“We are as happy as we make our minds up to be,” Abraham Lincoln once said.
The federal tax filing deadline usually falls on April 15th, but thanks to Emancipation Day in Washington D.C. – a holiday in the nation’s capital marking the end of slavery– you’ll have two extra days to complete your taxes. Mark your calendars; the deadline to file your 2017 taxes is April 17, 2018. If you’re filing for an extension, please check with your accountant/qualified tax professional to assure any payment obligations are met on time.
As a person who loves order, I actually enjoy organizing my tax information, spreadsheets, receipts, expenses, and tax documents that come in the mail. Until 2014, I had filed my own taxes; since then, I’ve decided to do what I do best – track and organize and let my accountant do the rest. This has allowed me to:
- create more time for myself by outsourcing the actual filing process;
- rely on my accountant’s expertise regarding tax deduction guidelines, ensuring my taxes are filed as correctly and quickly as possible;
- reduce the hourly-based fee payment because my accountant has all of the information to review in an organized, easily understandable way. Fewer questions plus faster turnaround equals cost savings for me!
So, if “taxes” is a 4-letter word to you (alright, it’s actually a 5-letter word), let’s reframe the approach right now. How would it feel to have your 2017 financial files and tax information organized without a lot of stress? It might sound silly, but try to start your preparation from a “happy place.”
For example:
- Social Services and many public parks, art, cultural events, and libraries exist because of your tax dollars.
- If you haven’t started yet, this is the perfect time to begin. By this time you should have received tax documents in the mail. You have “a good month” to gather paperwork and sort receipts.
- The earlier you file, the faster you’ll receive your refund if you are expecting one.
Now to the action steps:
- Create a music playlist of uplifting feel-good songs about money (or about life!)
- Schedule an appointment with your accountant and give him/her time to work on your filing (or you may find yourself filing for an extension). Committing to that appointment makes the time frame real and a good deadline for pulling everything together.
- Start gathering:
- If not already done, open all of your paper mail. Immediately recycle junk mail.Put any document that has 2017 and a form number (e.g., W2, 1099-HC) in a file folder and label it “Taxes 2017.” Financial documents that need review or action and you know are not tax related should be put in an “Action” folder. Directly on the folder (or in another place where you will look regularly), make note of the next action that needs to be taken with the item(s) in that folder.
- Gather all receipts that you’ve accumulated so far in 2017. Unless they are for business-related purchases or large ticket items, throw out receipts for groceries, consumables, and for items past their return date. Place the rest in an envelope labeled “Taxes 2017”, put the envelope in a file folder with the same label (see above). As you come across papers that need to be shredded (e.g., items containing personal identification numbers/information such as social security numbers, birthdates, bank or credit card accounts), put them aside in a paper bag or file box labeled “SHRED” and shred those later.
- Find other piles of paper in your home that you suspect financial or tax information could be found and determine if it’s tax-related, if so put it in your “Taxes 2017” folder.
- Congratulate yourself for making progress! Do you feel any lighter?
Taking on these tasks in a fun, caring way support your decision to be as happy as possible about your taxes. Picture your refund (hopefully!) on its way to you!
Managing financial paperwork and receipts have become more fun for me since I began using Evernote and Scannable. These two free apps make paper management a breeze and are two of the tools I use regularly to simplify and streamline my life.
Interested in creating a digital organization system for your paperwork? Sign up for a complimentary phone consult. I’d love to help get you started.
Or maybe you have a system that’s working great for you already. If so, please share in the comments below.