Accounting By Edrina

If you feel guilty every time you go to Starbucks, it’s probably time for a dining out budget. Feeling guilty about spending money on dining out can definitely make you feel stressed if there is no plan. Having a budget can help with that! Eliminating that guilt is crucial to helping you have a better relationship with money. Part of getting rid of that guilt with money is holding yourself accountable for your spending habits. A budget is a great way to do that. Read more about ways to reduce financial guilt on my blog post 5 Ways A Budget Can Help Reduce Stress. https://lnkd.in/gDRbxE9c

It’s essential to understand the flow of your finances in terms of where the amounts come from. The first thing we should look at is the General Ledger. The General Ledger is where all the transactions are located for your accounting records. The General Ledger (often referred to as the “GL”) comprises various accounts, including account types such as Banking, Income, Assets, Liabilities, Expenses, and Depreciation, among others. For example, suppose you have a company credit card and are asked to use a system, like Concur, to submit your expenses for review/approval and, ultimately, reimbursement. In that case, you are asked to categorize your expenses. You are using various categories such as “Travel - airfare,” “Travel - hotel,” and “Travel - meals.” Each of those categories would correspond with their specific General Ledger account. So, the total of all the General Ledger accounts makes up the balances shown on your financial statements.

It’s essential to understand the flow of your finances in terms of where the amounts come from. The first thing we should look at is the General Ledger. The General Ledger is where all the transactions are located for your accounting records. The General Ledger (often referred to as the “GL”) comprises various accounts, including account types such as Banking, Income, Assets, Liabilities, Expenses, and Depreciation, among others. For example, suppose you have a company credit card and are asked to use a system, like Concur, to submit your expenses for review/approval and, ultimately, reimbursement. In that case, you are asked to categorize your expenses. You are using various categories such as “Travel - airfare,” “Travel - hotel,” and “Travel - meals.” Each of those categories would correspond with their specific General Ledger account. So, the total of all the General Ledger accounts makes up the balances shown on your financial statements.

Keeping your bookkeeping consistent is critical to running a smooth business. It helps you keep your financial records straight, stay compliant, and make intelligent financial decisions. Plus, it boosts your business's credibility and sets you up for long-term success. Try your very best to use the same methods and practices so you can keep everything on track and growing strong! #bookkeeping #consistency

I like to explain to my clients that bookkeeping is simply storytelling. Your financials will tell the story of your business. Suppose you spent a lot of money on marketing last year. That may mean that you were "boots on the ground" (so to speak) in advertising a new and specific program or offering of your business. Every time your bank, or credit card, account is charged (whether a deposit or an expense), there **NEEDS** to be a corresponding financial transaction recorded in your bookkeeping software. In fact, when an auditor looks at your books, they validate the information according to your bank statements. So, ensuring every transaction has a corresponding bookkeeping transaction will set you up for success. These transactions may involve cash, assets (like property, equipment, or inventory), liabilities (like a loan), or equity (i.e. your stake in the company), must be accurately recorded in the chart of accounts. We'll dig into more bookkeeping principles a bit more throughout this month!

Did you know that you can hire me as your Accountant For A Day?! With my unique perspective and skill set in both accounting and analysis, I can see the WHOLE picture of your business for you. I break down your finances so you can see where you’re stuck and make it easy for you to learn how to tweak what you’re doing to significantly impact your bottom line! I am the missing link in your business’s success, offering a personalized and understanding approach that values your unique circumstances and challenges. Want to learn more? Click here to schedule your discover call today! https://lnkd.in/gB2auqF9

At the beginning of every year, I like to plan out what I want the first quarter to look like, what I know is going to happen, and/or needs to happen. In a perfect world, I would be able to follow that plan consistently, but it doesn’t ever happen exactly as I planned. New things come into play, some things get taken away, and there are always outside influences that affect the trajectory of my goals for the whole year. Does that mean it’s not worth planning? NO! Having short term and long term plans and goals is essential to running a business well. Otherwise, you don’t have direction and could just be floundering. As the saying goes, “Failing to plan, is planning to fail.” So, make those plans and goals! But, this is important… You have to remember to be flexible and versatile with those plans. You will have times where you need to make adjustments to your timeline, or reassess what the endgame will look like, or completely pivot to something else. Flexibility and planning have to work in tandem. So, put down those three month, one year, and five year plans and goals. But, remain open for adjustments. #business #planning #goals

Often the toughest part of personal finances is acknowledging what you’re spending. It’s not unusual to go months without looking at any of your bank or credit card statements. This is because, for most people, reading their statement gives them that sinking feeling in their stomach when they see how much they’ve really been spending. Accountability, however, is a great first step towards your financial reset.? ? You can take it slow. Perhaps look at one or two statements a day over the course of a week. Or rip off the bandaid and do an inventory day. Either way, you need to login to all of your accounts and see what’s going on. By that, I mean:? ? * Are there any subscriptions you forgot about?? * How much are you really spending on eating out?? * Did a recurring expense increase or decrease by an alarming amount?? * Were you able to add to your savings?? * Anything else that stands out?? ? Confronting some tough questions like this will help you take accountability for your spending habits. Once you’ve taken inventory of your accounts, you can then start to pinpoint any habits you want to change and make a plan to do so.?

I have had to learn that in order to stay on top of my deadlines, I need to be concerned about my client's deadlines and schedules. When I create their bookkeeping tasks in Asana I essentially create self-imposed deadlines in order for the process to keep moving. However, if my client is on vacation for a week and can’t get back to me within a couple weeks, I would have to make some adjustments to my own schedule. And, believe me, this has happened on more than one occasion. It's all about staying flexible and respecting each other's time and workload. How have you managed your deadlines in your own business? I'd love to discuss! #smallbusiness #entrepreneur #deadlines

Do you know what your money pits are? Is it Dunkin Donuts, Amazon, Hobby Lobby, Target, Temu, or even Craigslist? If you're on a journey to reduce expenses, then do your future self a favor and try not to go to those stores or websites! ? One strategy I like to use personally is to set a monthly budget for Amazon, and only allow myself to click on "purchase" once during the month. Here's how that works - throughout the month as I'm browsing on Amazon, I'll add items to my cart and then click on "save for later". Then when it’s the beginning of the next month, I start adding a few things to my cart to equal my budget, and then I stop there. Granted, this strategy has been YEARS in the making, but just try it for one month and see how it goes for yourself! ? Another strategy I like to implement is to remove the actual app from my cell phone. This helps tremendously as there are multiple barriers that I'd have to go through in order to purchase another item. ? These strategies may sound extreme, but they could be the thing to make a huge difference in your personal finances!