4 financial decisions to pay attention to

Although we love what we do as business owners, our passion alone (unfortunately) isn’t enough to pay the bills. With the many fun things that come with being an entrepreneur, looking at your finances isn’t so glamorous — but it’s necessary!

Print out this checklist and follow it each quarter to ensure the financial health of your business and keep making more money.

set smart financial goals

How much money do you want to make each quarter? Take a look at the history of your past earnings to get an accurate estimate of what would be a realistic benchmark for you. Maybe you decide to set the same goal each quarter (while of course increasing year after year), or maybe you decide to set a higher goal than the previous quarter because your revenue exceeded your expectations. Whatever approach you take, it’s important to have goals in mind and work towards them.

pay your quarterly taxes

No one likes paying a big chunk of change for something all at once — which is exactly what can happen at the end of the year if you don’t pay your quarterly estimates throughout. Make sure to meet with your accountant once per quarter so they can give you an accurate estimate of how much to pay in state and federal taxes, preventing you from needing to owe even more money.

You’ll want to mark the following dates in your calendar, as they’re when quarterly estimates are due: April 15th, June 15th, September 15th, January 15th.

audit your finances

Knowing where your money is coming from and going is important for understanding your financial health. Most importantly, you want to look for places where you can cut your spending, if you’re spending too much, as well as where you can increase your spending, if you have the opportunity to spend a little more.

Cutting your spending: Do you have subscriptions to softwares that you no longer use that you could cancel? Are you going a little over-the-top with furnishing your office? Could you cut back on the lunches, coffee meetings, and outings you attend that rack up the expenses?

Increasing your spending: Do you have an opportunity to hire a team member? Is there equipment you could purchase that would enhance the operations of your business? Are you able to donate to a nonprofit or charity you care about?

raise your prices

This will most likely be done every year instead of every quarter, but take a look at how much you’re charging, how much time you’re spending on these services, and how much your cost of doing business has increased. After analyzing those numbers, there may be an opportunity for you to increase your prices, allowing you to make more money. And who wouldn’t want that?