Good Cents and Tax Advice

Taxes, and anything related to them, have always been a little foreign to me. One might think because I was born on tax day I’d have some special insight into the matter. I don’t. With the turn of another year, I resolved to try to gain some information on this subject which in the past I have written off (no pun intended) as something that was over my head and that I didn’t want to deal with. As I reviewed my Dance Theater Workshop member update, I saw that, lo and behold, there was to be a free bookkeeping workshop. It was technically for fiscally sponsored artists, but as a staff member I was able to sit in. The workshop, hosted by Justine Lackey of Good Cents, Inc., stressed the importance of really looking at and getting to know your own financial life. Good bookkeeping depends largely on having an organizational system that works for you. Aesthetics count! Justine says that people, especially artists, are more likely to use and update their files if their system is aesthetically pleasing, so you shouldn’t always opt for the chipper chicken but maybe spend an extra buck or two on the cute filing cabinet. Also, creating a habit of updating periodically instead of leaving everything for the end of the year will save you time and unnecessary stress.

There was a lot of good information, so I’ll just share a few of the things I found helpful. 1. Save your itemized receipts! Credit card statements are just a summary. They will tell you the vendor, but how will you prove what you bought there is for your business? Check out neatreceipts.com for a cool scanner that digitizes your receipts and reduces your masses of paper. 2. Save your deposit slips! It’s good to have a record of what income is coming from where, you don’t need to be paying taxes on that check from Grandma! It also allows you to double-check that the bank has in fact deposited the correct amounts into your account. 3. You need to keep your financial records for 3 years in case of an audit. 4. It seems that due to some change in the auditing protocol that more freelancers are getting audited, sooooo yeah, get your records straight, and um, report your income! 5. When looking for bookkeeping or tax professionals, word of mouth is best. You should go with someone you trust and feel comfortable with. This person should never make you feel stupid for not understanding what the heck they are talking about.

So yes, I did run out a purchase a file cabinet. It is still, however, waiting to be filled with all my wonderfully organized paperwork. I’m also hoping that if I give my financial life a little TLC that I might see a little more activity on the income side of things, since I have the expenditures pretty much under control.

- Meghan Merrill