At Dunker Muffin Paper Company (see what I did there?), everyone is up in arms about the most recent first quarter accounting reports that were just released. The sales team is convinced that the accounting department has incompetent employees and the accounting team is playing defense, adamant that their processes and ways of record-keeping are…
As a 16-year-old who was old enough to drive and old enough to date, my parents instituted a curfew. I was to be back home before 11pm on Fridays and Saturdays. The curfew was short lived, however, because after only two weekends of this new house rule, my parents realized they didn’t want to stay…
Brush your teeth! We all know that this is a principle to live by. And yet, everyone does it a bit differently. Fannie Mae brushes her teeth using the American Dental Association’s guideline: for 2 minutes, twice a day, with a soft bristle toothbrush. She uses an electric pink toothbrush. Sally Mae brushes her teeth…
At the end of each year, it’s customary to pause and reflect on the past 12 months, both personally and professionally. As leaders and business owners, it’s also a critical time to remember all that you’ve learned about growing your business, and commit to healthy financial practices in the year to come. It’s been an…
Hole 7 of my local miniature golf course is nearly impossible to shoot under par. It’s a straight shot to a red, metal, raised cone that looks like a volcano that blew its top. The hole is nestled at the top of the cone, waiting patiently for the mini-golfer to hit the perfect shot, sinking…
Spacely’s Space Sprockets Software company was the next up and coming startup in the business world. The owner had big financial goals and was putting all the company’s time, energy, and resources into hitting their sales goals by the end of the year. And it was working! Business was pouring in… that is, until a…
You’re driving 70 miles per hour on the highway, heading west towards your vacation cottage in the mountains. The only thing standing between you and your well-earned 7 days of relaxation is 10 miles of an incredibly dense, pea-soup fog. You’re reluctant to slow down as you think about how nice it is going to…
Imagine your business is so financially strapped that in order to pay off your creditors, you have to take another loan, from another creditor. At this point, you are paying off interest while racking up more interest. A business can not stay afloat for long in this type of situation. Unfortunately, I’ve seen situations like…
Is your bookkeeper handling your business books correctly? If you aren’t trained in accounting, don’t be too quick to say yes… Bookkeeping is often one of the first tasks to get outsourced to a contractor or bookkeeping firm, which is a great strategy for entrepreneurs that dislike the task. But YIKES – I get antsy…
Business is great. You are so busy that you’ve been burning the candle at both ends just to keep up with all of the new orders coming in. The best way to describe you at this moment is happy, but utterly exhausted. You were already asleep before your head hit the pillow last night, and…