Business and Personal EthicsIRS Tax Issues

Cheating on Your Taxes: Is it Ever OK?

By October 5, 2015 No Comments

“In this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.”

Benjamin Franklin’s words still resonate today. If we are to stay on the up and up, we simply must pay our taxes.

Tax deductible grunge rubber stamp on white background, vector illustration

Tax deductible grunge rubber stamp on white background, vector illustration

Regardless of the obligation, we all have an opinion on the matter. We may believe that our hard-earned money isn’t wisely spent in Washington. Small business owners often feel that they are too heavily taxed.  Different viewpoints can lead us to rationalize our decisions as to how we file in April.

According to a national survey, most people say cheating on your taxes is NEVER okay. Yet over half of small business audits show discrepancies on their returns. In small doses, cheating on your taxes often falls into that “everybody does it” category of rationalization. But if you cheat a little there, might you cheat a little elsewhere?

Consider exploring how you and your employees respond when the opportunity for dishonesty arises. What are your employees willing to fudge on? Might they lie about a lost report or their own performance in order to save their jobs? Perhaps they are dishonest in order to make a sale, only later to claim they didn’t realize they misled the customer.

Small indiscretions seem harmless at the start. But one poor choice often leads to another.

No one likes taxes. But they aren’t going anywhere. So this year, take a good look at how you file. Use it to monitor the decisions you might make elsewhere. Then consider evaluating your company as a whole.

Interested in the next step? I can help your organization stay on the up and up. Let’s talk soon.

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