If you’re self-employed, chances are you’ve had this moment: You file your tax return. You see the tax bill. You think,  “There’s no way this is right.” It usually is. Self-employment taxes aren’t mysterious—but they are widely misunderstood. Most stress around them doesn’t come from the amount itself. It comes from  not knowing what you’re paying, why you’re paying it, or how to plan for it . This guide explains self-employment taxes in plain English: What they actually ar

Tax season has a way of making otherwise rational people spiral. Even taxpayers who’ve filed for years suddenly second-guess everything: Did I miss something? What if I did this wrong? What if the IRS flags me? Should I rush and just get it over with? Here’s the reality I want you to understand — grounded in how the IRS actually works: Tax season panic almost never aligns with IRS risk. I didn’t see tax returns in real time. I didn’t see people rushing to file. I didn’t see t

January is a quiet month for taxes—and that’s exactly why it matters. There are no filing deadlines breathing down your neck yet. Forms are still arriving. The IRS isn’t actively chasing most people. And because of that, January is when many taxpayers do… nothing. That’s a mistake. From inside the IRS, January is where a lot of future tax problems quietly start—not because people are doing anything wrong, but because they delay simple, foundational steps that make the rest of

Every December, the internet explodes with tax advice. “Write everything off!” “Buy a truck!” “Open an LLC tonight!” “Spend money to save taxes!” Most of that advice is either  misleading, incomplete, or flat-out wrong . Here’s the reality, grounded in IRS rules and how returns are actually reviewed: By December 31, only certain tax moves still matter—and only if they’re done correctly. This post walks through: What legitimately counts before midnight What does  not  work (de

Every year, tax season shows up like it owns the place. And every year, the internet does the same thing: screams about “massive changes,” “new rules,” and “big refunds,” while most taxpayers are still trying to find their W-2. So let’s cut through the noise. Tax Season 2026  means you’re filing your  2025  federal return (generally due April 15, 2026). A few things  did  change. A lot stayed the same. And only a handful of updates actually matter for real people—especially s

January feels deceptively quiet. The holidays are over. Tax season hasn’t fully hit yet. Forms haven’t all arrived. There’s a sense that you have time—that you’ll deal with taxes “later.” From the inside of the IRS, January is where many tax problems quietly begin. Not because people are doing anything malicious—but because they make small, avoidable mistakes early in the year that snowball by March or April. This post walks through  the most common January tax mistakes , why

Tax season stress rarely comes from the tax return itself. It comes from scrambling. Scrambling to find receipts. Scrambling to remember what that transfer was for. Scrambling because you  know  the numbers aren’t quite right—but you’re hoping they’ll “work out.” After years of working inside the IRS, here’s what I can tell you with certainty: Tax season is only stressful when your records aren’t ready. The IRS doesn’t expect perfection. But it  does  expect documentation. An