5 Tips in “Thriving” an Economic Recession

Many would agree that there’s no question we’re currently experiencing an economic recession.  That has many small business owners panicking as they worry about the longevity of their businesses and livelihoods.  Entrepreneur.com’s networking guru, Ivan Misner, has written a blog series entitled “I Refuse to Participate in a Recession” where he examines how business owners, in changing their perspectives, can thrive, as opposed to survive, an economic recession.  This week we will examine five tips designed to help you change your experience with the current economy.

1. Assess your internal dialogue.

How you experience the economy has more to do with what you’re telling yourself about it than it does the statistics, the news forecasts and the bailout proposals.  If you have determined that things are bad and they’re only going to get worse, for both the nation and your business, then chances are they will-not because that’s what’s destined to happen, but because that’s what you believe will happen.  Your internal dialogue determines whether or not you become a victim in the current economic crisis or a survivor-or should we say, thriver.

2. Focus on what you do want, not what you don’t want.

The Law of Attraction exerts that your life is a reflection of what you think, what you focus on, and what you expect to happen.  You must turn your attention away from worry and fear.  While it is a good idea to develop a plan for the worse-case scenario, once that plan has been laid you must move on to brighter thoughts.  Consider what you do want for your business and keep those ideas in the forefront of your mind.  Those thoughts will continue to attract more positive things into your life and business.

3. Maintain a positive attitude.

Try to remain as positive as possible.  While thinking more positively is a good first step, maintaining a positive attitude has a lot to do with your emotions as well.  Try to do those things that enable you to feel more upbeat and positive.   Exercise, read, maintain your hobbies, watch comedies.  It’s much easier to remain positive when you’re participating in those activities that make you feel good.

4. Become more competitive.

Consumers are now, more than ever, keeping a close eye on their pocketbooks.  This increases the competitive nature of the marketplace.  If you don’t increase your competitive advantage now, you’ll feel the impact on your bottom line later.  Consider adding complementary services or increasing your marketing efforts in order to counteract these effects.

5. Take action.

Entrepreneurs that passively “wait out” the recession will probably find their businesses in need of serious resuscitation when the dust clears.  Take action to improve your business regardless of what the economy is doing.

The Universal Practice Builder Program

Now is as good a time as any to grow your clientele.  Regardless of the economy, small business owners are still required by law to keep accounting records.  However, the market will grow increasingly more competitive as prospective clients look for the best accountant to meet their needs.  You must better market your services in order to generate the most appeal for your particular skill set.

In all our years working with accountants, bookkeepers and tax preparers we’ve come to understand how to best market your services.  Our Universal Practice Builder Program will provide you with 12 marketing strategies that will enable you to secure 15 to 25 qualified leaders per month, a guarantee of $30,000 in new annualized billings in only 12 months, three months of master coaching, and access to a proven plan that will help you retain clients.  Again, you can complete this amazing program on your time and at your own pace.

When you order this program now, you will receive a second valuable program, QuickBooks Made Profitable, for free! Designed to help you attract even more clients using your QuickBooks expertise, this course will enable you to start and maintain an even more lucrative practice.

80% of small businesses use Intuit’s Quickbooks software.  Learning Quickbooks will help you keep more efficient records, enabling you to teach your clients how to use the software so that you can get the information you need which will make your job much easier.  In addition, this program will teach you how to attract more clients using your QuickBooks setup, help, and consulting services.

Take advantage of this marvelous opportunity to stay the course and thrive the current economic recession.  Order now!

References

Misner, Ivan.  “I Refuse to Participate in a Recession (Part 2).” 1 October 2008 Entrepreneur.com Blog Network.

Wise Budgeting Tips

As an accountant you probably think you’ve got your budget under control.  You know numbers and watch your spending to ensure that you are managing your money well.  But unless you’re applying crucial budgeting strategies, you’re not using this valuable tool to its full advantage.  Here are 5 tips that will help:

1. Ensure your budget aligns with your business strategy.

This may seem obvious, but in the day-to-day tasks required in business management, strategy may be forgotten.  There are fires to put out, emergency expenses to pay, and last-minute purchases to make.  So unless you’re vigilantly monitoring your outflow, your strategy may be nickel and dimed into extinction.

If you don’t yet have a strategy, now is the time to develop one.  Does your business require more aggressive marketing techniques?  Are you attempting to grow your firm by hiring a support staff?  Or do you want to focus on retaining current clients?  Whatever your strategy, you should devise a budget that supports and sustains it.

2. Assess your Chart of Accounts.

As an accountant you are very familiar with the Chart of Accounts.  The Chart of Accounts enables you to set up categories that align with your management strategies.  It also enables you to establish a healthy balance between control and responsibility regarding business spending.

3. Establish accountability.

Anyone responsible for spending within your business needs to be accountable for his/her choices.  You may currently be the only person responsible.  However, it’s important that you acknowledge and assess your spending and then make any necessary changes.  You may determine that your budgetary items are best distributed among control areas like marketing, skills development, client retention, management, etc.  This may provide you with more control over outflow.

4. Regularly review your budget.

Establishing a budget and then ensuring that it aligns with your business strategy is only part of this valuable process.  The true benefit of budgeting comes when you regularly review your budget with key players in your business.  In your review you can compare budgeted expenses with actual expenses and discuss discrepancies.  You can also talk with those responsible for various expenses and see how they might revise some of their spending choices.  This is also a good time to implement necessary changes and assess any changes implemented since your last budgetary review.

5. Revise as necessary.

A budget is not set in stone.  As mentioned in the previous tip, as you assess and review your progress it’s important that you make necessary changes.  In fact, that’s the beauty of budgeting.  As you monitor your income and outflow, you can make changes that will influence the future profitability of your business.

As an accountant you may assume that you’ve been using this tool to its full advantage.  But if you haven’t been applying the above tips, you may be missing out on some of the best benefits of budgeting.

QuickBooks Made Profitable

Budgeting isn’t the only tool you can use to increase your business’s profitability.  Our program, QuickBooks Made Profitable, will teach you just how to use QuickBooks accounting software to attract and retain more clients.

Nearly 80% of small businesses use Intuit’s QuickBooks software.  While other programs may be useful, QuickBooks has definitely captured the small business market.  Mastering QuickBooks will not only enable you to better manage your budget and keep more efficient records, but it will also help you teach your clients how to use the software so that you can get the information you need which makes your job much easier.  This program will teach you how to leverage your time while saving clients money in taxes and helping them increase their profits.  What client wouldn’t be interested in that?  We’ll teach you how to use this valuable software package to generate more income!

Don’t wait to grow your business and experience the success your budget will certainly help you achieve.  There are countless potential clients out there in need of these specific services.  You can be the one to provide them.  Order QuickBooks Made Profitable today!

7 Procrastination Busting Techniques

Nothing is so fatiguing as the eternal hanging on of an uncompleted task.- William James

Putting off an easy thing makes it hard. Putting off a hard thing makes it impossible. - George Claude Lorimer

The best way to get something done is to begin.-Anonymous

Last week you took a quiz to determine if you are a chronic procrastinator. But whether or not your procrastination issues are severe, everyone can benefit from a few procrastination busting techniques. In this installment of our two-part series, we provide you with 7 tips on overcoming procrastination:

1. End each day by planning the next.

You will be better prepared, mentally and physically, to tackle difficult tasks head-on when you schedule time to do them. At the end of each workday, review the schedule for the next day so you set aside time to perform those functions you’ve been postponing. Often you can overcome procrastination by giving yourself the time to do those things you’ve been avoiding.

2. Tackle the most formidable task first.

Those tasks you put off are generally the most distasteful. You’ll be doing yourself a huge favor if you tackle those tasks first. You know what they say: swallow a toad in the morning and you will encounter nothing more disgusting the rest of the day. When you complete these tasks first thing, you’ll find yourself recharged and ready to tackle the remainder of your day with ease.

3. Change your vocabulary.

Sometimes a change in perspective will come easily when accompanied by a change in vocabulary. When looking at those tasks you tend to procrastinate you probably feel as if you have to do them.” Change “have to” to “want to” and see if that lightens the load a bit. Also certain projects can appear overwhelming. Rather than tell yourself you must “finish” such projects, tell yourself you will get a good “start” on the project. This may motivate you to tackle it a piece at time.

4. Break large projects into manageable tasks.

Those overwhelming projects are best handled bit by bit. Break those large projects into smaller tasks that can be handled on a daily basis. Schedule these smaller tasks into your day so that you’re able to better inch towards project completion.

5. Practice the Ten-Minute Rule.

For whatever reasons, we are unmotivated by certain tasks. Practice the ten-minute rule with these tasks by dedicating just ten-minutes to them. Often you’ll find that once you get moving, you’re motivated enough to continue long after the ten minutes have ended. And if you’re not, at least you did something that contributed to the completion of that task, and it’s probably more than you would have thought could be accomplished in just 600 seconds.

6. Reward yourself for completed tasks.

When working on especially dreadful tasks, give yourself a small reward for completing the task by a given time. Whether you take a short walk, surf the internet, or read a page from an engaging book, rewarding yourself in small doses may help you work a little harder on those tasks you tend to procrastinate.

7. Feel the fear and do it anyway.

Sometimes we procrastinate certain things because we’re afraid we will fail, we don’t have the skill set, or are uncertain where to begin. In situations like these it is best if you feel the fear and move forward. Generally you’ll find that your fears were unfounded and that you were equal to the challenge.

Allow UAC to Help You Do It Anyway

Whether you want to start your own accounting practice, earn a little money on the side as a bookkeeper, or use the training to advance your career, the flexibility of the Professional Bookkeeper (PB) Program as well as its modest price will help you accomplish your dreams.

You will learn small-business accounting and have the opportunity to earn professional certification that will show clients you have the expertise to manage their books. In addition, we teach you how to market your new skills effectively in order to secure the clientele that will make your practice successful.

Perhaps you fear that you do not have the necessary background to learn accounting, are too old to get started, or are not ready to take the risk. The PB Program is designed for individuals just like you! Some of our graduates did not know a debit from a credit when they started our program while others had years of accounting experience behind them. All found the program to be valuable and worth the time and money spent to complete the Professional Bookkeeper Program.

Increase Your Earning Potential and Enroll Today!

When you enroll in both the Professional Bookkeeper Program and the Professional Bookkeeper’s Guide to QuickBooks, you increase your earning potential significantly. You can offer Quickbooks set-up, help and consultation services for $65-$95 per hour. Not only that, but you’ll learn a valuable software program that will enable you to do the following:

• Quickly pay your bills so you never incur late penalties.
• Be reminded when bills are due.
• Write checks with one single click!
• Quickly and effortlessly create invoices so you get paid sooner.
• Track customers and vendors so you can easily look them up in one place.
• Keep on top of incoming and outgoing payments.
• Access easy-to-read financial reports NOW!

Enroll in these two programs today and be on your way to a brighter and more lucrative future. Stop procrastinating! Enroll now!

The Successes and not so Bright Spots of the Year

This time of year is often a favorite for many who look forward to starting anew and looking back at the accomplishments over the last year. As your children may be counting down the days until that morning of anticipation and wonder, we in the accounting profession have a chance to take a step back and look over the year that we just had.

For some out there, it’s been a year to remember with fantastic growth in the amount of clients they have contracted with; increased their billable hours to a point where “living comfortably” is a good description of their current state. The state of their business is flourishing and everything is clicking on all cylinders like a finely tuned engine chugging along nicely.

For others it was a year of trial and error, where you had some successes, getting that larger client, finding that new way of doing things that shortened the time you spent on this or that particular task. But it was also full of mistakes, and of errors that were caused by inexperience, or simply from not knowing what to do. Mistakes that inevitably took away from the company’s bottom line and resulted in losing a client or two along the way.

Yet still for others this was a trying year, one that would be eligible for a “mulligan” if it were a round of golf. Although the effort was made, things and accounts just didn’t seem to come your way. It has now become very clear that drawing on additional Accounting and Bookkeeping experience is what is needed. This do-over year was full of pratfalls and blunders that bring the toughest to their knees and yet you survived it, ready for a new year.

However this last year was for you, this next year is a year of anticipation and wonder. You can make a great situation greater, a good thing much better and turn around the bad results into the learning experiences that they were and incorporate those lessons for this next upcoming season.

Here are a few things that help every company to take stock of how their year went.

• List the changes that happened to the practice of last year from the year previous
  • Additions or subtractions of clients, employees, services offered, and industries entered.
  • Any additions or subtractions of office equipment or capabilities of doing business.
• As all of us are inclined to do, get down to the dollars and cents of what happened in the year.
  • When you were more profitable than other times.
  • When you could have been more profitable and weren’t.
  • What was the real cost and profit of the practice over the year.

The success of what your practice does is on your capable shoulders. You are the deciding factor in how the business is run and what is accomplished throughout the year. Decide today how and what your business will accomplish for the upcoming year so you can take the steps that will bring you the success you look for. After you assess the right and wrong moves you made this year, resolve to continue your success and to gain more this next year. Universal’s Accounting and Bookkeeping web site can help you keep yourself on track. Click here and bookmark the site for future and continued referencing as we share and place what we share on that information-filled site.

Eight Time Management Secrets for the Accounting and Bookkeeping Home Business

You took the leap of faith and started your own Accounting / Bookkeeping business, and now you have enough clients to keep you busy for a long time. But you’re starting to wonder how you’ll keep up with it all, providing your clients with quality service while having that time to yourself you’ve always dreamed about. So how do you manage your business so that it doesn;t manage you? Here are eight time-saving tips to help you manage your business and recover your life.

1. Better Organize Your Home Office

If you’re like most people, you have wasted seconds, minutes, hours in precious work time hunting for that one invoice, file, or perhaps even the stapler. Your mother probably taught you that there’s a place for everything and everything should be in its place. That’s sound advice. If your office is well organized, you’ll waste little time hunting things down. While it may seem a daunting and time-consuming task at first, you’ll save yourself lots of time in the end if your organize your home office now (for more help on this, read our two articles: “Organizing Your Home Office Part I” and “Part II“).

2. Templatize

How many repetitive tasks do you do in one day? If you’re wasting time recreating the same documents or sending the same types of email, it’s time to standardize some of these tasks. Create form letters, standard documents, and redundant text for typical, lengthy emails. This should save you time, and because time is money in this business, you’ll be able to spend that saved time either making more money or enjoying what you’ve already made.

3. Punch The Clock

Okay, okay. So you quit your day-job so you wouldn’t have to punch the clock anymore. But the truth of the matter is if you don’t set your own hours and keep them, you’ll find yourself on the job 24/7. Generally, when working a 9 to 5 job you only work past five when there’s an emergency; do the same while working for yourself. Set some rules right now. For example: “I will work from 5AM to Noon, Monday through Friday and I will only work overtime when…” Be specific. Otherwise you’ll find that your work is managing you rather than the other way around. You’ll be amazed at how this will help you to work smarter. You may be wasting two hours everyday simply because you have them to waste. Also let your family know what your working hours are. If they know that you need to honor your business hours in order to honor family time, they’ll be more likely to give you the time and space you need (as long as your respect that time set aside for the family).

4. Plan Daily

The old adage goes, ” If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” How true that is! Take a few minutes every morning to review your schedule and plan your day. Take a few minutes when you are wrapping up work in the evening to plan your next days activities. Whenever you do it, do it daily, this time will go far in helping you use your time more effectively.

5. Prioritize Tasks

Just last week I spent 5 hours on a project I felt strongly about, but when I looked over my accomplishments later, I realized I hadn’t finished a task that was more important and timely. When we don’t prioritize our tasks, we run the risk of putting a lot of effort into something that isn’t crucial. By planning daily you will be able to find that the prioritization gets easier to do.

6. Avoid Procrastination

Procrastination is the great time-killer. All of us have had our bouts with it one time or another. It would be interesting to count up all the time wasted simply by procrastinating the essential tasks. How much time and energy do we spend worrying about one of those important to-do items? How often do we distract ourselves with silly busy work that doesn’t get you anywhere? Stopping short of diabling the game of solitaire on your computer, you need to fight the urge to delay the “unpleasant” tasks of the job. Take a deep breath and procrastinate no more. Delve into the task as soon as you can, with the attitude that it is as pleasant as the most simplest of tasks. And it will soon become that.

7. Become a Speed Reader

We’re not kidding. Some of us are slow readers, and lots of time could be saved in learning how to locate significant data quickly. It also helps us to keep on top of information that is crucial to our success in the accoutning and bookkeeping profession. Just think of it, how much reading do we do each day? If we could cut our time we spend on that and still get the same benefit, why not work to gain that reading skill?

8. Log Interruptions

Everyone in business is interrupted countless time a day. Some of those interruptions help grow your business (like clients who call with work for you to do). But some interruptions are unecessary and counterproductive to the working environment. If these can be anticipated, and handled in a timely manner, you will have a step up from the rest who cannot. We would suggest for those who would want to be better at handling the interruptions of their day to take a small pad of paper and note each interruption for one week. Be sure you note the time, date, interrupter, and the subject of the interruption. Once you have the information, you can evaluate it. Which interruptions could have been avoided? Which were of no value? Perhaps you have someone calling you for information that you could teach them to find themselves? While the teaching moment may cost you an hour now, it may save you hours in the end.

We all need to be aware of our time and how we spend it. Money is time and time is money in what we do, and we would need to stay on top of those things that are keeping us away from making what we could if we were just that much more organized. If you are able to do that, then the time spent working is more effective (and profitable), the time spent on them is minimized, and you will be able to enjoy that free time doing what you want to do when you want to do it.

If you are looking to become trained as a Professional Bookkeeper, and be able to handle your time better with the time-saving tips contained in the training program, click here to find out more

Become a Professional Bookkeeper today.

The hectic holiday season is tame compared to the financial Year End most accountants have to deal with. The year-end financial statements are the most important reports accountants issue. They are used for tax preparation, future reference, and decision making more so than any other monthly reports accountants prepare. For that reason you need to spend more time making sure you are correctly reflecting accurate information. But there are some things that can make it easier.

Accounting Software

Steven Cohen, managing director of Softline Pastel, says, “Yet, however intimidating this task may seem, automated accounting software applications have made the ordeal simpler, if a systematic method is followed. In addition, accounting software vendors are keenly aware of the stresses of Year End processing and accommodate clients by allowing them to proceed with the new financial year, while backdating audited financial adjustments on the previous year.”

With QuickBooks, the leading accounting software for small business, setting a closing-date will help with Year End accounting. QuickBooks also includes a Year-End Checklist to walk you through keys tasks. You can access this feature by clicking “help” and then choosing “Year-End Guide.”

Year-End Accounting Checklist

Sometimes it helps to have a checklist to follow in order to complete crucial Year-End Tasks. Here are a few things to ask yourself when doing your Year End financial statements.

• Does my general ledger bank balance reconcile to the bank statement?
• Are there any accounts receivables that are worthless and should be written off?
• Is my balance in Allowance for Bad Debts a reasonable estimate of potential write-offs?
• Is the company’s inventory balance correctly stated?
• Are there inventory items that cost more than they’re worth and should be written down to their market value?
• Does the company still have all the fixed assets?
• Is my depreciation correctly recorded for those fixed assets still in the company’s possession?
• Did I amortize goodwill and franchise fees?
• Are there any prepaid items that need to be adjusted such as prepaid insurance?
• Have all assets been reviewed for accuracy?
• Have we recorded all of our payables?
• Do the payroll tax liabilities coincide with our quarterly reports?
• Do the balances in the notes payable accounts (loans) agree with what the banks say we owe?
• Are there other debts that have not been included on the books?
• Are there debts on the books that no longer exist because of forgiveness or oversight?

Finally, the last step of the year-end process is to check your Sales, Cost, and Expense accounts. Compare them to prior years to see if any increase or decrease is reasonable. If you run across some significant changes, you may want to look at the general ledger for that account to ensure the entries are legitimate.

As you follow this year-end process you will be amazed at how much you learn. You’ll see trends and practices that will help you in consulting with the client and help him/her run their business more effectively.

Meeting with Client

Once you have completed this list, and before putting the books away for the year, make sure you run the financial statements by the owner/manager to identify anything you might not be aware of.

The best way to do this is to arrange a meeting where you can show them the completed financial statements and review the balances of each account, including the subsidiary ledger balances.

Throughout the review ask the question, “Do these balances seem reasonable?” At the end of the meeting ask, “Are there any other assets or liabilities that I haven’t included?” Occasionally, they might surprise you with an event that you didn’t have any knowledge of before, but that will affect your books.

In fact, often times the accountant will know more about the business finances than the owner. That’s why so many Universally trained accountants diversify into new businesses because they see opportunities going untapped.

Backup Year-End Data

Be sure to backup all current data before performing beginning your Year End financial reports. It’s also a good idea to print all financial reports prior to your Year End calculations. Once you complete Year End financial reports, backup that information as well. Label your files clearly to avoid confusion of the different files.

Universal Training Can Help with Year End and Other Accounting Functions

Universal’s Professional Bookkeeper Program can help you perform valuable accounting tasks for the small business. Whether you’re looking to improve your current accounting and bookkeeping business or whether you’re looking to start your own accounting firm, the PB Program is guaranteed to help! Don’t wait another day to advance your career. Visit Universal Accounting Center today!

Year-End Is Where the Fun Begins!

It’s That Time Again

It’s that time of year again when most businesses are closing their books. The business owners are either celebrating or licking their wounds. In any event, we as accountants usually have some clean-up and decision making to do.

January thru April is when we do our best work (and make the most money). We’re well fed from the holiday festivities, and anxious to tackle a new challenge.

Year-End Financial Statements

The year-end financial statements are the most important reports we issue. They will be used for tax preparation, future reference, and decision making more so than any other monthly reports we prepare.

For that reason we need to spend more time making sure we are correctly reflecting accurate information.

As a timely refresher we are providing a simple checklist of items that you should consider for each business you are working with when ensuring the accuracy of your year-end books:

Once you have completed this list, and before putting the books away for the year, make sure you run the financial statements by the owner/manager to identify anything you might not be aware of.

The best way to do this is to arrange a meeting where you can show them the completed financial statements and review the balances of each account, including the subsidiary ledger balances.

Throughout the review ask the question, “Do these balances seem reasonable?” At the end of the meeting ask, “Are there any other assets or liabilities that I haven’t included?” Occasionally, they might surprise you with an event that you didn’t have any knowledge of before, but that will effect your books.

Finally, the last step of the year-end process is to check your Sales, Cost, and Expense accounts. Compare them to prior years to see if any increase or decrease is reasonable. If you run across some significant changes, you may want to look at the general ledger for that account to ensure the entries are legitimate.

As you follow this year-end process you will be amazed at how much you learn. You’ll see trends and practices that will help you in consulting with the client and help him/her run their business more effectively.

In fact, often times the accountant will know more about the business finances than the owner. That’s why so many Universally trained accountants diversify into new businesses because they see opportunities going untapped.

So, this year, take the time and make the effort to be precise so that you can go into 2009 with reliable balances and peace of mind.

Year-End Accounting Checklist

• Does my general ledger bank balance reconcile to the bank statement?
• Are there any accounts receivables that are worthless and should be written off?
• Is my balance in Allowance for Bad Debts a reasonable estimate of potential writeoffs?
• Is the company’s inventory balance correctly stated?
• Are there inventory items that cost more than their worth and should be written down to their market value?
• Does the company still have all the fixed assets?
• Is my depreciation correctly recorded for those fixed assets still in the company’s possession?
• Did I amortize goodwill and franchise fees?
• Are there any prepaid items that need to be adjusted such as prepaid insurance?
• Have all assets been reviewed for accuracy?
• Have we recorded all of our payables?
• Do the payroll tax liabilities coincide with our quarterly reports?
• Do the balances in the notes payable accounts (loans) agree with what the banks say we owe?
• Are there other debts that have not been included on the books?
• Are there debts on the books that no longer exist because of forgiveness or oversight?

More Day-to-Day Accounting Tips

This Web site include many other Accounting and Bookkeeping tips to make servicing your clients less stressful and more profitable.

Click HERE to Learn More Tips

8 Tips in Achieving Balance in Your Personal and Professional Life

Last week you took our quiz to determine whether or not you are a workaholic. If you’re reading this now we’re guessing that you realize that you are indeed overworking yourself and it is negatively impacting your personal life. If achieving a healthy balance between your work and personal lives is important then you’ll find the following 8 tips to be extremely helpful:

1. Join a recovery group
Whether you’re an extreme or budding workaholic you may find a recovery group to be helpful. Workaholics Anonymous has meetings around the globe and you might find local groups that can help you better balance your life. There you will find like-minded professionals who can provide you with practical tips and techniques in recovering from workaholism.

2. Determine your true priorities
Before you can balance your life you must first determine what your priorities are. Workaholics are generally value -driven individuals who have confused their priorities a bit, coming to view excessive work as a representation of a strong work ethic, the desire to provide for their families, and the will to be a successful and valued professional. You must reflect on what really matters to you and then list your priorities so you can begin scheduling for them. With workaholics, often what matters most gets the least amount of time and attention.

3. Schedule what you value
Now that you’ve determined what your true priorities are, you can schedule accordingly. If family is important to you then you must ensure that you can spend quality time with them. This will mean setting limits for yourself. At what time will you stop working and start concentrating on personal priorities? This may require an initial concerted effort, but after time you will come to appreciate this new-found balance.

4. Step away from your planner
Workaholics tend to overschedule their work week, planning for too many meetings and appointments than are reasonable. As a recovering workaholic you need to learn how to underschedule, giving yourself time between appointments to prepare, reflect and make necessary action items that will enable you to work more effectively.

5. Take your multitasking habits to task
If part of your workaholism includes an unhealthy amount of multitasking you need to practice moving from one task to the next without become distracted by other projects or tasks. This will require a fair amount of concentration and focus.

6. Schedule breaks
If you’re reading this, chances are you’re the type of professional who sees a gap in your schedule as the chance to get more done, to leap ahead, to log one more billable hour. But remember, if you don’t take a break now and then (at least 30 minutes total throughout the course of your workday) you’ll find yourself paying for it later, either in sick time or with feelings of burnout.

7. Safeguard your health
The healthier you are the more energy you’ll have to run your business. If you haven’t already, schedule in daily time for exercise and/or meditation. Also, ensure that you’re eating foods that will fuel your work activities, enabling your mind to be sharp and alert.

8. Substitute activities
Workaholics Anonymous recommends that you stop adding new activities to your schedule. Instead substitute, remembering that each new item you add to your schedule should replace one with equal time and energy requirements. This forces you to recognize that your time is a limited resource that should be measured accordingly.

Small business owners, more than most, are extremely susceptible to becoming workaholics as they strive to not only keep their businesses afloat, but see that they are profitable enough to sustain their families and often a support staff as well. While it may be difficult to take these steps to better balance your life, the rewards will be innumerable. And as you attend to your personal needs and better prioritize your time, you’ll find yourself rejuvenated and refreshed so you can tackle your business with a renewed sense of vigor and dedication.

Resource
Workaholics Anonymous

Take Our 10 Question Quiz to Find Out

There’s nothing wrong with being passionate about your business. In fact, there’s nothing wrong with being a driven entrepreneur. But when you become consumed with work, your practice can eclipse your personal life and make it difficult to function healthily. Take our quiz to find out if you’re a workaholic.

1. Do you feel overwhelmed?
Stress is not necessarily a bad thing; it enables you to stay on-task and complete priority projects. But if you find yourself constantly overwhelmed by your work, then it may be time to take a step back and reassess your approach.

2. Are you irritable?
Workaholics often find that their patience wears thin and they are easily irritated. If you’re running on a short fuse and it’s working its way into your personal life we’re guessing your relationships are suffering.

3. Do you think about work when “off the clock”?
While it’s okay to enjoy your business, a balanced life includes things outside of your office. Workaholics often haven’t achieved that balance and think about work 24/7.

4. Have you made small mistakes because you have too much on your plate?
When your business begins to suffer because you have overbooked yourself or said “yes” to too many clients and too many projects, you need to reprioritize. What good is all that work if you’re unable to perform effectively?

5. Do you find yourself multitasking more than you single-task?
Has your laptop become an accessory? Do you check your email while eating lunch? The quality of your work may be suffering as a result (see number 4).

6. Do you feel guilty when not working?
If you find it difficult to enjoy your personal time because you’re consumed with guilt, you owe it to yourself to find a better way to manage your professional life.

7. Do you impose lots of unrealistic deadlines for yourself?
Workaholics tend to task themselves unrealistically and then become severely disappointed when they don’t meet their own expectations.

8. Do you find it difficult to relax?
What good is a thriving business if you can’t enjoy it? Your personal time provides you with the opportunity to relax and regroup. If you find that to be difficult you should strive for more balance.

9. Are your personal relationships suffering from your obsession with work?
Again, what good is a thriving business when your personal life suffers as a result? There are lots of business owners who manage to run successful businesses while enjoying healthy personal relationships; you can be one of them.

10. Do you find yourself forgetting important events like birthdays and anniversaries?
If you answered “yes,” then this is proof that something in your life is distracting you from significant events. If that something is your business then you need to reevaluate your approach.

Passion is an important characteristic of any successful entrepreneur. But if taken too far that passion can become obsession and infringe on your personal life, negatively impacting those you love and care about. If you’re interested in managing your business rather than having it manage you, come back next week to learn how to better balance your work and personal life.

Achieving a Healthy Balance

When you first went into business you probably thought working from home would be ideal. Most contract accountants don’t anticipate the difficulties they will encounter when trying to balance their personal and business lives. Often it’s easy to become distracted when working where you live. It can also be difficult to leave your work behind even after the metaphorical whistle blows. So in order for you to achieve true balance with work and home life, you must have a strategy. Here are six things to consider:

1. Leave work in the office
If your office doesn’t have a door you need to get one. When you’re on duty you should close the door behind you; when you’re off duty you should also close the door behind you. Your work should stay in the office. Avoid carrying files around with you. You should train your mind to be prepared to work as soon as you step in that office; and you should work hard until you’re ready to leave. You should not train your mind to work from your living room as you spend time with your family or from your bed while your spouse tries to sleep. This closed door policy will make that transition from work to home life much easier. Also establish some rules with your family so they understand if and when you can be disturbed.

2. Determine work-free days/hours
When you work from home it’s equally important for you to set aside work-free times you can spend relaxing or with your family. When the line between work and family life is blurred, resentment for your accounting practice can build and cause tension at home. So when you take time off be sure to enjoy it.

3. Prioritize
Obviously you must do what it takes to see that your business succeeds. Often this requires long hours. In order to compensate for this drain on your personal life you must use your “free” time wisely; you must prioritize your values and the way in which you spend your time. If eating dinner with your family is important then you must ensure that your schedule and work load accommodate that priority. If you want to be present for your children when they get home from school, then leave that time free and make up for it either earlier or later in the day. It’s important that you not sacrifice your family for your business. Balance is key.

4. Use your imagination
When working from home where the refrigerator and television may only be steps away, you must devise a plan that will enable you to focus your efforts and “stay” at work. Some find that using a little imagination can help with this task. Arrange your office so that somehow you are able to imagine yourself miles away from home and in an environment completely void of distraction.

5. Set strong boundaries
This goes for both your clients and your family. You need to have work hours both honor. Obviously emergencies happen and your family and your clients should know how to reach you in such circumstances. Otherwise you need to do all you can to ensure your boundaries are respected. This means you shouldn’t answer your phone after hours; nor should you answer your home phone while you’re working.

6. Remember your motivation
Most people start their own businesses in order to enjoy the freedom to dictate their own schedules and spend more time with their families. While this isn’t as easy as it sounds, you must continually remind yourself why you started your practice in the first place. A daily or weekly reminder can help you maintain your focus and your priorities.

Balancing work and home life isn’t impossible, but it does require a strategy and the establishment of certain rules to help guide your efforts. And when you attend to these 6 items, you’re on the right path for finding the peace and freedom your business affords.