With the new year upon us the fiscal year comes to a close. As a business owner, December and January is where all profits and losses are carefully examined in preparation for taxes in April. The hours of sorting receipts, tracking expenses and riffling though payments leaves misery to hold. If you are a wise one, you’ve kept great records and have a mature filing system for such items. Life sometimes happens and playing catch-up is necessary. Now is the time to begin that process.

While preparing a financial report of your freelancing business, consider this your time to evaluate what has worked, what has brought in successful funds and what has left you pinching pennies. As you track good months and bad, pull out your business plan and see where changes can be made, ensuring you have more good months in 2010. If you haven’t taken the time to write out a business plan, that time is now!

In examining the financial backbone of your business, take note of companies that brought in more financially and the type of work you performed. Pull up your old assignments. Recall the process of that work. Weigh the payment received with the time spent. Was your overall hourly wage in your targeted ballpark? Did you fall short by more than one or two dollars?

While surfing through those details, also pay attention to clients bringing in regular work.

Make a list of those clients and be sure to send a short note, thanking them for the opportunity to work with them, for them and beside them. This is a great opportunity to also bring your name to the front of a client’s mind. In the new year, businesses begin a strong drive to achieve success. Along side a new-found ambition, work loads are increased and freelancers have the exciting chance to make a jump towards their financial goals.

As you look through your clients and the genre’s of work performed, ask yourself if one niche market better serves you than others. Do you have clients that fell short of your hourly rate that you would like to continue working with? If so, ask for more pay per assignment. A pay increase as minuscule as three cents per word could make your financial goals.

Take your time, but act fast! 2009 is already behind us and 2010 offers you more opportunity as an entrepreneur. What are you going to do for yourself and your business in 2010?