Preparing for Year-end One Task at a Time

Last week, I began a 4-part blog series on preparing for the year-end and tax time. In this series, I’m outlining tips on how to prepare for year-end and tax time without the stress that typically plagues ecommerce business owners this time of year.

How did you do with your tasks for Week 1? Let’s look now at the next set of tasks for you to accomplish this week!

Week 2: Tasks to Accomplish This Week

• Reconcile your bank statements for months January-November. If you’re behind on these, try doing one month at a time, breaking them down into a few each day if necessary. Work it month by month instead of account by account to ensure transactions between accounts are recorded properly and don’t create an issue going forward.
• Review your owner pay. If you’re a Sole Proprietor or LLC, do you have your owner draws recorded on your balance sheet? If you are an S-Corp, do you have payroll recorded for your salary on your P&L statement? If you’re not certain what to do on this, consult with your CPA for guidance.
• Look at your expenses. Have you included a payee name on all money leaving your business? Most bank statements now provide check images. Look back at what you have downloaded if necessary. If you have many of these, then break up your list to look at them month by month.
• Read this IRS flyer. It will help you understand how to handle 1099 filing. You can also read our latest blog about 1099s.

These tasks will get you through Week 2. Just like Week 1, I recommend that you commit time on your calendar to tackle each one and mark them off when completed. It will help you stay on track and keep the anxiety level to a minimum! Next week, the tasks will be a bit more time-intensive, but taking them in small bites, like Weeks 1 and 2, will make them easier to complete and you’ll be done in no time!