Don't Judge Your Books. I've Seen Worse.

Your books are a mess. You know it. You've known it for a while.

Here's the thing most don't know ... that accounting course you took has nothing to do with real life small business bookkeeping. You know you need good numbers to make decisions with but you don't know where to start ... so you don't. And you're embarrassed to ask for help, because what if someone actually sees how bad it is?

But here's something I've learned over 35 years in business and working with hundreds of small business owners: normal business owners have messy books. The ones who have it all together and actually know their numbers? They're not normal.

So if your books are messy, just know you are normal ... and in good company.

It takes time to create your business systems and get them running smoothly ... getting your bookkeeping systems in order is no different.

You're not bad at business

Let's get another thing clear: messy books don't happen because you're bad at business. You were busy making money and creating systems on the fly ... and getting money in was a bigger priority than keeping it.

But ignoring your numbers can get really expensive really fast ...

• Money is quietly bleeding out of your business.
• It's hard to make decisions with confidence.
• Pricing is a guess, not based on data.
• And the big one ... there's no money in your bank account at the end of the month to pay you, and you don't know where it all went.

But how do you get started?

Modern Tools, Simple Habits

With modern software, basic bookkeeping isn't accounting.

You don't need to understand the debits and credits they teach in accounting classes or how to create journal entries ... you need software that imports your bank data so you can sort it to create reports you can use (like QuickBooks Online).

Keeping things simple ... one place money comes in, one place it goes out ... that's the first step.  Yep, that means 2 bank accounts (plus a personal one).

Complex businesses mean complex books.  Cutting complexity where you can is really important to making your books simpler.

Keeping business and personal banking separate is another biggie. 

Most of the complexity I've seen comes from:

1. mixing business and personal transactions
2. collecting payment or paying bills on more than one platform
3. paying bills in cash or by check.

Just say no ...

The five-minute habit

Over 35 years, I developed a habit of taking five minutes each morning to keep my books in order so I actually know what's happening with the numbers in my business. I call it financial intimacy ... and it changes everything about how you run your business.

I know what money came in or went out ... without hunting for receipts or taxing my brain trying to remember.

I do it every morning, get a quick win for working on my business, and save money because I don't forget those apps and subscriptions that steal money silently.

You can do this too. It's not hard and it's never too late to start.

Want my five-minute habit?

I wrote it down ... the 3 steps I run through with my coffee every morning, plus my tips for keeping your books simple. You don't need to be an accountant or bookkeeper to use this.

Grab the Five-Minute Money Habit →