Jennifer Hofmann is the queen of organization here at My Organized Biz, so the pressure was on when she asked me to help with one of her own organization issues.

Jennifer sent me a photo of her receipts piling up and said -

I can’t get myself motivated to enter my receipts. The picture features my system of sorting them, but it’s not working because they’re now piling up on my desk.

Seriously, it’s embarrassing, but I haven’t put them in my Excel spreadsheet since the end of January. And every time I try to use the desk, I have to shove them around or try to ignore them but it’s not working.

In a perfect world, I’d enter them regularly, like weekly. But I am so busy it’s just not happening. I’d love some ideas about how to make it more fun, less painful, or just have them disappear into thin air.

My Suggestions:

My first suggestion is to minimize the number of receipts you need to deal with by -

• Direct debits – For regular expenses e.g. phone, internet, mail etc. see if you can get your bank to direct debit these from your account so the payment goes through the bank.
• Credit card payments – For non regular purchases, use a credit card, but make sure you pay it off before the interest starts to kick in so it is cost neutral. Both direct debits and credit card payments will show on your bank statement so you have the details without the receipts.

For the remaining receipts –

Instead of letting them pile up, put them straight into an accordion file or 3-ring binder with pockets, divided into suppliers and/or date order. They will be in order ready for you to enter them on your Excel spreadsheet when you are ready.

They will also be off your desk, and out of sight, which may help both space wise and psychologically.

If you really hate this task, and thinking about it is affecting productivity, would you consider outsourcing to a virtual assistant? If you can’t justify the expense, maybe there is a task or service you could barter as a swap.

Have fun, Jennifer. I look forward to the “After” photo when you have tamed those pesky receipts.

Yvonne Russell is a freelance writer and professional blogger at Grow Your Writing Business, Small Biz Mentor and Home Biz Notes.

Post from: My Organized Biz

This isn’t a political blog so I won’t go into my opinion on this, um, turn of events (biting tongue). Whether you agree with this stimulus plan or not, there’s a pretty good chance a juicy check will be winging its way to you this spring.

It’s kind of exciting when I think about it. $600 in cash! It’s like winning a mini-lottery.

My Plan:

What I’ll probably do is something responsible and organized like spend some on rent and the rest toward paying off a credit card. I am a sole-proprietor, so I am my business, economically speaking. My goal is to be debt-free in the next 5 years, so I’m glad to have a little extra cash to contribute toward that. (Not exactly economic stimulus, eh?)

My $600 daydream:

If I was gonna go wild and blow it all, throw responsibility and caution to the wind, here’s how I’d spend my $600:

• Get my car detailed.
• Schedule an Aveda pedicure.
• Spend a day at Powell’s World of Books.
• Take my sweetie out for a fancy dinner – and dessert.
• Sign up for a 3 month gym membership.
• Get a cute outfit for work.

Now, I’m tagging some of my favorite business owners with these two questions and encourage you, dear reader, to chime in too:

• If you could do whatever you wanted, how would YOU spend your $600?
• Is that the same or different from how you actually plan spend it?

I’d love to hear from Anne Wayman at The Golden Pencil, Kelly Phillips Erb at TaxGirl, Kristen King & and Bridget Wright at Biz Chicks Rule, Mary Emma Allen and Yvonne Russell at Home Biz Notes (new blog, very cool!), and Shannon Cherry at Start Up Spark.

Then send it along to 6 (for the $600) people for their answers.

Post from: My Organized Biz

Creating an organized business means that you can lovingly care for your financial health – including what’s owed to the government.

Today, I’m happy to be featuring an interview with Jessica Reagan Salzman, owner of Behind the Scenes LLC which does virtual business bookkeeping for people who are tired of being in the dark when it comes to money matters.

Jessica has also been called “the marriage saver” because of the assistance she has provided to husband/wife owned companies and the amazing difference it has made in their lives. As a home-based business owner herself, Jessica understands the unique advantages and challenges of running a business from home.

Jen: Welcome, Jessica! This has got to be the Season O’Stress for business owners. Let’s start by talking about why do you think people get so overwhelmed during tax season.

Jessica: I think most people end up overwhelmed during tax season because most people put off things that aren’t fun or enjoyable. And last time I checked, most people don’t find the process of filing taxes to be fun or enjoyable!

It’s easy to end up overwhelmed when you have a huge project hanging over your head. Especially when you are not even sure what first step to take in order to get that project done and off your plate.

Jen: That’s a really great point – something as big as taxes needs to be broken down into small, sane steps.

So, what would you say are some things that small business owners can be doing right now to get ready for April 15?

Jessica: The first thing any small business owner should do right now, if they haven’t already, is pull together all of their business’s bank and credit card statements for 2007, along with any other business financial paperwork (loan statements, unpaid bills, invoices issued to customers/clients, etc.).

Many small business owners try to tackle their business’s money matters on their own, but unless they are in the bookkeeping or accounting business, it’s usually much easier (not to mention less stressful) to have outside help!

Once they have their paperwork together in one place, they can then contact a professional for assistance. If they are using financial software like QuickBooks, it’s still very important to have the assistance of a professional to ensure that the software is producing accurate reports.

Jen: Speaking of money, what things can small business owners do to help them reduce tax preparer costs?

Jessica: The best way to reduce your tax preparation expense is to have your business’s books in the best possible shape before passing them off to the tax preparer. This is where the cost of professional bookkeeping assistance immediately pays off as a return on your investment. I’ve had some clients tell me that their tax prep bill was more than cut in half and the only change they had made was having a bookkeeper!

Jen: Great tip! Now, you run a business – how are you doing on your own tax preparation?

Jessica: That’s a great question! Because I stay on top of my own business’s books on a monthly basis, I’ve had my books pretty much ready for tax prep since my December bank statement was generated and available via online banking. Other than a few 1099s that are still trickling in, I’m almost set to pass my books off to my favorite CPA!

One of the beauties of doing my books throughout the year is that I’m always “in the know” regarding how much I should be paying in estimated taxes. It’s a great planning tool to help me grow my business each month.

Jen: Great – I guess it would pay off to copy what you do! In the big picture, what can people do to prevent their Jan-April 15th stress?

To reduce pre-tax stress, it’s helpful to have a system (customized so that it works for you!) in place throughout the course of the year. That way you do not end up with a huge project after January 1st.

If tax season causes you a great deal of overwhelm, it’s time to partner up with someone who can show you a better way so that you don’t end up repeating this pattern year after year. Most business owners are surprised to learn that there are some simple and low investment steps you can take to get a handle on your business’s money matters, quickly and easily!

Jen: Thanks so much for stopping by, Jessica! I feel ready to get my taxes ready (one small step at a time)!

Post from: My Organized Biz