3 Ways to Avoid Tax Season Fatigue

office worker burnout

3 Ways to Avoid Tax Season Fatigue

The battle against burnout begins with stress management. Sure, stress can be useful — your forefathers would have appreciated that “fight or flight” response — but burnout is not. It exhausts you emotionally and physically, even on…

As an accountant, your workload fluctuates. Every quarter, the tide comes in, and there is always tax season. It’s stressful, but that’s just part of the job, right? Maybe. Yes, stress is to be expected, but burnout is something altogether else.

What exactly is burnout?

The battle against burnout begins with stress management. Sure, stress can be useful — your forefathers would have appreciated that “fight or flight” response — but burnout is not. Even on the best of days, it leaves you emotionally and physically exhausted. And the issue is widespread. According to a recent report, 82% of tax professionals are burned out. It’s a major concern for tax specialists and accountants.

What impact does burnout have on tax professionals?

People who are burnt out may find it difficult to start their days and even more difficult to keep going. Productivity tends to decline when their concentration wanes. That loss of concentration eventually leads to tiny errors and omissions.

The influence is modest in some professions. While it may be upsetting if a marketer makes a mistake, the organisation rarely suffers more than a little embarrassment. Being an accountant is unique. Numbers are less forgiving, and even minor errors can have major effects.

3 Ways to Avoid Tax Season Burnout

Only one defense is available. Stop burnout before it begins, whether you are an office manager or a remote worker.

1. Establish limits

There is plenty of information available about preventing burnout. Set boundaries, as most people will advise you to do. People generally struggle to refuse requests or take breaks when work is piling up (like in the first two weeks of April). Establishing some limits will help you fight burnout if you engage in those habits or recognize such tendencies in your coworkers.

2. Go deeper

The issue is that limits are only a small part of the puzzle. Many people experience burnout as a result of systemic difficulties, which means that the structure of their workplaces (and possibly their lives) is wrong from the start. For example, what if someone does not have adequate help for their workload? In such circumstances, no matter how many boundaries they create, they will not be able to avoid burnout until the underlying issue is addressed. Set up a corporate culture that encourages your employees to accomplish their best work while doing fewer duties that can be easily delegated.

3. Assign and automate

Most people go above and beyond what is required. They spend a significant amount of time on things that could be delegated or automated in some way, and then they complain about not having enough hours in the day. You can avoid burnout and regain control of your life by concentrating on the activities that are most important to you (professionally or personally) and outsourcing the rest. Allow the junior accountant to handle the paperwork, use accounting software and solutions to automate time-consuming, manual procedures, hire someone to run your errands, and let the junior accountant handle the paperwork. All of those seconds add up.

As a tax and accounting expert, you must avoid burnout.

Tax season is always stressful, but by being proactive, you can reduce the impact and avoid the bad consequences of burnout. Take the time to create boundaries and analyze if there is a greater issue than time management, whether you are managing your own time or that of an entire company. Once you’ve determined which jobs are most important, concentrate on those and delegate the rest. You might be amazed at how much less stressful your day becomes when you focus on the most important things.

The tax laws are very complex. Our short blog articles cannot cover in full all the nuances of the rules. Your specific facts may hold various opportunities and possible risks that only trained, experienced, and highly qualified tax specialists can spot. We encourage you to find such help, rather than trying to figure it all out on your own. Consider giving this marketplace a try by posting your project and signing up here.


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[…] The battle against burnout begins with stress management. Sure, stress can be useful — your forefathers would have appreciated that “fight or flight” response — but burnout is not. It exhausts you emotionally and physically, even on… As a  […]

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