Tax season is right around the corner.

I used to be a major procrastinator when I was a kid. Anything I could do today, I’d put off for as long as humanly possible. Now that I’m older, though, I’ve switched to the other logical extreme; I always try to get things out of the way as early as possible. It’s nice to have things off my plate so I can spend the rest of my time calmly and leisurely. This is why I always get my taxes done the moment the season starts at the beginning of February.

As tempting as it is to wait until the eleventh hour in April, getting your taxes done early is the objectively better decision. Since so many people tend to procrastinate on this, most tax prepper and assistance services have plenty of openings available at the beginning of the season if you need any help. Filing early also gives you plenty of time to make any fixes or amendments to your filing in case you mess something up.

With the past year being what it has been, it’s a good bet that your finances are in a bit of a weird spot. With everyone picking up gigs and freelance work, money is coming in from all kinds of potentially obscure directions, which means different, occasionally esoteric, tax forms. This is another good reason to get on this early; certain tax forms may require particular information that may take time to gather up, especially if you’re working freelance and need to keep your own books. You’ll save some money if you put the information together yourself instead of just handing over a bunch of receipts to an accountant. And in the event you forget something, again, there’ll still be time to make a fix.

So while I’m sure you’d love to get started on Christmas, don’t forget that tax season is right around the corner.