For CPAs, accountants, and bookkeepers, tax season can be very stressful. Although you always know this time of year is coming up and you have prepared yourself when tax season rolls around you can still feel the burn of too much work and too little time for relaxation.
Here at the Rules of Thumb blog from MoneyThumb, we want to help our accounting readers and others who handle income taxes avoid as much stress during tax season as possible, so we have compiled a list of ways to do that below:
Tips for Avoiding Burnout During Tax Season
Get Plenty of Quality Sleep
Of course, it goes without saying how essential getting enough sleep is to avoiding stress. However, it is the quality of sleep that matters most. The National Sleep Foundation also has a nice list of ways to make sure you are getting good, quality sleep.
Get Regular Exercise
One of the drawbacks of an accounting job is the unavoidable fact of sitting for long periods of time. This article from WebMD calls it "the sitting disease." Here is a portion of the article:
"The Price of Sitting Too Much- A growing body of research shows that long periods of physical inactivity raise your risk of developing heart disease, diabetes, cancer, and obesity. In January 2010, British experts linked prolonged periods of sitting to a greater likelihood of disease. And that same month, Australian researchers reported that each hour spent watching TV is linked to an 18% increase in the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease -- perhaps because that time is spent sitting down."
The good news is they have great advice for how to avoid the stress and strain of sitting too much. A great and necessary read for those of us who live a mostly sedentary lifestyle.
Eat Healthily
Another tip which we all understand is of crucial importance, to eat healthy food, but when you are rushed, or live alone, that is easier said than done. After years of eating on the run, or eating fast food, even though the medical community has proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that a proper diet is the most important thing we can do to positively affect our health, still, we are often drawn back to our bad eating habits. A few ways to make sure you are eating healthy that is not outside the realm of possibility for a busy accountant during tax season are listed below:
- Keep raw vegetables and fruit always on hand and easily accessible
- Pre-prepared meals such as Lean Cuisine and Weight Watchers are actually good and good for you. Stock up on these types of meals.
- Make sure to at least once a week take yourself out to dinner or lunch at a healthy restaurant, you need a treat anyway
- Cook yourself a delicious, homemade meal at least once a week, with all the food groups.
- Avoid fast food as much as possible.
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