Now trust me, I am no financial expert. There was a time in my life where I was unsure about every cent I was making and putting out into the world.
My first real year of business I had to break into my savings account I never, ever touch to cover my taxes because I did not financially prepare. When you are just starting out there can be a lot of questions about what you should be saving, how you should be saving, and all those good questions. I am not going to answer those questions for you today, because ideally you should speak with a financial advisor to help you through your specific situation, but I am going to talk you through my system of keeping on top of your business finances!
1. Set time in your schedule to look at your finances
It is easier for me to set a small time frame once a week to make sure my finances are in order. So every Monday I set aside 30 minutes to make sure my expenses and income are correctly recorded in my system. You don’t need to do every week like me, but make sure you set at least one time frame a month to make sure you are in order.
2. Have a system in place
Nothing is more frustrating when tax season comes and you realize your receipts, income, and expenses are not organized. There are really good programs you can purchase to help you get organized such as Quickbooks & Wave! Most client workflow systems like 17hats, Dubsado and Honeybook all integrate Quickbooks into the system, which takes out a LOT of hassle. I personally didn’t like Quickbooks, I needed a system of my own that made sense in my head. So I use Numbers/Excel and have a created sheet that documents my income & expenses with tallies and totals at the bottom to keep me in line. Whatever you decide to use, make sure it is organized and that it makes sense to you!
This also goes for your receipts. I am old fashioned in the sense that I keep my paper receipts for everything business related. They are put in an envelope and I try to keep them in order as much as possible. But I do know there are apps that will take this paper hassle off your hands, such as Wave. You can take a picture of your receipt and Wave will keep the photo in the app & online for you! This is a great option for people who are not so old-fashion like myself! 😀
3. Know your budget
There is no way you can keep your finances in order if you have no idea where your finances are. It is really important to have your business budget in place! Without a budget of some sort in place you are going to end up spending more money than you can & end up saving less for the important things, such as taxes.
I hope these three tips might help you become more financially stable in your business…or just refresh your brain on where your finances should be!
The way you handle your money in your business can either make or break your business! Remember that!
XO,
Mary
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