by rishi mehra a good business idea or a good job will mean little if you do not get your finances in order financial planning is often intricate and involves a lot of processes but a few overarching tactics can help you succeed during the tenure of my career and business i have found the following tactics to be helpful determine expense as an entrepreneur senior management or at a personal level the first step to financial success inevitably lies in determining your expense getting a grip on your expenses can mean the difference between success and failure expenses will be fixed or variable in nature fixed expenses are the once which tend to occur every month or at a given period and one that tends to stay stable this can include rent salary expenses business subscriptions among others variable expenses change every given month or period and would include items like electricity payment to vendors among others it is advisable that you keep a close eye on the variable expense component and cut back on what you think can be wasteful however i would also ask everyone to take a long hard look at the fixed expenses can you cut down on rent by shifting to a cheaper area can you juggle salary payments more effectively sometimes reducing fixed expenses is a better way of managing finances and also a smarter move taxes taxes as an outgo of money is something that can be minimised at a corporate level and at a personal level it is important to know how best to save on taxes saving taxes under existing structure is legitimate and there is nothing illegal about it in fact what is surprising is that many do not know about the range of tax benefits available at a personal level it may be easier to know the tax benefits available to you but i am often surprised that people do not make use of their tax benefits despite being eligible for it for example an assessee can get deduction under section 80c upto rs 15 lakh but most do not even take full advantage of this section and continue paying taxes similarly in the corporate world most organisations do not know all the deductions or provisions applicable and end up paying more then there are cases where you end up paying a penalty because you did not comply with certain tax requirements my advice would always be to invest in a good ca and get your finances done it may cost you a little but the benefits will far outweigh the payouts budget income as much as you look at expenses it is vital to look at your income while it is a nobrainer that more income can lead to better financial position where people stumble is when they do not budget it properly often in business there will be a time lag between what you earn and when you actually get the money in your hand for