Organize and Document lessons from the past tax filing year

I'd like to share some things I've learned from doing our family's taxes last week. The main purpose in doing this is to get this stuff down so that I don't forget. I also invite your input.

If I could sum it up in a word or phrase it would be Documentation and Organization. I rememember when I worked as an Environmental Engineer for Alcoa Building Products, documentation was key to showing our proof that we complied with environmental laws and regulations. If it wasn't in writing, then it never happened.

With that mindset, we needed to have well-organized files. I remember the color scheme for the different types of environmental "media" (for lack of a better word): blue for water/wastewater, green for solid/hazardous waste, orange for toxic chemical information, red for air resource management, and so on. We even had a document that described our file-keeping system. The intent of this was to provide quick and easy retrieval of documentation in the event of an audit and for future reporting.

Our family has a number of things going on that merit good recordkeeping practices. For one thing, both my wife and I are actively looking for employment. Mileage and other job search expenses are tax-deductible, provided you have documentation. And we need to keep track of contacts, companies to whom we've sent resumes, follow up correspondence, and so on.

Additionally, our daughter Keisha, has hearing loss in both ears. Several times we've needed to provide documentation for insurance, education, and medical reasons.

And then there's the bills. Holy cow! Bills for everything related to running a family. There is a huge need to document that bills were paid, along with conversations with creditors and other individuals.

I think a big reason why I've procrastinated in the past is because I've dreaded all the effort in getting this information together. I see now that if I put forth the work up front to get organized and document things, then, when the time comes to retrieve that information, it won't appear as daunting.

So, you could say that I'm having another kind of a "birthday" today.