Post Tax Season Reflections

The Self Reflection Guide

Phew😌, what a relief! Tax season has officially closed (except for those with extensions), and we need to decompress... BIG TIME!

This 2022 Tax Season had some curveballs as preparers tried to navigate unemployment payments, PPP ramifications, COVID relief payments, crypto investments, NFTs…the list goes on. This past year was the year of "The Great Resignation," so many individuals had a mixture of freelancer income plus their W4s.

Let’s start by addressing the most significant problem faced across the industry:

#1 Improper documentation, aka lack of bookkeeping, and #2 co-mingling (personal and business expenses overlapping everywhere). These issues were expected because many first-time business owners are trying to navigate how on earth they can manage and track their income and expenses.

The second biggest complaint was when clients had misguided expectations that their tax preparer would organize and make sense of everything. Babe- your tax preparer has at least 50-100 (minimum) other tax returns they have to submit. So while they will try their best, you shouldn’t expect that they will find every tax deduction opportunity if your transactions are a mess. It hurts you as an individual and business owner when you wait for the end of the year to come around and dump it to your preparer to make it right.

Now let’s get into some Self Reflection:

How did your tax season go🧐? No shame or shade, just answer the following questions honestly:

1. Did you scramble and print out everything you had in no particular order?

2. Did you procrastinate in getting the information to your preparer?

3. Did you have to spend a few days going back and forth trying to piece together your 2021 financial year?

4. How about the anxiety you felt after giving your documents to your preparer? Do you feel like you forgot something?

5. Have you yet to file and put in for an extension, and you’re still dealing with this season’s mess?

If any of these questions hit close to home, it's all right—no need to panic. The best of us learn by experience, and hopefully, this experience has highlighted the importance of bookkeeping. I have taken the initiative to create an excellent step-by-step bookkeeping guide that compiles all the essential tasks, deadlines, and report recommendations. Click here to download it and use it to begin your bookkeeping journey.

As always, I love feedback and interacting with you. So comment below 👇🏾, hit me up on Instagram; I’m here for you. Until next timeeeee👋🏾