As a small business owner, you have to manage expenses one way or another. Some choose to roll up their sleeves and do it themselves, while others prefer to outsource this responsibility to a professional bookkeeper. Either way, it’s critical that your books are kept properly. It begins by creating a system that works for your particular needs, and sticking with it, whether that means constant phone calls or bolding cells in a spreadsheet.
As makeup artist and eyebrow expert Suzie Moldavon explains, every business owner needs a system that he or she can track and access. As a sole proprietor, Suzie creates a spreadsheet at the end of every single work day or project in order to organize her incoming cash, check and credit card transactions, as well as track outgoing invoices . Since there’s very little overhead in her mobile business, her main expenses include makeup and waxing supplies. But as any savvy business owner or tax professional will tell you, some expenses are deductible. For Suzie, includes portions of her car, cell phone, home and supplies. The spreadsheet may not be flashy, but it gets the job done.
