How to Have Less Stress During Tax Season
As varied and far ranging as the subject of tax tips are, we'll be focusing on getting organized long before tax time rolls around.
Everyone has been through the proverbial gauntlet of scrambling before April 15, frantically going through the previous year's worth of accumulated receipts, invoices, and other paperwork.
No one needs the additional stress.
So how do we reduce or even prevent altogether, the amount of stress experienced? Easy! GET ORGANIZED.
Getting and staying organized is the single most important thing you can do to prepare you for the next round of tax preparations.
You won't need to rifle through mountains of papers to get to what you need most.
Everything is right there, at your fingertips.
In addition, most professional tax preparers charge by the hour, and the better organized you are, the quicker you will be able to give what your accountant needs, and the faster you'll have your taxes done.
As soon as you walk in through your front door, have a box ready and in easy reach for you to dump your day's receipts in.
This will prevent the habit of emptying your pockets on the kitchen counter or bedside table and potentially losing those receipts.
Once a week, set aside as much time as you need to sort and file those receipts from the past seven days.
Designate one drawer of your filing cabinet for nothing but paperwork directly related to your taxes.
Manila folders will be your best friend, and buying them in bulk can save you money.
You'll have all your information in one place, instead of hopelessly being scattered about.
Purchase a good quality scanner to back up your information electronically.
Having scanned copies of your papers will give you added peace of mind.
Accidents can and often do happen.
Inclement weather or fire damage could cause you to lose your hard copies.
When you backup your filing system, you have a few options.
You could store your electronic copies on a separate, external hard drive, on CD or DVD media, or you may upload them to a virtual location online.
There are many services on the Internet that will safely store your valuable documents.
It will be up to you to decide which service to go with after thoroughly researching the advantages and disadvantages of each.
Now that you've got a handle on your hard copies and soft copies, you've got to funnel it into some good personal budgeting software.
Choices abound, so take the time to peruse features and specifications which are important to you.
Organizing your figures generally falls into two categories, software you will have to install (either by downloading or from a CD) on your desktop or laptop, or virtual services you can access online.
Just remember if you select online budgeting services, you'll need a reliable Internet connection to get to your records.
Installing budgeting software on your personal computer will permit you access without an Internet connection.
See how with a little effort on a regular basis, you can keep your financial world organized and ready for the next tax season? It's easier than you think.
And it will be worth it in the end because you'll be stress free!
Everyone has been through the proverbial gauntlet of scrambling before April 15, frantically going through the previous year's worth of accumulated receipts, invoices, and other paperwork.
No one needs the additional stress.
So how do we reduce or even prevent altogether, the amount of stress experienced? Easy! GET ORGANIZED.
Getting and staying organized is the single most important thing you can do to prepare you for the next round of tax preparations.
You won't need to rifle through mountains of papers to get to what you need most.
Everything is right there, at your fingertips.
In addition, most professional tax preparers charge by the hour, and the better organized you are, the quicker you will be able to give what your accountant needs, and the faster you'll have your taxes done.
As soon as you walk in through your front door, have a box ready and in easy reach for you to dump your day's receipts in.
This will prevent the habit of emptying your pockets on the kitchen counter or bedside table and potentially losing those receipts.
Once a week, set aside as much time as you need to sort and file those receipts from the past seven days.
Designate one drawer of your filing cabinet for nothing but paperwork directly related to your taxes.
Manila folders will be your best friend, and buying them in bulk can save you money.
You'll have all your information in one place, instead of hopelessly being scattered about.
Purchase a good quality scanner to back up your information electronically.
Having scanned copies of your papers will give you added peace of mind.
Accidents can and often do happen.
Inclement weather or fire damage could cause you to lose your hard copies.
When you backup your filing system, you have a few options.
You could store your electronic copies on a separate, external hard drive, on CD or DVD media, or you may upload them to a virtual location online.
There are many services on the Internet that will safely store your valuable documents.
It will be up to you to decide which service to go with after thoroughly researching the advantages and disadvantages of each.
Now that you've got a handle on your hard copies and soft copies, you've got to funnel it into some good personal budgeting software.
Choices abound, so take the time to peruse features and specifications which are important to you.
Organizing your figures generally falls into two categories, software you will have to install (either by downloading or from a CD) on your desktop or laptop, or virtual services you can access online.
Just remember if you select online budgeting services, you'll need a reliable Internet connection to get to your records.
Installing budgeting software on your personal computer will permit you access without an Internet connection.
See how with a little effort on a regular basis, you can keep your financial world organized and ready for the next tax season? It's easier than you think.
And it will be worth it in the end because you'll be stress free!
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