As a small business owner, you're spinning a dozen plates at once – from managing your business to keeping your home running. It's no wonder tax returns can feel like just another task on an ever-growing to-do list.
As October approached, I asked some of my clients why they hadn’t started working on their self-assessment yet. The consensus was surprising. There wasn’t any incentive big enough to complete this boring, stressful, time-consuming task, despite the real risk of paying up to 60% more. I have an incentivised pricing model which includes late-year surcharges but even that didn’t help. Some even said they just go into freeze mode and don’t know where to start. Some haven’t been as organised as they wished they had been, and they were too embarrassed to tell me. Some are dreading paying their tax bill (and therefore putting their head in the sand).
So, as I move into Autumn and the deadline for the 23- 24 self-assessment fast approaches, I find myself re-evaluating what clients need from me beyond the reminders and actual processing of their self-assessment. Here are some tips to get out of that rut.
Stop being a perfectionist. We tend to give ourselves a hard time if things dont go to plan. You might not have been as organised as you promised yourself in April, but there is no time like the present. You can start today. Paper or digital, you need somewhere to keep track of the Money In and Money Out. It doesn't even need to be organised further than that at this point. This could be email folders, physical folders, cloud folders, or a plastic wallet in the car. Just start to capture them as they happen.
Weigh up the cost vs benefit of doing your own bookkeeping. Whilst you may not feel that going through bank statements, receipts etc is difficult, it may be the boring bit that has you procrastinating. How long does it take you? What could you be doing with that time instead? Accounting costs are allowable business expenses, too, so they also lower your taxable profit figure when you are paying for your bookkeeper/accountant to do these mundane jobs.
Break your full-year task up into chunks. If you have a full year to get through, then break the tasks up in to chunks. Bank statements, money in, and money out are the 3 main areas to start on. But you don’t have to do it all at once.
Attend body double sessions. I will be hosting regular body doubling sessions for my clients where they can show up and catch up via zoom. Are you part of a membership that offers body doubling sessions? Sometimes just setting your intentions within a group is enough to keep you on task.
What are the downsides for a small business owner who leaves their self-assessment until the deadline?
Less time to get the money together if you haven't saved for your taxes.
If payments on accounts are triggered, your tax bill can be up to 50% higher than you might have been expecting that year.
Missed expenses because you are rushing and not being thorough, meaning your taxable profit won’t be as low as it could be.
Spending Christmas worried or stressed about your tax return.
Negative self-talk around not being organised. This does more damage than we realise.
Be kind to yourself. We know running a business is hard. You don’t have to tackle it all alone.
If you need any support, don’t hesitate to reach out.
Becky x