Tag: busy season

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barnesEvery year, after the New Year’s hangovers are healed and the holiday decorations stored safely away, a dark cloud begins to form over the head of all Americans. Dread and suspense build as we deliberately procrastinate while turning our attention to other tasks that have been long neglected in hopes that the problem will vanish. Tasks like reorganizing every photo on your computer by date and who is pictured, doing the dishes 3 times a night to be absolutely sure they are clean, and ironing your bedsheets so they are totally wrinkle free. Across the country, errands are endlessly run and houses are spotless. Until, the inevitable finally arrives. Like a train barreling down the track with the bridge blown out ahead, April 15, and the tax deadline, arrives. (more…)

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Jessi EngelhardGoing into your first busy season in public accounting can be quite intimidating.  If you’ve dubbed yourself an auditor, it’s likely that week one you’ll be interacting with the client.  Or if you’ve chosen tax, you’re given the forms and asked to go with it.  Everything in school seems challenging but then you get hit with the real world of public accounting.  If you haven’t realized it yet, you will soon…school gives you the vocabulary, the frame of reference, and the ability to confidently tell the difference between debits and credits, but it’s your first busy season where you learn how much you don’t know.  I recently came across an article in the Journal of Accountancy that included tips for first-year auditors.  Even though some of the tips seem obvious, sometimes, we have to remind ourselves. (more…)

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schneiderAs most CPAs know, surviving busy season can seem like quite a challenge. With our priorities focused on meeting client deadlines and billing hours, taking care of ourselves sometimes gets put on the back burner. Stress, exhaustion, poor nutrition, and lack of exercise can begin to take a toll on our physical and mental health; this can in turn effect many aspects of our lives, including our work. As our less-than-stellar health habits impact our productivity, we need to work even longer hours to get things done, and so the downward spiral begins. As we prepare for the 2017 busy season (yes, it’s right around the corner) here are some easy and realistic tips to stay healthy, happy and productive along the way. (more…)