Each year, small businesses must get their taxes ready to
file. One thing that is necessary is to
categorize all their expenses into the proper categories so that whomever
prepares their tax return can see which expenses are deductible and which are
not.
Software programs like Quickbooks or its country cousin
Quicken make it easy for a small business owner to do their own bookkeeping
while at the same time balancing their checkbook and managing their cash flow.
Yet, there are still business owners who take their paper
sack full of receipts to their tax preparer and say, “Here ya go.” This is a waste of the tax preparer’s time,
for which he bills.
There are still those small business owners who would rather
have someone else plow through their receipts and categorize them.
That is where you come in.
If you have just a little bookkeeping knowledge and a spreadsheet
program like Excel, you can help the small business owner and earn a little
extra coin on the side.
Instead of taking his grocery bag of receipts to his tax man
every year, he can bring them to you or have you pick them up once per
month. This way the receipts have not
yet faded, hopefully. You can provide a
little extra service by scanning these receipts into your computer so that
there is a good readable copy if needed later.
If you are able to get the receipts in a timely manner, that
is before they fade, you should be able to scan and record a month’s worth of
receipts in just a few hours depending on the volume of receipts.
At the end of the year, you can provide a breakdown of the
year’s expenses by the month and category.
This is a win-win-win situation. The small business owner can have a little
better snapshot of his expenses each month and, by doing it monthly, he will be
able to minimize losing deductions due to illegible receipts.
The tax man wins because he can concentrate
better on preparing the taxes and finding deductions and you win because you
have a little side money to help get those financial monkeys off your own back.
Please be advised that all the information in this course is provided to educate, enlighten, and broaden your views in life. The information provided is not a substitute for medical, legal, dietary, financial/accounting, or religious professionals.
Always consult a professional before you act on any of the information you find in this course.
Please be sure to consult your attorney, accountant, and/or other professionals with any specific questions. There is no one right answer to any business question that will cover all circumstances.
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