By Tracey Shadley
Organize A to Z
“Organize Your Space, Organize Your Life!”
Sedona AZ (May 28, 2014) – Need some tips for working from home?
What is the best way to stay organized with tax paperwork, receipts, write offs, etc.? – Tonya M
The easiest way to keep your tax information organized is to do it throughout the year instead of waiting to deal with it all last minute!
- Use a separate credit/debit card for all of your business related needs. This way you do not have to spend time dividing up a bill every month. Anything that you can “write-off” should also be purchased with this card (ie: gas, cell phone)
- Use accounting software to help you keep track or your accounts and spending. Your account should be reconciled every month. When you do this you can attach all relevant invoices, checks, or receipts so that they are ready for tax time.
- Use a filing system that has a file “To Reconcile” wherein which you can empty relevant receipts every day (they will stay in this file until the end of a month) and then a “This Years Taxes” file which you can then transfer all of your reconciled months into. This file (and your accounting software data) can then simply be handed over to your accountant.
I just changed jobs and am now working from home. I am having a hard time focusing on work. Do you have any tips to help keep me focused? – Trinaa C
Working from home can be very challenging. Here are some suggestions for you:
- Claim your space! It is important that you have a designated area for you to work in. “Closing the door” to your home space and limiting your distractions will help keep you focused on the tasks at hand.
- Dress for success! Even though you may be tempted to work in your most comfortable sweatpants, dressing like you are at the office will help put you in “work mode”.
- Take charge of your day! Make a schedule and stick to it! It doesn’t matter if you start work at 6:00am so that you can go watch your daughter’s recital at 2:00, as long as you finish your scheduled work for the day. This is one of the benefits of working from home…..you can have the best of both worlds!
I am a Mom who works from home. What is the best way to organize meals and shopping? -Angie S
The quick answer is advanced planning! Since you work from home, you can take advantage and go to the grocery store at “off hours” when it will be less busy and you will lose less work or personal time. Carve out in your schedule one hour a week to sit down and plan your meals based on your family’s upcoming schedule, then, go through your pantry and fridge and see what you will need to complete the meals you have decided upon. Also, take a quick look through your staple items to make sure you’re not running low on anything. This process should allow you to make one grocery trip a week instead of running back and forth for forgotten items. As far as cooking the meals, you can either carve out time each day to prepare them you can use this as family time), or spend a chunk of time on the weekend cooking & freezing for the week ahead. Perhaps try both and see which works better for you and your family.
Tracey Shadley is the owner at ORGANIZE A-Z in Northern Arizona. She specializes in custom closet design, home staging and de-cluttering. For more information or to submit questions, please visit her website at www.organizeatoz.com