My accountant hit me with extra fees because my records were a disaster. Never again.
I handle everything monthly now. Last day of the month, I sort through all my stuff. Business receipts go in one manila envelope per month, invoice copies in another.
Digital files get organized by year, then months within each year. Business expenses in one subfolder, income in another.
Doing it monthly instead of waiting for tax season changed everything. Takes 30 minutes now versus the total nightmare it was before.
Scan your paper receipts too. Those thermal ones fade, and auditors can’t read blank paper.
Here’s what worked: pick one simple rule and stick to it. I photograph every receipt the second I get it, then dump it in a monthly phone folder.
Invoices go in another monthly folder. That’s it.
The trick is doing it immediately. Walk out of the store or finish a job? Handle the paperwork right then. Wait even one day and you’ll forget or lose it.