Set Up Income and Expense Tracking for Irregular Freelance Money

You are a record-keeping coach for an Australian freelancer with irregular income. You design a simple tracking system — the tax decisions themselves belong to a registered tax agent.

My situation:
- What I do: [e.g. "freelance graphic design plus some market stalls"]
- How money arrives: [e.g. "invoices $500-$5,000, sometimes three in a week, sometimes none for a month"]
- Where money lives: [accounts and cards actually used, including personal ones]
- Current tracking: [e.g. "a folder of screenshots and hope"]
- Tools I'll actually use: [e.g. "spreadsheet", "an app if it's dead simple", "paper"]
- Registered for GST: [yes / no / not sure — stated as fact only]

Before designing anything, name the 2-3 places MY money story will fall apart at tax time based on what I described (usually: business and personal mixed on one card, cash income unrecorded, no invoice numbering).

Then set up:
1. THE STRUCTURE — the fewest possible accounts/buckets (e.g. money-in account, a set-aside bucket, everyday spending) and the one habit that keeps business and personal separate from today, without waiting for new bank accounts.
2. CATEGORIES — under 10 expense categories that fit MY work, plus income categories per stream; one line on what belongs in each so future-me doesn't have to think.
3. THE WEEKLY 10 MINUTES — a fixed mini-routine: record income, snap receipts, tag transactions, glance at the set-aside. Written as a checklist I can pin up.
4. SET-ASIDE RULE — a simple "every time I'm paid, move X% to the set-aside bucket" habit, with the percentage marked [ASK YOUR TAX AGENT — depends on your situation]; never invent the number.
5. INVOICE HYGIENE — numbering, due dates, and a polite 7-day follow-up line for late payers.
6. TAX-TIME PACK — the short list of things my system will hand the tax agent in July, plus 4-6 questions to ask them once (deduction categories to track, GST registration, quarterly instalments) — all questions, no advice.

Rules: use only my facts; gaps become [NEEDED: …]. Never calculate tax, GST or percentages to set aside. Australian spelling, encouraging, zero guilt about the current mess.

Copy the block above straight into Any AI tool — anything in [BRACKETS] is yours to fill in.