MANY STARTUPS TEND to concentrate more on the face of their business rather than the operations and day-to-day running of the business. There are a number of things that you need to be aware of if you want to run your business successfully.  A major thing that you need to learn about if you want to avoid headaches (or worse) down the road is taxes.  

Many entrepreneurs see taxes as a burden, which they pretty much are. You’re taking hard-earned money and kissing it goodbye forever. Not only are you losing your money, but you’re also losing the time it takes to do your taxes or the money it costs to pay someone else to do them. Got it—it’s a lousy situation all around.  We all have to do it, so get used to it. To run your business successfully without getting into trouble with the authorities, you would be wise to pay all your taxes.  Planning for taxes, understanding your liabilities, and knowing your right to deductions is very crucial for the success of your business.

If you plan well, paying taxes can be almost painless.  It is something that will see you steer off costly penalties and prevent cash crises.  It is good to train yourself to handle tax obligations properly the way it should be done.  Don’t allow your taxes to accumulate as you will find it difficult to repay them.  No one is there to monitor how you are paying the tax.  It is something you should be disciplined to handle. 

Look, I’m not some secret IRS agent writer, sent to tell you to eat your vegetables and pay your taxes. I’ve seen a lot of entrepreneurs think they can outsmart the IRS, only to go down a couple years later—after they actually managed to build a profitable business. They lost everything, and I don’t want that for you.

If you don’t have skills of preparing taxes, it is good to make use of experts who have what it takes to show you the amount you will be required to pay.  These professionals stay up on new tax regulations and can help you pay as little as possible. It is good to know the time to pay taxes and how you are going to raise the required cash.  Also, have a working strategy in place so that you can avoid being penalized huge fines because you didn’t pay all of your taxes on time (or at all). While planning to meet tax obligations is important, what is even more crucial is taking advantage of opportunities hiding within the process.  It is good to know when you can get tax credits and other benefits so that you are able to save some cash.