Don’t Get It in Writing Just for the Heck of It

Thursday, January 25, 2007 at 10:46am by William Quisenberry in Innovation

So many times I hear individuals give advice to entrepreneurs telling them to “Always get everything in writing!” Over and over again, we hear people talk about getting an attorney to draft up contracts and make sure every important and pertinent item is explained in a detailed report.

Also I’m sure you’ve heard people explain to always acquire the professional help of a tax consultant or C.P.A. for all of your financial advising and tax counsel.

All this information is awesome and great. It is important to seek professional assistance and have everything in writing when working with vendors, consultants, contractors, clients, subcontracting, performing freelance work or whatever other type of arrangements or deal making you’re performing.

However, what in the world do you do with all these documents, graphical information, financial statements, contracts, agreements, bill of sales, receipts, and so on?

Do you just toss them in the trash? Are you supposed to use them for toilet paper? Okay maybe you’re suppose to throw them all over your house and office so it’s close to impossible to find them later on right?

Of course not, the whole objective of having all these documents is so that you can have them in the future if a situation arises where there is a question about the original agreement, or maybe you will just need these documents for record keeping and general maintenance, like checking inventory or performing mid-year analysis.

Regardless of the reason, don’t just get contracts and documentation just to do it, or because people tell you that it is the proper way to conduct business. After you have these important assets, you need to make certain that you arrange a proper filing system, where the files are easily accessible when needed.

Another key area relating to deal making is the internet, since we live in such a high tech age. It’s not uncommon to discuss important information—even in a casual manner—over the internet using instant messenger, email or other related electronic communication tools.

Always keep track of this information, because emails are automatically stamped with times and dates, and they make for excellent reference tools, or worst case scenario, these emails usually will hold up in court very well.

So the next time you exchange emails with a business partner or client, keep up with that email and place it in a certain electronic folder. Also stop looking at contracts and other business documentation as something that just goes in the trash, and be sure to file these items; because you truly never really know when you may need them!

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