Almost every accountant has a story about a small-business client who showed up on April 10 or thereabouts, expecting to start work on a company or personal income tax return.

Or worse, a client who showed up with a shoebox full of receipts and invoices, expecting to get a return done in short order.

When a business owner's income tax season is perennially chaotic, chances are his books and overall company operations are as well. These owners often don't have a good sense of their cash flow, accounts receivables and profit or losses.

Mark Toolan, a certified public accountant in Exton, Pa., said the solution is easy: Buy accounting software and start inputting all your financial information, using bank statements or your check register. Look at your credit card statements and any receipts you have, too. You can still get this done for 2007, and you start doing this now for 2008.

There's more at stake than just having an easier time during tax season.

"When we hear people say they're disorganized ... it often means they're paying more taxes than they should," Mr. Toolan said.

If the problem is that you don't have the time or the wherewithal to keep your finances straight, get help – something that many entrepreneurs, used to doing it all themselves, find hard to accept.

But, keeping in mind Mr. Toolan's warning about overpaying taxes, what you spend on a part-time bookkeeper or bookkeeping service will probably save you money in the long run.

Moreover, it will ease stress in your life. Accountants say that many times, small-business owners put off organizing their tax papers because they're afraid they won't have the money to pay their taxes.

But "it's always better to know in advance" what you're facing in April, says Jeffrey Chazen, a tax partner at the accounting firm Eisner LLP in New York.

If you get organized now, you can start setting money aside to pay that bill.