Avoiding it doesn’t make the issue go away

It’s so human of us to avoid thinking about finances. This avoidance creates a cycle of procrastination and anxiety, which makes the problem worse. But facing your finances provides you with a place of power as you can avoid penalties and make informed decisions. And that brings me to my second point:

Hire an accountant

Hiring an accountant is the single best thing you can do as a freelancer. It is an act of self love. It is the antidote to tearing your hair out this spring. Plus, your accountant’s fees are tax-deductible! I cannot emphasize how helpful it is to have a professional to answer all my questions.

Start thinking about deductions now

If you plan ahead, you could maximize your business deductions. Just about anything you use for your business can be a deduction:

• Office expenses

• Phone and phone plan

• Computer, keyboard, headphones, microphone, and other equipment

• Subscriptions and membership dues

• Health insurance

• Continuing education like conferences, webinars, and classes

• Business insurance

• Your home office

• Advertising and marketing

• Milage and meals for work-related trips

• Website and newsletter plans (like your beehiiv subscription)

• Other software

Get organized

Have you ever done the spring scramble where you unload desk drawers, search your desktop, and sort through papers looking for one specific receipt? I have! Never do that dance again by digitizing your paper receipts. Create a folder on your desktop that’s just for this year’s taxes. Anytime you get a new 1099, send an invoice, pay an expense, or buy something for you, you add it to the folder.

Pay your estimated taxes

The next deadlines for 2024 are September 15 and January 15. There’s a lot of quarterly payment estimators on the internet, but I highly recommend working with your accountant to get an estimate.

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Where you can learn more about this topic

• The hard financial lessons I learned as a new freelancer. You have to run your business like a business.

• The Hell Yeah Nerdletter. It’s a weekly newsletter with smart ideas and practical reads.

• Can I buy a house with a 1099 income? It’s possible!

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Taxes are one of the worst parts of solopreneurship. I want to hear about your best tips for navigating taxes in the comments below. Just open this newsletter in your browser to leave a comment!