When I first started my business, I knew I needed to stay on top of my finances if I wanted to succeed, and I wanted to make sure I did things right from the very start. Math and numbers didn’t intimidate me, but I knew nothing about the rules or principles of business expense tracking, or if there was anything special I had to do.
I signed up with QuickBooks, but I quickly learned that it was not an intuitive program to use. Fortunately, in my research to understand it better, I came across a group called SCORE. SCORE is a nationwide organization made up of retired executives and mentors who volunteer their time to provide free business mentoring and advice. I met with two accountants who not only gave me advice that I needed, but also spent hours walking me through QuickBooks. From entering income and expenses to running monthly and annual reports, they taught me everything I needed to know – and even followed up with me a few weeks later to see how it was going.
When it came time to close my year and prepare my taxes, everything was so much easier because my accounting throughout the year was so orderly and accessible.
Interested in free advice and answers whenever you need help? Go find your local chapter at www.score.org!
* I have no affiliation or connection to SCORE other than being a happy user of their services.
