Have you fallen behind on your Bookkeeping? What I mean is… Is your Bookkeeping more than 1 week behind?
There is no successful business owner who doesn’t know and use their numbers.
Up to date, accurate, accounting records (Bookkeeping) is what we call Numbers 101.
Getting Numbers 101 right, that is, keeping your bookkeeping up to date and accurate, is the foundation for your business success.
These days, thanks to modern technology, it’s easier than ever to keep your Bookkeeping up to date. And yet, more business owners are failing at this than ever before.
Here’s my top tips for keeping your bookkeeping up to date:
First, you need great technology. I recommend Xero for your accounting software and receipt bank by Dext to make your bills and expenses paperless and handled by an AI.
Second, you’ll need a bank account reserved solely for business purposes. Do not mix business and personal money. That is a big no-no in terms of Bookkeeping & also Business 101.
Third, you’ll need to engage a strategic bookkeeper in some way, shape or form even if you are doing your own Bookkeeping. At absolute minimum, you’re going to get them to check your file and keep you on track.
Fourth, you’ll do your Bookkeeping and accounts on the go which will be easy with the right tech. You’ll keep your bookkeeping up to date weekly, if not, daily.
We are often called upon to help business owners bring their books up to date after they fall behind. And as business owners, we often tend to think of our situation as unique.
But the truth is, it’s common and predictable which is good news because that means that the solutions are not unique either.
When we meet business owners who have fallen behind on their books, the reasons are always the same. It’s just the words that are different.
You thought you couldn’t afford someone to do it for you. That’s money.
You thought you’d do it yourself but you never got around to it because you didn’t get the time and you didn’t make it a priority. That’s time.
Time and money, these are the reasons.
When Business owners reach out to us they’re always saying “I wish I had have found you earlier, it would have saved me so much money.”
So now that we understand why your bookkeeping falls behind, let’s look at the consequences.
Unfortunately, businesses face severe consequences when they find themselves behind on the books. Ultimately, they’re
Behind, Blind & Stuck in the Grind
And this means
They don’t actually know if they’re making money
They don’t know who they owe money too (like the ATO)
They could be facing bankruptcy
I am not going to sugarcoat it, falling behind on your bookkeeping is a disaster.
If you are behind on your bookkeeping, I want you to think about that for a moment.
You might be thinking why, surely there are far more things, far more important things than having my bookkeeping up to date?
If you were thinking that, I’ll ask you a question.
What do you think is more important than up to date accurate accounting records for your business?
Take a moment to write your answers down.
I’m going to take a guess that you wrote “sales or revenue” down as one of your answers.
The belief that focusing on revenue as the most important thing in business is a damaging misconception that sends many businesses broke.
When you first start out in business, you are probably hustling and scrambling for every sale you can get and ringing the bell when that money comes in the door.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again:
There is no successful business owner who doesn’t know and use their numbers.
How can I help you get your numbers sorted? If you’d like to talk, book a call below (or use one of our free tools to help you get started).
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