Does the thought of preparing a tax return for your small business make you cringe? Does inspiration fail you while you wait until the last minute? This small business guide to tax deductions can help prevent procrastination until the last minute.

Clear Your Calendar: We see people postpone things because they do not have sufficient time. They do not make a schedule and follow it. It may be a task of filing your tax papers or something else.

Bring on an Accounting Clerk: If you need to employ more people to complete the work, you should do so and complete the work in time. If necessary, you can hire a bookkeeper. The bookkeeper can help you to organize your business works and accounts such that end of year taxes are no longer a nightmare.

Visit a Spa: After a difficult day at work or after a job has been completed, treating yourself to a massage or visit to a spa can be a great reward. Having a pleasant, rewarding experience such as a day at the spa or just spending a day with your family increases motivation and rejuvenate and relax you enough for you to begin working on your taxes.

Buy a tax program: like Taxcut or TurboTax. These programs make tax preparation easier, and perform all the tasks to make it a less cumbersome process.

Find an Accounting Professional: The complexity of the financial issues your operation faces will increase as your business grows. Having the right help with your accounting and finances can save you hassle, frustration and mistakes. Accounting professionals can even provide more general business advice such as handling cash flow issues and tax tips.

Don't Forget to Pay Yourself: Are you valuable to the company? To do this, first figure the profits for the fiscal year. Take this number and divide it by the hours you work. This will give your hourly pay. Next, calculate the tax refund and divide it by the number of hours that are needed to finish the return. If you find that this amount is more or the same as the hourly pay, it is a clear indication that you should get your butt in gear and prepare the tax return.

Obtaining an Extension: Many small businesses are behind the eight ball in keeping up with everything that has to be done. Delaying taxes only adds to stress and only delays the inevitable. If necessary, consider filing an extension request with the Internal Revenue Service.

Enroll in a Tax Preparation Course: Delay often results when people don't understand requirements. Taking a day-long course in preparing taxes for small businesses may assist you to feel more knowledgeable and confident. The IRS and several other partner organizations offers a free workshop online for small business owners. Some of the topics that are discussed include revenue, expenses, electronic tax filing, recordkeeping, employment taxes, and other issues.

Is this the time to take on a Chief Financial Officer?: It could be, if your firm needs more than an accountant's expertise to cope with its financial matters. How do you really know if you need someone to fill this position? Consider whether you are always convening the management team whenever there are financial decisions to be made. You certainly could need a CFO, on either a part-time or full-time basis, if you are planning to launch an IPO or if you need to obtain a significant infusion of capital.

Slow at First: Think in terms of baby steps. Think back to the start-up of the company. If you had known every task necessary to begin the business, you probably wouldn't have considered starting it. So, think small steps. Start with an easy task like organizing files and then go on in small steps.

Nobody really enjoys doing taxes, but it's much more daunting when you put it off rather than simply getting it out of the way. Avoid the guilt, get going, and see how much better you feel when the deadline rolls around.

Ron Finkelstein is NOT a Tax Attorney or an accountant. He is merely a small business owner who has paid a lot of money over the years to learn a whole lot about The    .