The Four Stages Of Small Business BAS Terror

Ah BAS. It’s that quarterly sandpaper kiss from the ATO that sends small business owners in Australia into various shades of horror. This Halloween, let’s take a look at one of our biggest horror times in business. And what can be done in future to ensure it doesn’t happen again.

Here are the four stages of small business BAS horror

The procrastination phase

This is where you know you’ve got to get something finance related done, but funny cat videos hold a lot more appeal. It also involves a fair amount of lead up dread, possible nights spent staring at the ceiling, and saying “I’ll just finish that…” to pretty much every other task in the office that you can think of to avoid the actual task at hand.

You’re milling around, hoping to avoid detection from the BAS horror, but you’ve seen enough of this kind of show to know it’s only a matter of time until your number is up.

The panic stage

This usually hits the day or last available weekend before. It involves long hours and a sick feeling in the belly associated with spending far too much time welded to your desk. It can also involve a paper encrusted floor and feverish Googling of articles to try and make sense of what you’re meant to do.

Looking at your invoicing, plugging data into an excel spreadsheet and an unhealthy amount of empty coffee cups is the name of the game here. And a lot of muttering of “why do I do this to myself?!” under your breath followed by wondering what will happen if the panic spreads.

The ‘throw anything at it and hope it sticks’ stage

The art of getting the task done, and realising there are many cracks in what have may have been done. It’s hitting the submission button with a few niggles and worries but also a healthy dose of “I got it done, so who cares!” about the whole process. It’s about being satisfied with less than 100% surety in order to actually sleep again.

Part zombie at this point, all you want is to limp down the street with an unthinking mind and crawl into the nearest bed. But here you are, undead and unhappy – and up to your neck in BAS.

The Phew! stage

It’s kind of like being a white collar version of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but without the fancy sidekicks and the vanquished vampires. You’re still not sure the horror is truly over, but you’re feeling a lot of relief all the same.

But you don’t have to spend your Halloween feeling the claws of small business BAS horror. We do have a remedy. And it doesn’t involve slaying vampires or releasing your inner zombie.

In a pinch near a BAS deadline?

Is it a coincidence October 28th is the BAS lodgement date if you are not registered with a BAS agent and Halloween is only 3 days later? Thinking the Australian Tax Office don’t believe in coincidences!

But seriously, give us a call. At The Orbit Group, we can take a look at the year or the quarter. We can talk you through it at our office in Randwick or help you meet your BAS online. And as BAS agents ourselves we get a whole extra month to submit your BAS return. Phew!

With us working at your BAS and tax agent, we can buy you the time you need to properly lodge your earnings and your deductions. And you can take some of the pressure off, safe in the knowledge we’re extracting the icy fingers of dread and helping you take a load off.

Tired of feeling the pressure?

At The Orbit Group, we are full advocators of using online accounting systems. These simple, easy to follow and affordable solutions can eliminate the sting of BAS preparation. They can allow you to generate the invoices for your customers as well as add your deductions as you work. So instead of scrambling towards the end of the year, you can simply work with us to lodge your BAS each quarter. Check our out Cloud Accounting page to find out more.

Plus, we can notify you of any changes from the ATO or the government’s budgets that will affect your BAS along the way so you can adjust accordingly.

Oh, and it also means an end to shoeboxes and trying to work out what was actually written on that faded receipt as well as keeping up to date with what does and doesn’t classify as a deduction.

Break up with your accounting horror story

If you’ve grown out of the relationship you used to enjoy with your current accountant or you simply can’t face another adrenalin pumping BAS lodgement, we can help.
So whether you’d like to banish the ghosts and ghouls now or in the future, we’ve got your back.

Switching to The Orbit Group begins with a small hello via email or phone. You can come in and have a nice cup of tea and a biscuit and let all your accountancies bogeyman’s out for us to see. Or you can ask for help from anywhere in Australia via online. We are only a call or a Skype away.

But no matter the situation, you don’t need to have bats in the taxation belfry any longer. Hand them over to us! We’re like the Ghostbusters of small business BAS pain.

Want to know more about making the switch? Get in contact now.