Let’s be honest: you didn’t start your business because you love bookkeeping.
Whether you’re running a screen printing shop, consulting practice, or service-based business, you got into this game because you’re passionate about what you do. The financial stuff? That’s supposed to just… work itself out, right?
Unfortunately, it doesn’t. And the mistakes you’re making with your bookkeeping for self employed work could be costing you thousands in missed deductions, creating IRS headaches, and keeping you up at night wondering if your business is actually profitable.
The good news? These mistakes are fixable. Let’s walk through the seven most common ones we see: and exactly how to turn things around.
Mistake #1: Mixing Personal and Business Finances
This is the big one. Nearly 35% of self-employed individuals use the same bank account for personal and business expenses. We get it: when you’re just starting out, opening another account feels like unnecessary hassle.
But here’s what happens: You buy ink and supplies for your screen printing business on Tuesday, groceries on Wednesday, and a new press on Friday: all from the same debit card. Come tax time, you’re scrolling through hundreds of transactions trying to remember what was what.
The Fix:
Open a dedicated business checking account and credit card. Today. Not next month.
This single step makes your bookkeeping for self employed work dramatically easier. Every transaction in that account is business-related, which means:
- ✅ Cleaner records
- ✅ Faster tax prep
- ✅ No more second-guessing deductions
Your self employed bookkeeper (or future self doing the books) will thank you.
Mistake #2: The “I’ll Do It Later” Approach to Bookkeeping
We’ve seen it a hundred times. A business owner hands us a shoebox of receipts in March and says, “I need my taxes done by April 15th.”
When you wait until tax season to organize your finances, you’re not just creating stress: you’re losing money. Receipts get lost. Deductions get forgotten. And you have zero visibility into whether your business is actually making money throughout the year.
The Fix:
Set a weekly or bi-weekly bookkeeping date. Seriously, put it on your calendar.
Even 30 minutes a week keeps your records current and gives you real-time insight into your cash flow. If that sounds like torture, consider working with a quality bookkeeping service that handles the heavy lifting for you.
Mistake #3: Categorizing Expenses Like You’re Guessing on a Multiple Choice Test
“Is this office supplies or equipment? Is my home internet a utility or an operating expense?”
About 15% of self-employed folks incorrectly classify their business expenses. This isn’t just an organizational issue: it directly impacts your taxes and financial reports.
For screen printers, this gets especially tricky. Is that new automatic press an equipment purchase or a capital asset? What about the plastisol ink you buy in bulk: is that inventory or supplies?
The Fix:
Customize your chart of accounts from the start to match your specific business.
A screen printing business needs categories for:
- Equipment and machinery
- Ink and printing supplies inventory
- Garment costs
- Maintenance and repairs
- Shop utilities
When your categories match your actual operations, your books tell an accurate story. If you’re unsure how to set this up, a self employed bookkeeper can help you build a system that makes sense for your industry.
Mistake #4: Paying Yourself Wrong
Here’s a scenario we see constantly: You need to pay your mortgage, so you transfer $3,000 from your business account to your personal account. Then you categorize it as “miscellaneous expense” or worse: just ignore it entirely.
This creates a mess. Your profit looks artificially low, your records are inaccurate, and you’re setting yourself up for confusion during tax time.
The Fix:
Record payments to yourself as “Owner’s Draw” in an equity account: not as a business expense.
You absolutely should pay yourself. But how you record it matters. Owner’s draws don’t reduce your taxable income (you’ll still pay self-employment tax on those profits), but they keep your financial picture accurate.
Mistake #5: Letting Small Expenses Slip Through the Cracks
That $12 parking fee for a client meeting. The $8 roll of tape for shipping orders. The $25 domain renewal.
These feel insignificant in the moment, so they don’t get recorded. But those “small” expenses add up to hundreds: sometimes thousands: of dollars in missed deductions over a year.
The Fix:
Track everything. Every single business expense, no matter how small.
Use a simple system:
- Snap a photo of every receipt with your phone
- Store them in a dedicated folder or app
- Record them weekly during your bookkeeping time
This habit alone can save you serious money at tax time and gives you a complete picture of where your cash is actually going.
Mistake #6: Still Using Spreadsheets Like It’s 2005
Look, we love a good spreadsheet as much as anyone. But if you’re manually entering every transaction into Excel and hoping you don’t make a typo, you’re working way harder than you need to.
Manual bookkeeping doesn’t catch errors. It doesn’t reconcile with your bank automatically. And one wrong formula can throw off your entire financial picture without you even knowing it.
The Fix:
Upgrade to accounting software designed for small businesses.
Tools like QuickBooks catch errors automatically, sync with your bank accounts, and generate reports that actually help you understand your business. We’re a certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor, so if you need help getting set up or migrating from spreadsheets, we’ve got you covered.
The time you save can go back into actually running your business: or, you know, having a life outside of it.
Mistake #7: Operating Without a Financial Framework
This is the mistake that ties everything else together.
Most self-employed business owners are flying blind. They know roughly how much money comes in and goes out, but they don’t have a structured approach to understanding their finances. No system. No benchmarks. No plan.
The Fix:
Implement a financial framework that gives you clarity and control.
We use what we call the 7-Part Finance Framework with our clients. It covers everything from cash flow management and expense tracking to tax planning and growth forecasting. Instead of reacting to financial surprises, you’re proactively managing your money with a clear system.
When you have a framework in place, bookkeeping stops being a chore you dread and becomes a tool that helps you make better decisions.
You Don’t Have to Figure This Out Alone
Here’s the thing: bookkeeping mistakes don’t make you a bad business owner. They make you human. You’re busy doing the work, serving clients, and keeping operations running. The financial backend is easy to neglect.
But these mistakes compound over time. What starts as a messy QuickBooks file becomes a tax nightmare. What starts as “I’ll categorize this later” becomes thousands in missed deductions.
The earlier you fix these issues, the easier everything becomes.
If you’re a solopreneur, consultant, or small business owner who wants to get your self-employed bookkeeping on track, we’re here to help. Whether you need someone to clean up your books, set up proper systems, or provide ongoing financial advisory support, we’ve got options that fit your business.
Ready to stop making these mistakes? Reach out to Equilibrium Consultants and let’s get your finances working for you( not against you.) 📧
