Over the years I have learned a lot about doing my own taxes and the taxes for my business. It did not come easy and I have long dreaded this time of year. But I can say that there have been plenty of new tools that I have learned to use that have made my tax season a lot better than it once was.
Personal Taxes
First, let’s talk about personal taxes. Let me tell you that when I started using Turbo Tax my life changed. I no longer needed to go and get my accountant to do it or the local tax shop. I highly recommend using them and doing it yourself for free or you can get them to help you for a small fee. It’s so simple that anyone can do it. I really wish someone had told me about this earlier, that’s why I wanted to let you know.
Corporate Tax- Bookkeeping
When I first started my company I hired a bookkeeper and accountant, simply because I knew I just wouldn’t have the time to do it during my start-up years, there was way too much going on for me to take on the learning curve to do my own bookkeeping was not only overwhelming it would not have been wise. I later decided to take my books back from my bookkeeper to save on some costs but later found that I would have to set some serious time to get this all figured out. Again, learning things the hard way I started with excel spreadsheets that were effective but beyond time-consuming. I don’t even want to tell you to have much time that took because it stole a piece of my life I will never get back. Mind you I was in an accident that year and I’m sure my concussion and whiplash didn’t help. Yes, I’ve had 3 major accidents in the last few years and that doesn’t help when you are trying to get more organized. Anyway, what I’m getting at is I have learned some easier ways and even if you fall off the wagon or something happens you will be able to pick back up where you left off a lot easier.
After trying the spreadsheets I turned to QuickBooks which makes it so easy to set up and get running. The cloud offers a ton of features and you can just sign on from anywhere with a connection. It really is amazing how far bookkeeping has come since the days of paper grids and searching for the missing penny. I’m sure you’ve heard of QuickBooks and tried that for a while but then realized because I was running with multiple currencies and Quickbooks didn’t have all the functionality I really needed so I continued to search for something that would. I eventually fell upon Xero which is like Quickbooks but it had more functionality. I hired a coach to go through the set u so that I didn’t start off on the wrong foot because if you have ever done books before you know it isn’t had to make a mistake when it comes to books. You see, I’m not an expert but I have managed to file my own taxes personally and professionally for the last 3 years. I have used a coach from the site and an accountant to look over the final numbers but these products make it possible for anyone to learn and do it themselves. If you are starting a business, don’t do what I did, get the software first and take some time to go over it so that at least if you hire it out you have an understanding.
This is just a very quick overview of some tools I use. If you would like to hear more tips on taxes let me know. I have learned about tax savings, and more. Just thought I would chime in on something every Canadian needs to know. I’m not an expert but have learned it’s what you don’t know that can hold you back. Just want to share things that could help you on your journey. Happy Tax filing!
