Full Focus Limited
P O Box 33489
Takapuna, Auckland
t: 09 489 1650
f: 09 489 1650
David Martin: 0274 902 401
Kathy Martin: 027 2800 564
Recent Focus April 2008
Estimated reading time for this issue: under 5 minutes
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Tax time … Are you ready?
Are you scrambling to get all your ducks in a row for the end of the financial year? It can be a stressful time for a lot of business owners. There are accounts to tidy up, balance sheets and profit and loss reports to look at. Wondering 
how much tax you’re going to have to pay this year, and whether you’ve got the money for it, or where you can find the money for it. If you’ve paid provisional tax you might be wondering whether this will have been enough … or should you have been budgeting even more throughout the year?
Perhaps all of this hasn’t even entered your horizon yet …. that could be a worry! Usually, by the end of the financial year it’s too late to do anything that might make a difference to the tax you’re up for. Some businesses (hopefully not yours) will face horrendous tax bills – bills they hadn’t planned for and have no ready cash for. That can be a big problem.
It pays to have your finger on the pulse of your business - so that you know on a monthly basis how much GST you’re in for and how much tax you’re likely to be paying. Used to be your accountant would give you this figure each month .. but the truth is a lot of business owners don’t have regular access to an accountant. They only pull in an accountant at the very end of the tax year (and sometimes not until months later!). By then it’s usually too late to make any adjustments or start putting any money aside for tax.
If you’re not going to consult with your accountant regularly throughout the year, you’ll need to take notice of the figures yourself. Be prepared, plan in advance so you don’t have a huge and unexpected tax bill at the end of the year …. one you can’t afford and one you don’t have the money for. If you don’t pay by due date the late repayment penalties, ordinary interest, use 
of money interest and every other kind of additive you can think of, gets lumped onto your tax bill at a horrifically regular rate. The IRD don’t tend to be a very forgiving bunch. It can spell disaster, or at least a severe set-back, for a company that’s ill-prepared or one that doesn’t have serious cash reserves.
You can avoid all of this by being aware of where your business is up to. As small business owners ourselves, we know the effect a tax bill can have on your bottom line … it’s usually not good. It pays to be prepared. It pays to have your financial data up to date on a monthly basis, check the figures on a monthly basis .. know what GST you’re going to have to pay, and what tax you’ll be liable for at the end of the year. It also pays to show your figures to your accountant BEFORE the end of the tax year … in case there’s something to be done to lessen your tax liability. It’s not rocket science
It’s important to know where you are every step of the way … no surprises… no 
stress…. no worry (well, not much anyway … who ever heard of a business owner that didn’t worry from time to time!) This may not take the pain away, but it will take the stress out of tax time. It still hurts to
pay the bill …. But at least you knew about it, planned for it, and with any luck have the money set aside for it.
If you’ve been caught unprepared, start planning now to make sure the 2009 tax year doesn’t end the same way. Learn from your mistakes. Put systems in place so that you know what the numbers are. If you fall into this trap every year … shame on you!
It may be too late to do anything about the last tax year. But it’s certainly not too late to do something about the current and future tax years.
MoreTime - Results Management 101
As mentioned in the last issue of Recent Focus - full evaluation of this Workshop was scheduled for end March (after 30 days of using the system) . Responses have been flying in and we're getting some great comments. Here's a few of them ...
"The MoreTime workshop has given me much more focus on what I want to be doing in life. It’s made me evaluate where I am now, where I want to be and how I need to change my priorities."
"It's now ok to have fun in my fun time even though there may be a pile of work waiting for me back at work."
" MoreTime really helps you focus so you can see where you need to put your energy. Once you have that focus it is so much easier to prioritise."
"As a result of the seminar I reviewed my past attitudes towards time ....
I have found that chargeable hours have increased - at least 10% ..... I have set myself a goal of working 10% less and making 10% more. I have started to take every second Friday afternoon off to spend more quality time with ...."
"MoreTime has an an immediate effect on my job performance and the way I go about my daily tasks."
I think it's fair to say the initial MoreTime Workshop was great success and we're looking forward to running in-house workshops for businesses again. The initial workshop was by invitation only, but these one-day workshops are now available for any business or group of people.
Do you know someone we might be able to assist? Please give them our contact details, refer them to our website, or provide us with details so we can contact them. Click here to see how we’ll handle your referrals
Read the previous issue of Recent Focus (The weekly team meeting ... )
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