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Some good mind hacks here, but I have to say that changing wording from "do my taxes" to "organize my finances" is not a way to reduce dread. I have done my ta

by gnud 8y ago

Some good mind hacks here, but I have to say that changing wording from "do my taxes" to "organize my finances" is not a way to reduce dread. I have done my taxes about 18 times in my life. I have yet to organize my finances.

wool_gather 8y ago
Haha, seconded. Taxes are just like executing a program. Boring, sure, but fundamentally easy. Beyond the laugh, though, I find that a very strange rewording suggestion. Usually the advice (and I've found this good) is to make the to-do more specific and concrete. An open-ended project-sized item like "organize my finances" is a foolproof candidate for procrastination. "Do my taxes" is better, but might still be too big depending on the complexity. A real to-do for either would be something like "Collect tax forms and order by date (note: there may be one under the couch?)" -- it's reasonably scoped and has a very clear "I'm done" criterion. (EDIT: Looking at the article, it seems that "breaking it down" is indeed the suggestion. The specific wording chosen is still strange; it seems the author means something close to "gather documents" by "organize my finances".)
- danicgross 8y ago
  Great feedback. Clarified. Thanks wool_gather and gnud!
gm-conspiracy 8y ago
Also, this is a unique US problem, no?
- gnode 8y ago
  It's certainly not a problem for me in the UK; PAYE is automatic, and I've not yet had to do a tax return. Although I did once need to get an adjustment, which I did with a short letter. I do wonder why the US puts such a tax administrative burden on individuals.
  - jimmaswell 8y ago
    Lobbying by tax preparing companies is part of it.
- SmellyGeekBoy 8y ago
  HN is ostensibly a forum for entrepreneurs, I'm sure most of the target audience here are familiar with filing taxes. Although I agree with my sibling comment that the requirements for individuals to file a tax return in the US always struck me as odd.
keyle 8y ago
My philosophy is if I hate it and it's not worth my time, I pay someone to do it. Thing is, watch a 'professional' work in the field you dread, and you will quickly pick on tricks of the trade and workflows that really change it to something quite easy (if you find the right person). Then the dreaded task becomes emulating that person, which is a lot easier the subsequent years. (e.g. have spreadsheets set up like them, follow the same steps, etc.)
- AstralStorm 8y ago
  That is assuming they themselves do not dread the task. Sometimes even a professional can't do it because the thing is just so big. From coding perspective, there is a point where rewriting is better than refactoring. Then you get to piecemeal attack the rewrite with the same resources allocated to refactoring, which rarely is possible.
Tempest1981 8y ago
The article's example was "gather finance documents". Like W-2, 1099, etc. Oh, looks like it was edited. :-)

by gnud 8y ago

wool_gather 8y ago

Haha, seconded. Taxes are just like executing a program. Boring, sure, but fundamentally easy. Beyond the laugh, though, I find that a very strange rewording suggestion. Usually the advice (and I've found this good) is to make the to-do more specific and concrete. An open-ended project-sized item like "organize my finances" is a foolproof candidate for procrastination. "Do my taxes" is better, but might still be too big depending on the complexity. A real to-do for either would be something like "Collect tax forms and order by date (note: there may be one under the couch?)" -- it's reasonably scoped and has a very clear "I'm done" criterion. (EDIT: Looking at the article, it seems that "breaking it down" is indeed the suggestion. The specific wording chosen is still strange; it seems the author means something close to "gather documents" by "organize my finances".)

danicgross 8y ago
Great feedback. Clarified. Thanks wool_gather and gnud!

gm-conspiracy 8y ago

Also, this is a unique US problem, no?

gnode 8y ago
It's certainly not a problem for me in the UK; PAYE is automatic, and I've not yet had to do a tax return. Although I did once need to get an adjustment, which I did with a short letter. I do wonder why the US puts such a tax administrative burden on individuals.
- jimmaswell 8y ago
  Lobbying by tax preparing companies is part of it.
SmellyGeekBoy 8y ago
HN is ostensibly a forum for entrepreneurs, I'm sure most of the target audience here are familiar with filing taxes. Although I agree with my sibling comment that the requirements for individuals to file a tax return in the US always struck me as odd.

keyle 8y ago

My philosophy is if I hate it and it's not worth my time, I pay someone to do it. Thing is, watch a 'professional' work in the field you dread, and you will quickly pick on tricks of the trade and workflows that really change it to something quite easy (if you find the right person). Then the dreaded task becomes emulating that person, which is a lot easier the subsequent years. (e.g. have spreadsheets set up like them, follow the same steps, etc.)

AstralStorm 8y ago
That is assuming they themselves do not dread the task. Sometimes even a professional can't do it because the thing is just so big. From coding perspective, there is a point where rewriting is better than refactoring. Then you get to piecemeal attack the rewrite with the same resources allocated to refactoring, which rarely is possible.

Tempest1981 8y ago

The article's example was "gather finance documents". Like W-2, 1099, etc. Oh, looks like it was edited. :-)