by Tracey
Lawton
© 2008
http://www.OfficeOrganizationSuccess.com
Are
you one of those people who are guilty of just stuffing your receipts into a folder
and thinking 'I'll sort that out when I've got time'? Do you need a more organised
bookkeeping system, nothing too flashy, just something that's simple and easy
to manage?
Follow my tips below and you'll soon have that
simple and easy-to-manage bookkeeping system that won't bring you out in a cold
sweat whenever you hear the words 'tax return'. And I promise you, it works!
1.
Gather your supplies!
Get hold of a large ring binder, divider
cards, A4/letter-sized paper, stapler, pen, all your business receipts and invoices,
plastic folders and a large coffee (or whatever else you prefer!).
Then
lock yourself away for a couple of hours.
2. Get Organized
You now need to organize your ring binder into the following
sections:
Invoices - Unpaid -- this section is for your
outgoing business expenses that have not yet been paid i.e. supplier invoices.
Write on the top of each invoice the date it needs to be paid by and place all
unpaid invoices in 'date to be paid' order with the earliest one on top.
Invoices
- Paid -- this section is for your outgoing business expenses that have been paid
or you've paid at the time service was rendered, i.e. that ream of paper that
you bought from the office supplies store. Staple each receipt on to a blank piece
of paper rather than just putting them directly into the ring binder. This just
makes it easier to see at a glance all your receipts and you can also make notes
on the paper. Also write on the top of each invoice/piece of paper the method
of payment.
Receipts - Unpaid -- this section is for all
your invoices that you have sent to clients that have not yet been paid. Write
on the top date payment is due and put them in date order so that it's easier
if you have to chase overdue invoices.
Receipts - Paid --
this section is for all your invoices that have been paid. Write on the top the
date it was paid and how it was paid i.e. cash, check, credit card etc.
Bank
Statements -- this section is self-explanatory! Just keep everything in date order.
3.
Schedule It In
Now that you've got your system in place,
schedule in each week/month to keep your bookkeeping binder up-to-date. In between
updating place all your receipts and invoices in a plastic folder so that everything
is together when you come to update your system--it would be too time-consuming
to add each receipt as you get it!
What Next?
Depending
on how far you want to handle your own accounts, you can either hand your very
organised bookkeeping binder over to your accountant at the end of the financial
year for them to prepare your final accounts, or you can maintain your own books
with the use of financial accounting software.
Either way,
you've now got a bookkeeping system that is simple and easy-to- manage and won't
cause you to break out into a cold sweat at the very mention of the words 'tax
return'.
