An under-used tool in QuickBooks is the Budget and this is a good time of year to set it up. I know many businesses don’t even take the time to work on a budget. But your budget is a powerful feature that can help you in a few ways. First it helps you control your costs. I realize some costs are hard to estimate especially as we see gas prices going up. But it still helps give you some guidelines in operating your business. You can also use it as an incentive when you’re looking at certain goals that you’d like to achieve in your business. A phrase I like is you can’t hit a target you can’t see. So having a budget helps you view those goals… It can also be a jumping-off point for discussions about long-term planning. Continue reading →