9 things your accountant wishes you’d do in January

January can be a lot, especially if you run a business.

You’re expected to reflect on last year, plan the next one, be “strategic”, clear your inbox, file your tax return and somehow emerge from it all refreshed, enlightened and on top of everything 🫩

From our side of the fence at ChadStone, we see business owners go through the same thing every year:

The same last-minute panics.
The same “we wish we’d done this sooner” conversations.
And the same small things that would make the rest of the year feel a lot calmer if they were done now, rather than in a rush later.

So instead of giving you another vague “New Year checklist”, we asked the team a more honest question👇

“What’s the ONE thing you wish every client would do in January?”

Here are their answers – 9 simple, real-life things your accountant quietly wishes you’d get sorted before the year runs away with you.

1. Ask our admin team before you sacrifice a day to paperwork ☕️

Tip from Sarah & Charl (our admin dream team):

While the accountants are deep in numbers, Sarah and Charl are the ones quietly saving people from GOV.UK rabbit holes and HMRC hold music.

Their top tip is very straightforward: message them first.

They can👇

Send copies of accounts, tax returns, SA302s and tax year overviews
Dig out company numbers and details you’ve “definitely saved somewhere”
Handle PAYE, Self Assessment and VAT registrations
Update addresses and company details
Sort Confirmation Statements and filing dates
Rescue you from portal login dramas
Sit on hold to HMRC so you don’t have to
Help with tax investigation insurance admin
Clarify payment amounts, deadlines and reference numbers

If something is administrative, confusing or likely to steal half a day you don’t have, start with them. They are truly magical and we don’t know where we would be without them!

2. Skim money into a savings pot before you get attached to it 💷

Tip from Matt:

Matt’s advice is the one that stops December turning into “where on earth are we going to find that tax money?” season.

Set up a separate business savings account and skim a proportion of your income into it regularly.

It doesn’t need to be clever or complicated. Just:

Open a savings pot in your business banking
Move a % of monthly income into it automatically
Treat it as untouchable money for tax and “things going wrong”

The exact percentage will be different for everyone – a sole trader, a limited company and a VAT-registered business will all need different levels. The important bit is building the habit now and then agreeing the right % with your accountant, rather than trying to magic the money up at the end of the year.

3. Stop letting your bank balance run the show 📊

Tip from Dave:

Dave’s one comes up a lot in conversations with directors:

Your bank balance is not a full health check for the business.

A healthy balance today might be hiding:

VAT and Corporation Tax due soon
Big bills around the corner
Seasonal swings you’ve forgotten about

A low balance might simply be timing – a quiet week before a busy month.

Tax is based on profit and drawings, not just “what’s left in the account”. If you’re basing decisions purely on what the banking app says on a Tuesday morning, you’re flying partially blind.

This is where management information and an honest chat with us makes a big difference. We can help you understand what’s really going on underneath the numbers on the screen.

4. Tell us what’s really going on behind the scenes 🤝

Tip from Al:

Al’s is a good one to always remember:

Be open with your advisers. The more we know, the more we can help.

That might be:

Telling us about big plans before you commit to them
Admitting which parts of last year felt hard, even if the top line looked fine
Sharing what’s actually keeping you awake, not just what sounds neat in a meeting

We’re not here to judge. We’re here to help you make better decisions with the whole picture in mind – the numbers, the people and the way you want the business to feel.

If you only ever show us the polished version, we’re trying to help with one hand tied behind our back.

5. Stop mixing business and personal money 💳

Tip from Hannah:

Hannah’s tip makes everything easier, for you and for us:

Keep your business and personal spending separate. Properly.

In real terms that means:

A business account for business income and costs
A personal account for your life
Ideally, a separate savings pot inside the business for tax and future commitments

It sounds basic, but it:

Makes bookkeeping and year-end much simpler
Gives you a clearer picture of what the business actually costs to run
Stops your tax money escaping via the supermarket shop and Saturday nights

If your first step when we ask for business transactions is scrolling miles of mixed personal and business spend… This is the change that will save everyone a lot of time.

6. Ask the “silly” questions before they become expensive❓

Tip from Almo:

Almo’s point is aimed at people earlier in their journey, but the principle applies to everyone:

Don’t be afraid to ask questions – especially the ones you think you ‘should’ already know the answer to.

We’d much rather you ask:

“Can I claim this?”
“Is this the best way to set things up?”
“Is there a better option I haven’t thought about?”

…than keep quiet and find out years later you’ve overpaid tax or missed something obvious.

There’s no prize for pretending you understand everything. If something doesn’t make sense, January is a good moment to speak up.

7. Notice when the rules quietly change 📅

Tip from Whitby:

Whitby’s reminder is about the stuff that shifts in the background:

Keep an eye on tax changes that might affect you – especially around dividends and rental profits.

This matters if you:

Take a lot of income through dividends
Have rental properties or other investments
Have more than one source of income

You don’t need to spend your life refreshing GOV.UK, but you do need to know when it’s your turn to pay attention – and when to ask, “Is anything changing that I should know about?”

Finding out at the point of a higher-than-expected tax bill is the worst version of that conversation.

8. Check whether MTD for Self Assessment is going to hit you 💻

Tip from Mol:

Making Tax Digital (MTD) for Income Tax / Self Assessment is slowly edging closer for a lot of people.

Mol’s advice:

Find out early whether MTD is going to apply to you – and get set up in good time if it does.

If you’re in scope, you’ll move from one annual return to quarterly digital submissions.

That sounds scarier than it needs to be. Set up with decent records and the right software, it’s manageable. Try to sort everything last-minute and it becomes unnecessarily painful.

If you’re not sure whether this is going to affect you, that’s your cue to ask now rather than in a panic later.

9. Give yourself a basic cashflow view for the year 🔮

Tip from Owen:

O’s tip is the one that quietly lowers the background stress:

Put a simple cashflow forecast in place for the year ahead.

This doesn’t need to be complicated. A clear view of:

What’s likely to come in
What you already know is going out
How that roughly looks over the next 12 months

is enough to make a big difference.

It turns “I hope this will be okay” into “I can see where the tight spots are and plan for them”. You’ll sleep better, make calmer decisions and have fewer nasty surprises.

If you only do one of these…

You don’t have to spring into action on all nine.

If you’re already juggling a lot, here’s the realistic version:

Read the list once.
Notice which point made you think, “Yes, that’s the one I keep putting off.”
Drop us a message about just that one.

We’ll help you sort it.

No lectures. No guilt. Just a less stressful version of the next 12 months – which, if you ask most accountants, is exactly what we’d love you to have.

Al, Dave & the ChadStone Team

IN THE MEANTIME, HERE’S SOMETHING FOR YOU…👇

Get the latest finance tips, business hacks, free resources, hilarity, memes and more by joining our quarterly newsletter, ‘Sumthing To Say’ here.
Do you need your accounts taken care of for you? You can Book a Discovery Call here.