Expedite the Expense Report (FF-015)

Originally Published: February 28, 2022

Revised: September 2, 2025

If you’re reading this, I am guessing you also have to deal with expense reports from time to time. And that you likely dread doing them. That, or perhaps you lay the stack of paper-clipped receipts on your assistant’s desk and delegate the task onto them to handle (for an informative conversation about delegation, listen to Delegating for Rainmakers conversation with Scott Love from June 2025).   

Maybe because I am someone who is very conscious of money (ok, frugal), or maybe because I am married to someone who procrastinates on putting in his expense summary, I feel quite passionate about this topic. If you’re just collecting a stash of receipts and/or revisiting your calendar to audit where you traveled and the related expenses, then you are leaking time (and probably money). What about those receipts you lost? What about the mileage for the extra stop you made during that business trip? What about the Lyft charges that you forgot about?  

Stop procrastinating and start getting your expense reports done and the money back into your bank. If you’re spending time recreating your business events, then you are missing out on doing something more valuable. Instead, I recommend inputting your expenses at least once a week. 

For my business trips, I use this Expense Reimbursement Table to track my activity and expenses. As I incur the expense, I am inputting them into the table on a regular basis. This way I ensure I am capturing the recoverable information.  This habit ensures that you can feel confident that you:

• Are not missing any expenses;

• Will no longer feel stressed or anxious about that unfinished administrative task; 

• Will be able to send the invoices/expense reports out sooner (your clients and company will thank you);

• Will capture more expenses; and

• Will no longer procrastinate this dreaded task.

So, what say you? Are you ready to expedite the expense report process? Try it today. 

Are expenses summaries only one minor thorn amongst thousands? Perhaps schedule a time to chat with me and see how I might be able to help you have healthier habits and systems. Or check out my upcoming Speaking Engagements for topics that might interest you. I hope you have a great and focused day!