Why Your Accountant is Begging You to Do This One Thing
The Shoebox of Shame: Why We Need to Talk About Pre-Accounting
By Gita Faust
I realized this yesterday during my webinar titled “From Balance Sheet to Your Wellness.” Now, don’t roll your eyes just yet—this isn’t your average accounting lecture. While chatting away about wellness and financial health, it hit me like a ton of bricks: so many businesses are making the same mistakes repeatedly. And guess what? They’re using outdated methods that cause unnecessary stress.
Let’s rewind for a second. Think back to the old days—remember when everyone used to collect receipts in shoeboxes? Oh, yes, the infamous shoebox filled with movie stubs, grocery receipts, and random scraps of paper. It’s like the treasure chest of financial chaos! You wouldn’t go to the grocery store without a list, right? So why would you run your business without some form of organization? Many of us are still stuck in those old habits, but it’s time for a change. Let’s explore how updating our pre-accounting methods can save us all a headache.
Why Your Accountant Shouldn’t Need a Prescription for Advil
Let’s get real—if your accountant needs a prescription for Advil after working on your books, it’s time to reevaluate your pre-accounting process. Imagine this: you bring a box full of mixed-up receipts from your favorite coffee spot to that hardware store trip from three months ago. Your accountant looks at this mess like a librarian trying to sort cookbooks and sci-fi novels. It’s a disaster waiting to happen!
Here’s the deal: pre-accounting isn’t just for accountants. It’s for anyone who wants to run a smoother, more efficient business. So, what can you do? Start by labeling your receipts as soon as you get them. Write the job name on the receipt if you’re buying supplies for a specific job. If you’re grabbing a coffee for a networking meeting, jot down the details. It takes two seconds; trust me; your accountant will thank you—maybe even with fewer billing hours.
But it’s not just about receipts. Think about all those bank and credit card statements. You need to download them every month and organize them. And please, for the love of all things organized, stop sending your passwords via email or text. It’s 2024, folks—pick up the phone and call. I promise it’s not as scary as it sounds.
So, let’s say you’re using QuickBooks and have connected your bank account through the bank feed. QuickBooks can pull your bank statements directly into its portal, making it easy to download them anytime. Even better, you can set up view-only access for your bookkeeper or controller. This means they can see the checks you’ve written, view all the details, and download statements or export them as a CSV or Excel file, but they can’t make any changes.
It’s essential to be careful about who you give access to your bank accounts and what kind of access they have. You don’t want to hand over more control than necessary. And please, avoid a common mistake I still see: don’t send passwords via email or text message. Seriously, let’s leave that habit in the past. Instead, pick up the phone and make a quick call to share passwords securely. It takes just a few seconds and is far safer.
Now, when it comes to credit cards, most companies don’t offer view-only access. So, you’ll need to download those statements yourself and share them with your bookkeeper, controller, or CFO (hint: it can be my team and me, Gita Faust). The same goes for loans, whether it’s a mortgage, a line of credit, or any other loan type. You usually have to download these statements manually because many financial institutions don’t provide view-only access or automatic downloads.
Sometimes, if everything is connected in QuickBooks and it’s integrated with your bank or credit card company, you might be able to download these statements automatically. However, this varies depending on the financial institution’s setup with QuickBooks.
And don’t forget about payroll services! If you’re using a payroll service, download your payroll statements regularly—monthly, quarterly, and annually. Don’t forget to download the payroll tax forms that were filed. You never know when you might need to switch services or when your credit card company offers a great deal, like a 0% interest rate for transferring balances. If you close an account, you might lose access to essential documents, so keeping everything downloaded and stored safely is crucial.
In short, download your statements and organize your financial documents. These are all part of good pre-accounting practices that will save you time and headaches later on.
Embrace the Future: Technology is Your New Best Friend
Alright, let’s talk tech. I know—technology can be intimidating, but hear me out. What if I told you there’s a magical tool that can transform your pre-accounting woes into a seamless process? Enter HubDoc, the unsung hero of the digital accounting world. Imagine having an app that lets you snap pictures of your receipts, automatically tags and organizes them, and keeps everything in one easy-to-find place. It’s like having a personal assistant who never gets tired or takes a coffee break.
Here’s how it works: you take a photo of your receipt, and HubDoc’s OCR technology (Optical Character Recognition for the non-nerds) reads the details, tags them by vendor and date, and stores them securely. You can even forward receipts via email, so no more fiddling around with multiple steps. It’s like turning your shoebox of shame into a digital filing cabinet you can access anytime, anywhere.
So, what’s the big takeaway here? By embracing tools like HubDoc, you’re not just saving time but keeping your sanity. And hey, you might even save enough time to finally have that cup of coffee with a friend or spend an afternoon with your grandkids. Isn’t that what it’s all about?
How We Can Help: Turning Your Pre-Accounting Headaches into Harmony
Now, if you’re thinking, “This all sounds great, but I don’t have the time or energy to figure it out,” don’t worry—that’s where we come in. At Fast Trac Consulting, we’re here to make your life easier. Whether setting up HubDoc, organizing your receipts, or just giving your old shoebox the boot, we’ve got you covered.
Think of Gita Faust as your financial fairy godparent, here to wave a magic wand over your accounting chaos and transform it into something manageable. We believe in making things simple, efficient, and enjoyable. When you’re not stressing over receipts and statements, you can focus on what matters—growing your business and enjoying life.
So, let’s ditch those outdated habits, embrace a new way of doing things, and find some financial peace together. After all, isn’t it time you ran your business instead of letting it run you?
Thanks for tuning in today! Enjoy your Day, stay calm, and remember—pre-accounting doesn’t have to be a nightmare. With some help and a few good habits, you can turn it into a dream come true. Talk to you soon, everyone!
Gita Faust is the founder & CEO of HammerZen, which helps businesses save time & money by keeping track of The Home Depot purchases and efficiently importing receipts and statements into QuickBooks. National REIA members receive discounts on QuickBooks services and software. Learn more by visiting www.hammerzen.com/nreia.
