During our formative years, there was something very attractive about chaos. Many a new or student teacher was given the run around just to see how they coped and just how far they could be pushed before backup (more senior teacher or worse..) arrived to restore order.
Teenagers often like to live in chaos, normal is so very, well, ordinary.
In today’s 24/7 world of business and taxation, organised is far more important. You don’t so much need to be normal, but super normal.
Why be organised?
From a business perspective, the more organised businesses get better returns for their efforts.
Customers get a better service and a much happier experience.
There is more time to concentrate on working on the business and even more time to spend on what is important to the business owner, whether developing new products and systems or spending more time away from the business with family or on leisure pursuits.
Another reason for being more organised is it keeps you in the game with your competitors. Today’s news kept referring to a major supermarket chain being “late to the party”.
The Taxman is getting more organised. The Let Property Campaign
Even if you are not in business but a taxpayer, the Revenue are getting more skilled in spotting your mistakes and oversights.
For example, it’s easy to forget interest received when closing a deposit account in, say, the first month of a tax year, maybe over a year before you sit down to pull tax return data together. HMRC get that information and cross check against what you are telling them.
Also HMRC have got extremely good at picking up on rental property which, because of initial losses, many tax payers think doesn’t need to be reported. HMRC see the transactions at the Land Registry and look to see who owns the property. Again they match names against addresses and see if making tax returns.
There is currently a specific campaign to advise HMRC about missed rental properties through the Let Property Campaign.
When the Revenue spot these things before you do, the penalties are always greater.
How to get organised?
Some of us find this much easier than others. One universal law applies though, the most chaotic person rarely misses a flight to their holiday destination!
We just need to make sure we put some basic systems in place to deal with things we need to deal with on time. Taking basic filing and processing of information seriously will always pay dividends in the long run.
There are plenty of ways to do this: using diaries, lists, Filofaxes, even relying on a memory. We need to find a system that works and stick to it.
Time for the next Accelerator Club workshop
Our next session on the 17th September will look at some of the different methods to get organised in a business context. Do come along if you can.
Book through Eventbrite or via the events section on the resources tab of our website.
Getting things done “in good time” is far less stressful and potentially more enjoyable than “just in time”.
The Grugeon Reynolds Team