January is National Get Organized Month! Everybody’s busy with getting their own house in order, often with the help of Marie Kondo. I think people need to start thinking about their finances, too. Since April 15th is rapidly approaching, I thought I’d share some tips to help you get organized — and claw back some billable hours from your accountant.
- Pay yourself first. You can do this by setting up an automatic transfer or just sending your savings account some love from your checking account.
- Create and stick to a spending plan. Nobody’s perfect, but even thinking about budgeting helps people to rethink their spending habits. In other words, even if you fail at sticking to your spending plan, you’ll fail upwards.
- Explore going paperless. Scanners are very user-friendly these days, and they can do things like read the text on business cards. In our office, everything gets scanned and stored.
- Cut back. Nobody wants to cut back, and that’s why you should do it. Always be suspicious of what everybody else is doing and any philosophy that is too convenient (“My spending is stimulating the economy!”).
- Know what tax documents to expect, and wait for them with bated breath — and create a file for all tax-related documents.
Whenever you endeavor to do something that requires time and patience, you’re bound to slip up at one point or another. I hate slip ups. Not that people slip up, but the way self-doubt tends to flourish in those situations. I look at it like a diet plan; the fact that I had a slice of birthday cake today does not mean I have to have one again tomorrow. Setbacks happen, but overall you’ll be killing it! Now. Go get organized!
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