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14 | SUMMER 2020 Put up boundaries. First things first: You should keep separate business and personal bank accounts, including credit cards for each one, and keep receipts in different places. This creates distinct boundar- ies between the work and personal spending and will make it easier come tax time. On the topic of taxes, it may be tempting to go with the lowest-cost option for calculating your obligation to Uncle Sam, but this isn't the place to scrimp. "Proper tax advice can pay for itself many times with the deductions that business owners are allowed," said R.J. Weiss, who runs TheWaystoWealth.com. "It's important to have someone you can trust in that realm who really understands how to manage business finances so you're not overpaying in taxes." Look for an accountant with expertise in your particular industry — you can often get good referrals from others in your line of work. Double the budget. Just as you (hopefully) create a household bud- get, you should create a budget for your busi- ness — and stick to it. "One of the biggest mistakes I see is someone treating a dollar differently because it's in their business account rather than their personal account," Weiss said. "People tend to overspend in business and not look at things as carefully as they do with their personal finances." You also need to decide what you'll earn from your company, balancing your needs with the health of the business. "Enroll in an automated payroll plan," recommended Michael Kotha- kota, CEO of WolfBridge Financial. "Withhold appropriate taxes and pay yourself a salary, no matter how small." Plan for the future. Someday, it will be time to move on. Yet more than a third of small-business owners don't have a retirement plan in place, according to Manta, an online resource dedicated to small businesses. One of the major reasons is that fter a busy day running your business, the last thing you probably want to do is manage your own bank account. But it's important to remember that while a small-business owner's work and personal finances are certainly linked to one another, they are separate entities that both deserve equal attention. A