“A lot of people say, ‘Oh retirement, that’s for old people. I don’t need to be thinking about that now.’ But it is just good cash flow management. It's good financial planning. To be thinking not only about what I am spending my money on today as a business owner but also what does this look like in 5, 10, 20 years.”
-Courtenay Shipley

As bookkeepers, it is our job to help others understand how the flow of money works in and around their business. A critical yet often overlooked part of that, is how we plan for the future. It’s easy to get excited by success, so much so that we don’t feel the need to save for a rainy day. This is true for our clients too. They’ve worked so hard. They want to enjoy the profits of their labour.

When planning for the future, it’s hard to ignore the glaring warnings of our own mortality. This is perhaps why we take the first most accessible retirement plan we find, and let it tick over in the background.

But saving doesn’t have to be from a place of fear in what the future holds, you can create a plan that celebrates your success and keeps you solvent long after you’ve stopped working.

Courtenay Shipley, founder of Retirement Planology is this episode’s featured guest. She has spent her career helping businesses navigate the retirement landscape in a way that aligns with their values, saves time and makes their money work harder. In this episode, Courtenay and Michael discuss all things retirement, from finding the right plan to essential resources for success.

If you are finding yourself in a place of success but aren’t sure how to provide yourself and your employees with a plan for the future then this is the episode for you!

During this interview, you'll learn...

• The value of building long-term financial freedom
• How to effectively plan for the future
• The importance of sticking to the plan

To find out more about Courtenay, click here.

Connect with with her on LinkedIn.

Time Stamps

01:46 - Courtenay discusses her career journey
05:28 - Planning for the future
08:54 - Finding the right fit
13:47 - Sticking to the plan
16:34 - The essentials of a great retirement plan
18:06 - Building your financial freedom
23:23 - Resources that can help you
25:50 - Getting integrated
28:35 - Learning more from Courtenay

This episode is brought to you by our great friends at Payworks!

If you're looking for a reliable and affordable payroll platform for your business, look no further!

To learn more, visit Payworks.ca TODAY!

“Oftentimes, we’re our own worst enemy, and so we listen to the one negative comment or the one negative undertone that someone gives us, and we hold onto that.”
-Trixy Castro

Every challenge provides an opportunity for growth. A chance to build a mindset of resilience, that will let us face any problem with a mind to solutions. That bias and barriers to success exist, is not in question. What is in question is how we react to them.

We spend far too much time paying attention to the opinions of people who aren’t paying our bills. It is time to cut out the noise, get focused and start chasing our goals with everything we have in us. Criticism is important, but we must cultivate the ability to filter out whether it is really something about us that we need to work on, or about someone else wanting us to feel as bad as they do.

Trixy Castro, business executive and entrepreneur, is this episode’s featured guest. She has spent her career founding and selling businesses while breaking down every barrier put in her path. She speaks powerfully about the need to build a resilient mindset, embrace challenges as learning experiences and how to get focused on your goals.

If you are struggling with negative self-talk, quitting before you’ve even begun, or after a few bumps in the road, then this is the episode that will set you free of your limiting beliefs and put you on the path to enduring success.

During this interview, you'll learn...

• The value of embracing challenges as learning opportunities
• How to build a resilient mindset
• The importance of getting focused on your goals

To find out more about Trixy, click here.

Connect with her on LinkedIn.

Time Stamps

01:46 - Trixy discusses her career journey
13:35 - The path to success
19:07 - There’s always a way around
22:37 - Building a resilience mindset
27:10 - Getting it done

“All of a sudden, the customers no longer perceive us as valuable because we failed to reframe the value that we created. The accountant and the bookkeeper’s job should be giving the business owner confidence in their number.”
-Hector Garcia

For as long as we define our value by our skills alone, we will have to bear the threat of replacement. If all we are communicating to our clients is the completion of tasks that could just as easily be automated, we cannot be surprised that automation seems like a better option.

AI is here to stay. If we don’t want to be replaced by it, we have to start reframing what it is our clients are actually paying for. We need to move away from charging for the completion of tasks, towards charging for the relationships and insights we create and offer.

Computers aren’t going to steal our jobs, they are going to enhance them by freeing up more of our time to give clients more personal and meaningful services than just fixing their numbers.

Hector Garcia, a popular YouTuber and CPA, is this episode’s featured guest. In this second half of a two-part series, Michael and Hector discuss the value of doing things differently, and how to build client confidence and stay ahead of the curve.

If you are struggling to innovate, not sure how to get creative with your business or build client confidence, then this is the episode to get you thinking about how to leverage AI rather than be afraid of it.

During this interview, you'll learn...

• The value of doing things differently
• How to stay ahead of the curve
• The importance of building client confidence

• The value of putting yourself out there
• How to embrace an innovation mindset
• The importance of competing against yourself, not others

This episode is brought to you by our great friends at BILL!

BILL automates your clients’ AP, AR, spend, and expense, and lets them track and manage their cash flow, in real-time.

You can also use the BILL Accountant Console to access insights to level up your advisory services plus so much more!

To learn how BILL can help you and your clients, and to sign up for the referral program, visit thesuccessfulbookkeeper.com/bill.

“If they don’t have the right mindset and the right willingness to adopt the technology, it's just not going to work.”
-Tim Sernett

Everyone is different. There will be those who love trying new things and those who are more hesitant to leave their bubble of security. One isn’t better than the other, but when it comes to business, you must consider who is best for you and your business.

If you are someone who loves new technology, systems and processes, it’s probably not the best idea to seek clients who like to be set in their ways and keep things the same. The same is true in the other direction, if you have a tried and tested method, clients that want the latest up-to-date tech as part of your service, aren’t going to be a good fit.

It’s okay, encouraged even, to embrace every kind of new experience you can have, we don’t know what we don’t know, and time spent searching for that one thing or niche that truly sparks joy is not time wasted.

Tim Sernett of Financial Optics is this episode’s featured guest. He has spent his career helping clients not only improve their profits but build peace of mind and future security in their businesses. In this episode, Tim and Michael discuss all things technology and much more!

If you are struggling to serve too many people, to the detriment of your true passions, want to embrace new technologies, or just want to give a little more thought to the future, then this is the episode to get you thinking about what your success could look like.

During this interview, you'll learn...

• The value of embracing opportunities to gain experience
• How to find your business niche
• The importance of seeking out the gaps in your business

To find out more about Tim, click here.

Connect with him on LinkedIn.

Time Stamps

01:53 - Tim discusses his career journey
04:27 - Embracing opportunities to gain experience
09:11 - Future forward thinking
12:29 - Seeking out the gaps in your business
17:44 - Finding your niche
23:30 - Bringing your team with you
27:12 - The value of your knowledge and systems

“Nowadays I fire people. I fired one client last month. They didn’t even make it two months in. But the way they talked to my staff and scope creep and demanding a lot of things that we never agreed to, I let them go within a month and a half. Where before I would suffer those clients for a year.”
-Tyler Otto

It is natural when starting a business to want to take any clients, no matter how much they demand of us, or how badly they might treat us. We want to be grateful for something because it is better than nothing.

But we don’t have to get stuck in this mindset once our work starts to speak for itself. We can increase our price, and remove negatively impacting clients and employees, without feeling guilty or disloyal.

The goal for our business is growth and hanging on to things that just aren’t working, isn’t going to help us grow.

Tyler Otto, President and Owner of Specialty Bookkeeping and Tax, is this episode’s featured guest. He has spent his career building systems for business success. In this episode, Tyler and Michael explore learning from past mistakes, getting your people and systems right, and why building strong workplace culture matters.

If you aren’t sure how to say no to difficult clients, want to hire a strong team, or just develop your company’s culture, then this is the episode to get you thinking about what the future could look like when you embrace your growth.

During this interview, you'll learn...

• The value of getting it wrong so you know how to get it right
• How to roll with the punches
• The importance of building a strong work culture

To find out more about Tyler, click here.

Connect with Tyler on LinkedIn.

You can listen to the UNAccountable Podcast at this link.

Time Stamps

01:36 - Tyler discusses his career journey
03:05 - Positioning yourself for success
05:16 - Getting it wrong, to get it right
08:36 - Managing problem clients
11:32 - Pricing for your value
16:36 - Rolling with the punches
18:55 - Future thinking
21:43 - Building a strong work culture
27:12 - Setting the rules & sticking to them

“The number one marketing strategy for bookkeepers, people would say, is 'do a good job and referrals will come.'”
-Debbie Roberts

Finding the right people to work in our businesses is tough. Managing expectations on both sides can be challenging, maybe our systems and processes aren’t as great as we hoped, or maybe they just aren’t the right fit for us.

No matter what happens, mistakes are only a waste of time if we refuse to learn from them. When we get things wrong, it gives us a great opportunity to review our practices and see what isn’t working. This will help us understand where the fault lies and how to fix it.

Not everyone wants to be the boss, some just want to turn up and do what they love, but in order to find these people we have to be sure of their skills. You cannot take someone’s word on success. Spend time with them, sit with them and have them show you they can do everything you want them to do, in the way you want them to do it.

Peter Cook, and Debbie Roberts, co-authors of the E-Myth Bookkeeper and co-founders of Pure Bookkeeping, are this episode’s featured guests. This sixth episode regarding The E-Myth Bookkeeper is all about how to hire great people, develop your systems and be relentless in the pursuit of your dreams.

If you are struggling to grow in your business and want to scale but aren’t sure how to find and test the right people for you then this episode will teach you how to build the right systems and then test and hire with confidence.

During this interview, you'll learn...

• The value of never giving up on your dreams
• How to hire great people & keep them
• The importance of systems & processes in your business

To find out more about Peter, click here or connect with him on LinkedIn.

To learn more about Debbie, visit this link or connect with her on LinkedIn.

Get your copy of The E-Myth Bookkeeper.

To learn about Pure Bookkeeping, visit this link.

Catch-up on the full E-Myth Bookkeeper Peter Cook podcast series with past episodes below!

Episode 1

Episode 2

Episode 3

Episode 4

Episode 5

Time Stamps

01:21 - The Successful Bookkeeper
05:27 - Debbie’s story
09:34 - Developing your systems
18:52 - Finding the right people for you
30:54 - Embracing what you’re good at

This episode is brought to you by Pure Bookkeeping. It's the proven system to grow your bookkeeping business.

“You don’t have to know everything, but if you can ask the questions and then if you can figure out how those tie into the financials, you can say ‘here are the numbers, but here’s what they mean.’”
-Jeff Bartsch

All of us have a story, but few of us embrace the ability we all possess to change the narrative at any moment. There is comfort in familiarity, but it can also imprison us. If we keep saying to ourselves, ‘I am just a bookkeeper’, that is all we'll ever be.

But, it doesn’t have to be this way.

We can change our personal and professional stories at any time, and when we do, we begin to think differently about ourselves. If we are what we think, then changing our thoughts will automatically change our actions. Easier said than done, but given the alternative, what do we have to lose in trying to think better of ourselves?

Jeff Bartsch, founder of Story Greenlight, is this episode’s featured guest. He has spent his career helping people understand the story of their business and how to tell it successfully. In this second of a two-episode special, Michael and Jeff discuss tactical ways to add advisory services to your business, the power of measurement and how to attract and keep your ideal client.

If you think of yourself as just a bookkeeper or aren’t sure how to put your experience to greater use, then this is the episode to get you believing you don’t have to have all the answers, just the willingness to think better of yourself and try harder for your clients each day.

During this interview, you'll learn...

• The value of measuring the data
• How to add advisory service to your business
• What your ideal client looks like, and how to keep them

To find out more about Jeff, click here.