Business Or Side Hustle, A Solopreneur, Entrepreneur, Mompreneur, Freelancer, Bookkeeper, Virtual Assistant, Business Owner, Or Self-Employed
The April 15th deadline is closing in on us quickly. As a business owner, you have a lot of things you need to take care of, and filing your tax return is probably one of those things you put at the bottom of your list. I get it, I understand how hard it can be, and I’ve talked to many business owners who dread filing their tax returns. It is something that comes around every year, so you would think it would get easier, but every year the same feelings come up. There are ways you can prepare for your taxes and avoid all those feelings you have. Maybe for you, it is anxiety or dread. For others, it may be confusion or overwhelm. In today’s podcast episode, I’m diving in and talking about a conversation I had last week with an entrepreneur that really surprised me. I want to bring this situation up so that if you are feeling the same way this entrepreneur was feeling, I’m hoping I can help shift your perspective and help you make sure you are handling your business in the best way possible when it comes to the upcoming tax deadline. Whether you are starting a business or side hustle, you’re a self-employed individual, a solopreneur, entrepreneur, mompreneur, freelancer, small business owner, a remote, virtual, online, or in-house bookkeeper, or a virtual assistant or VA, the tax deadline will be here before you know it, and I want to make sure to help you avoid any additional stress and find out how you can avoid those negative feelings when preparing for your tax return. These tips are essential whether you are using a computerized software system like QuickBooks, Xero, Wave, FreshBooks, or HoneyBooks for your business finances; or doing your bookkeeping manually with an Excel spreadsheet or even a Google Document…
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Show Notes:
The April 15th deadline is closing in on us quickly. As a business owner, you have a lot of things you need to take care of, and filing your tax return is probably one of those things you put at the bottom of your list. I get it, I understand how hard it can be, and I’ve talked to many business owners who dread filing their tax returns. It is something that comes around every year, so you would think it would get easier, but every year the same feelings come up. There are ways you can prepare for your taxes and avoid all those feelings you have. Maybe for you, it is anxiety or dread. For others, it may be confusion or overwhelm. In today’s podcast episode, I’m diving in and talking about a conversation I had last week with an entrepreneur that really surprised me. I want to bring this situation up so that if you are feeling the same way this entrepreneur was feeling, I’m hoping I can help shift your perspective and help you make sure you are handling your business in the best way possible when it comes to the upcoming tax deadline. Whether you are starting a business or side hustle, you’re a self-employed individual, a solopreneur, entrepreneur, mompreneur, freelancer, small business owner, a remote, virtual, online, or in-house bookkeeper, or a virtual assistant or VA, the tax deadline will be here before you know it, and I want to make sure to help you avoid any additional stress and find out how you can avoid those negative feelings when preparing for your tax return. These tips are essential whether you are using a computerized software system like QuickBooks, Xero, Wave, FreshBooks, or HoneyBooks for your business finances; or doing your bookkeeping manually with an Excel spreadsheet or even a Google Document…
Welcome Back…The April 15th tax deadline is approaching us pretty quickly. If you are a sole proprietor and you file your business tax return on your personal return as a Schedule C tax filer, you may find yourself scrambling at the last minute to get everything in order to file your tax return on time. If you filed an extension for your business’s March 15th deadline, but you want to make sure you are getting everything ready to file so that you can file your personal return on time, you also may be rushing to get everything done to meet this April 15th deadline.
When it comes to filing taxes, I know there are a lot of feelings that come up for business owners, as well as individuals who are simply filing their personal tax returns, but today I want to talk about a situation that I was in last week. I was meeting with a few entrepreneurs, and the topic of getting tax returns came up. One of the entrepreneurs said that they needed to get all their tax information ready for their tax preparer, but they were finding themselves doing pretty much anything but getting ready to get their tax information ready. When I asked why they were putting it off, their answer was that they were afraid to talk to their tax preparer. As a coach, I work with my clients to help them overcome fears that they have in their business, and this was the perfect example that I wanted to talk to you about today. Do you, or have you ever felt this same way when it comes to talking to your tax preparer? As the conversation went on, the entrepreneur told me that they knew they had made mistakes in their bookkeeping, and they didn’t know how to fix them. They were embarrassed about talking to their tax preparer about them and kept putting off doing the rest of their bookkeeping because of it. Now as it was getting closer to the deadline, the dread they were feeling just kept growing. By helping this entrepreneur understand how they could start eliminating the dread and anxiety they were experiencing and start enjoying their business again was amazing to see, and if you are in a situation similar to this, you need to check out my one-on-one coaching programs where I can help you too. I also want you to know that your accountants, tax preparers, and bookkeepers are there here to help you, as well as all their clients. This is their overall goal. This is what they work towards with each client. They have seen many different situations when dealing with financial information with their clients. If you are in a situation like this entrepreneur, I can promise you that your accountant or tax preparer has probably seen this exact situation with another client or something very similar. I want you to know that there should never be a time when you are afraid to talk to your tax preparer, accountant, or bookkeeper. It doesn’t matter if you think your situation is small and you don’t want to bother your tax preparer or you think the issue is really big and you are afraid it’s going to be a mess when you have to fix the problem. You need to talk to your tax preparer or accountant and tackle the situation as soon as you can. It’s kind of like ripping a bandaid off. You just do it.
The relationship you have with your tax preparer or accountant needs to be a relationship you are comfortable with. If you are not comfortable talking with your tax preparer, you might want to look for a new tax preparer. You are sharing some of your most intimate business information with this person, and you need to feel comfortable. You should be able to create a good connection with them, and they should never make you feel embarrassed about the order of your books or how much you did or didn’t make this year. Remember, your tax preparer has experienced many situations and has probably seen situations just like your business is experiencing already. They are there to help you. They would rather have you talk to them sooner than later so that if there is an issue, it can get addressed quickly. Your tax preparer is there to offer you peace of mind, and you should get what you are paying for. They are there to help you save time and money when it comes to paying taxes, and they should be able to help relieve the stress that you are feeling. They can often help you with more than just tax preparation as well. They can help you with improving your processes to make your bookkeeping easier, help you be more knowledgeable of the tax law, and help you to save from overpaying your taxes. Your tax preparer can give you ideas on how you can save time in the future by helping you know exactly what information they need to prepare your taxes. If you are making mistakes in your bookkeeping, the goal is to find those mistakes, fix them, and learn from the mistakes so you don’t make them in the future and continue to move forward. Take the time to talk to your tax preparer and let them know about the issues you are facing as well as the fears you have so they can help you. You should be able to trust your tax preparer; they are there for you and want to work with you to ensure you are having the most positive experience you can with them.
If you are working on getting the information ready to prepare your tax return right now, you’ve probably been avoiding it for quite a while. You can make it simple going forward by talking to your tax preparer, finding out exactly what they need and how you should gather the information for them. You’ve heard that nothing is certain except for death and taxes. You might as well be proactive. Make sure you are setting up systems in the future so that you don’t wait until the last minute. The outcome will be the same if you file your taxes at the beginning of the tax season or on the deadline, so why continue to feel those feelings of dread throughout the tax season? It is such a long time to continue to feel so terrible, and your anxiety will only increase as you wait. Think about how nice it would be next year if you had everything in order and were able to file your tax return at the beginning of the tax season. You would no longer feel the dread and anxiety all the way through the April 15th deadline, or even worse, if you decide to extend your tax return. Enjoy the relief of knowing you have someone on your team that understands the complicated tax laws and they are working with you to save you time and money. Don’t fear talking to your tax preparer or your accountant. They are on your side. They are working with you. They are part of your team. Ask the questions, get your answers, and let them help you create the peace of mind you desire in your business. If you are experiencing similar feelings of dread or anxiety and you are ready to find out how I can help you eliminate them and start enjoying your business again, sign up for one of my free consultation sessions. You can go to www.FinancialAdventure.com and click on the work with me button. I’m looking forward to meeting with you soon to help you not only start enjoying your business but work on other issues that are holding you back in your personal life and your business. We’ll work together to create your best work-life balance. I’ll post links to this and other valuable resources for business owners and accountants where you are listening to this podcast.
And, you know I’m going to ask…what’s at least one thing you will take away from this episode that will help your business succeed and grow your bottom line? If you need some accountability, join our PRIVATE Facebook community and post your action item, we’d love to support you.
