Conquering Workflows & Systems For Bookkeepers & Accountants | with Alyssa Lang (Workflow Queen)

How to Ask for Help in Balancing Your Bookkeeping Business & Personal Life with Shatoria Smith

• Season 1 • Episode 68

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Alyssa Lang interviews Shatoria Smith, Owner and Founder of SLSmith Virtual Solutions, about all things balancing business, work and getting her CPA and the journey she’s experienced along the way.

In this episode you’ll hear:

  • How she is balancing sitting for her CPA exam, running her business and working full time
  • How to ask for support from friends and family while she navigates her business
  • How to make clients feel comfortable and confident when working with them

About our guest:

Shatoria is a dynamic entrepreneur driven by a mission to foster financial empowerment. As the founder of Coin Countin Mama, she shares her journey to debt-free living, inspiring others to achieve the same. Additionally, through SLSmith Virtual Solutions, Shatoria offers accounting and virtual assistant services, particularly supporting female entrepreneurs and mentoring aspiring virtual assistants.

With a background in Accounting and Finance, she specializes in bookkeeping for small businesses in the wedding and event management industry. Outside of work, Shatoria enjoys bargain hunting, indulging in Hot Tamales, and relaxing with HGTV. Residing in Central Florida with her husband and three sons, she cherishes a harmonious balance between ambition and family life.

Connect with Shatoria Smith:

Send her an email : hello@iamslsmith.com Follow her on Instagram: @thevirtualbookkeeper

Thanks for listening. If this episode inspired you in some way, take a screenshot of you listening on your device and post it to your Instagram stories and tag me, @workflowqueen

For more information about the Conquering Workflows & Systems for Bookkeepers & Accountants Podcast or interest in our programs or mentoring visit our resources below:

Visit our website: workflowqueen.com

Check out our courses: workflowqueen.com/courses

Follow the Blog: workflowqueen.com/blog

Connect on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/alyssa-lang-wq

Connect on Instagram: instagram.com/workflowqueen

Connect on Facebook: Facebook.com/workflowqueen

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So if you're one of those people who just feel like you have a really hard time asking for help, and that sometimes you feel like you're just juggling all the things with all the balls in the air. And sometimes you just want someone to approach you to just give you the support that you absolutely need, or you just really want to ask and shout it out. But you might be struggling with that. This is the most perfect episode for you. And also if you're one of those people who are just like going along on this bookkeeping journey and just really incorporating all the different things. And just chugging along and really wanting to make sure that you're in full alignment with the business. And this episode is for you. And today's episode, I'm interviewing a lovely woman who I just absolutely adore after interviewing her in this episode. Her name is Victoria Smith and she is just so wicked. Amazing. I can't believe all the things that she's currently juggling. She is literally sitting for the CPA exam history kids. She's also runs her bookkeeping business and also has a full-time job. And she also subcontracts for someone else. And I just don't understand how she does it all, but she's just so incredible. She's an incredible mother. And she just shares her journey about really asking for support and reaching out to other people to get that support. And we talk a lot about really making our clients feel comfortable to open up to us. And so today's episode is going to be so much fun and you're just going to really absolutely adore. Satoria just as much as I did. Hey everyone and welcome back to yet another episode of the Conquering Workflows and Systems for Bookkeepers and Accountants podcast with your host here Alyssa Lange. I'm so excited because I'm bringing on another special guest here today. Her name is Shatoria Smith. I'm so pumped to be diving into the conversation today. I was deep diving into her, all the things she submitted on our application to be here as a guest and I'm so excited to just Bring someone on who's just going to be a fresh face, someone to really share their experience to their bookkeeping journey with, I don't know how she does it, but like also on top of managing children and also going for her CPA. And I'm just like, just in awe of you. Like I said, I just have a dog and it's a lot for me. So I can only imagine what you're going through. So welcome to the show. Thank you so much. And feel free to introduce yourself. Thank you, Alyssa. Hi everybody. I'm Shatoria Smith. I am a Florida native. I have three kids, three boys actually, and they're ages six and under. So ages six, four, and three, I'm married. I work full time, I do bookkeeping part time, and I decided to Why not just take some time and study for the CPA exam so I can get a CPA. Yes. I love that. I like how you're like, I'm just also going to add into the mix. Like you pick the, the almost the toughest thing is like, and I kind of picked that extra thing. Girl, it's like, okay, yeah. Doing all of the things. It's like, let's just throw something else in there too. So wait. Oh, why not? Why not? I also forgot that you also said that you were working full time too. So let's just add that to the right, right girl. It's crazy because I have people that ask you, how do you do it? And I tell them, I said, I don't know. I just do it. And I know that sounds weird, but I do, you know, but I still find like a balance in there some type of way, even though it sounds crazy, there's still like some sort of balance in there. I don't know. But I don't know if somebody else said that they did all the things that I do. I probably look at them side. I like girl, stop. Really? Okay. So for the CPA, so I'm assuming you had to go, cause right. You have to go to school for a certain number of years before you can even sit for the exam, correct? Yes. So you have to have here in Florida, because the. The requirements are different in each state. So here in Florida, you have to at least have college credit. So I do have a degree in accounting, so I can sit for the exam. Now to get your license, you have to at least have 150 credit hours. So being that I do have a master's degree, I automatically have that 150 credit hours, so I don't have to worry about taking any additional coursework. Oh, cool. So you're really just your main focus like it's not a big feat like I'm saying it like your focus right now is like really just studying the actual exam itself and just getting ready to sit for it. Yes, that's correct. Oh, interesting. And how is it like what's the process? I know Serena. Yeah, she's gone through it and she's like, it's crazy. Girl, it's crazy because I've been out of school for a while. And, like, okay, yeah, let's just go back and try to study. And, you know, you're out of school for a while and you're trying to get back in. It's just like, Oh God. Okay. And it's like, well, you know what, let me just put my best foot forward and just go for it. And, Yeah, it's intense. I said that I didn't want to be that person. It's like, I'm going to spend six hours on Saturday, five hours on Sunday and five hours on Friday studying. No, I try to do like two hours a day, like in bite sized pieces, because that's the way it will work for me. Because I can't sit there for a long drawn out study session. Like. I will admit last week I was trying to study and I found myself nodding. So I'm like done, go to bed. Like I'm not gonna sit there and just force myself to go through something. But I figured, you know, if I do it in bite sized pieces and just do a little bit each day, I think that would help me in the long run. And I do have a schedule that I stick to so that I'm not doing these bite sized study sessions and it's eight months later and I'm still in like module two. So it's like I do have a schedule. I do have a schedule of how I want to approach each section. And then I go from there, review it, move on to the next one, because I do have a goal to take my first exam in June. Ooh, well, congrats. Keep us posted. I can't wait to be cheering you on. That's so exciting. I feel like me and you are very identical in the fact that, like, I cannot sit there for hours. One, in general, I'm not even talking about studying. I cannot sit down for six hours doing the same thing. Like, you're going studying, I'm going to fall asleep. Mm hmm. And the good thing is like, I study at night, like, so I do it once my kids are asleep, because if they were awake, I, they'd be coming in my room like, mommy, what are you doing? You know, my husband will be coming in here talking about something he's seen on YouTube. So it's like, for me to do this at night works, you know, I don't have to worry about looking out the window because I'm that type of person where, excuse me, I'll look out the window. Like right now it's raining. I'll sit here and be like, okay, it's raining. I'm like, what is that in the gray? So I have to do it. And yeah, I get distracted real easily. So it's like, okay, doing it at night works for me. You know, I'm able to retain the information when I wake up in the morning, I'd start thinking about certain concepts that I went over the night for, and it's like, okay, I remember that. It's like, Ooh, this part, not so much. So I have my own flashcards that I look at. When I'm at work throughout the day, I might look at a flash card or two, you know, but, yeah, I just have to find something that works for me. This is so impressive. This is so impressive. I didn't realize I was going to be so impressed getting on this. I know reading your bio, of course, and now hearing it, like, I'm sitting here thinking about my routine. So, right, I get up at four o'clock every day. It's like my thing. And I go right to work. Like, I am, I am. Fresh, top of mind, best on my game. Like that's my fresh, freshest mindset is right in the morning. So I don't do anything else. I literally make my pot of coffee, which is usually like already set up. And I just have to press the little button. I go to work, but you can probably get out of me like a good solid two to four hours after that. I'm like, my brain can't function. I'm even surprised I'm doing a podcast interview at four o'clock my time. It is not normal for me. Like this is, this is a long day for me. Right? So the reason I say that is because for someone like me, like my biggest. Responsibility is to make sure my dog goes outside to go potty. It's that's hard for me. And then I have days where I'm like, I can't even read my book. Like even just a personal, like mystery book. So I just don't understand, like, how do you do it? It's so crazy, but it's so amazing and very inspiring for listeners as well. It's crazy. Like, for instance, on Monday and Friday, I'm working from home. Now, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, I go into the office. So, I have to be there at 7. 30. So, I'm leaving my house at 6. 45. So, I'm not here to help boys get dressed. I might, I might, Lay out their clothes the night before, but I had to scale back on some of that because I'm like, you know what? Dad needs to take some of the responsibilities. So mommy's not going to lay out everything. I'll make sure the clothes are folded in the drawer, but let him do that. Because I found myself getting stressed out and anxious because I was like, did you put on his shorts? Did you put on this shirt? Did you put on the socks? Did you know? I didn't put those shoes out. I put those other shoes out. Did you put his? Back his permission slip in his backpack. Did you put money on his lunch account? Did you send pull ups to the school found myself doing that when I was like doing everything when I decided nope dad is equal participant in this party. their clothes are clean and it's in there in the drawer So when it's 6 45, I get my keys, okay And if some of them are still asleep, the oldest one is up All right Bye mommy's leaving and I walk out and I have no guilt behind it ever since I started doing that I'm just like, okay, I can do this. But before, because I'm a planner, just like, Oh, by myself, feeling like anxious and crazy, so I was like, no, dad, dad has it. And he'll call me, Hey, I can't find such a second. I'm like, did you look at your car? You know, like, did you ask him where he had it last? You know, I don't even like get frustrated. And I think that's what's like my savings grace, because I'm just like, whatever. He'll figure it out. I love that. And I think it's such a good topic. Like I said, we have a lot of our listeners who are moms, who are trying to balance their business on top of, you know, their kids and all that stuff. And I have heard many conversations around the stress and overwhelm that comes from being a mother versus a father where like a lot of the times the women feel like they have this obligation to constantly do, do, do. And so I think this is such a beautiful combo for one. I'm glad to hear that both of you are coming together because I think it was probably really hard for you before this was a thing for you to ask for help. Yes. And at times it still is because I don't want to feel like I have a fourth child, even though we know he is, of course, don't want him to feel that way. So it's like, okay, should I ask, or should I not ask? And I try to check the way that I say it because. Sometimes my delivery may not be the best. So I just try to make sure, okay, make sure you say it in a pleasant manner. So he doesn't feel like I'm like, Hey, go do that. You know, so I'm like, Hey, can you help me with the boys? Or I'll say like tonight. Hey, don't forget. I have the podcast tonight. It's like, okay. I even put an alert in our phones because we have like to share Google calendar. So it pops up on his phone, just like it does on mine. So he can't say like, Oh, I didn't know he, he knows. Yeah. So I try to do little things like that and just say, Hey, just, just in case you forgot. Well, I'll even tell my oldest son, he said, and I'll say, okay, mommy has something to do. So he'll say, daddy, mommy's going to do such and such. Are you going to make dinner or prepare dinner? Because I already cooked dinner. So all he had to do was just played it. So yeah, like, let me just figure out ways how to. Work smarter and not harder. And so, yeah, I love that. I love that so much. I think it's probably such a big message for a lot of people listening who are just trying to juggle it all, where sometimes all you got to do is ask. And if you don't, maybe for anyone listening who maybe doesn't have a significant other, and maybe you're a single mom and you're going through this, ask for support in other areas. It could be your family. It could also be another bookkeeper. If you're feeling overwhelmed with the work, there's people out there who will jump in and help you. So just know that. Yeah. There's always support in different formats and different ways. Even if it might not be in the same capacity as, you know, what you've been sharing. So, thank you for that. I think it's going to be really helpful for people who have a hard time asking for help. Because I'm one of those people. Absolutely. Who really, really struggle with asking people for help. Because I want to wear the badge that I do it. And I'm superwoman and I can do this. That right before we hit record, nobody knows this until I'm about to tell you. But I told Shatori that I like had a cry today and that big cry was about, like, I have a hard time asking for help. And like, and then I get to this point where I feel almost triggered, overwhelmed, and I have to like, peel back all these layers of like, all I had to do was ask. All I had to do was, and my friends and family are so willing to help me. But isn't that crazy? Like, I'll even share this with you. So I've been dealing with. Sinus and allergy issues since March began, like here in Florida, the pollen is ridiculous. It's insane. So last week I had to go to the office every day and there's so many oak trees and all these other trees down there at the job where I'm just like, Oh my God, like, this is insane. So Friday when I came home, my head was hurting so bad. I changed out of my clothes. I laid down in the bed. I didn't get up until Saturday morning because my head was hurting so bad. And you could probably still hear it in my voice with the calling issues, whatever. But anyway Monday my husband had a dentist appointment and he was like, can you go to the daycare and pick the boys up? And I hadn't really gone anywhere because I've been in bed, like my head is hurting. So I was like, okay, I'll go. So when I got in the car, it just felt weird because I've been in bed since Friday afternoon. So when I got to the daycare just felt a little like. Not lightheaded, but I just felt like my equilibrium was off. Like, I just felt like I was leaning. so I got to my first, my oldest son first, and he was like, mommy, okay. I said, I'm just going to sit down. So we have some parent friends that we hang out with at the day. They're actually live in our neighborhood. And so when I was getting ready to walk out, I saw them walking in. And so she looked at me, she was like, are you okay? And I sat down and I started crying. He's like, why are you crying? I said, because I'm not. She's like, why? So Rico's at the doctor, at the dentist. I said, he wanted me to come get the boys. I said, and I just feel like I can't stand up straight. I said, and I just want to make sure we're able to get home safely. And she's like, okay, so she was with her husband. She was like, Hey, I'm going to drive to Toria home. You follow me. It's going to work. We're going to be okay. And I was in the moment. I was just like, it wasn't bad. I didn't feel bad asking, but at the same time, it was like, And she's gonna look at me like I'm crazy. Like, does it make me feel this or that? You know, it's like those thoughts run through your mind. But once I got home, and got situated, she was like, Was that that bad? I was like, No. She was like, That's what we're here for. She was like, If I need you, I know you would drop everything to help me. And I would. I would just drop everything in an instant. So it's like, It's okay to sometimes It's sometimes it's okay to be that person that needs the help and people are just as equally excited to help you. That's something that I still struggle with, but it felt good knowing that he was there in that moment to help me at that point in time, it was like, We were like ordained to be in the same spot at the same time, you know? Yeah. And I, I truly believe in it's hard. Like you said, no matter how much I believe this, I still struggle with asking for the support and asking for the help, but I really do innately believe that people actually like, I don't want to say get high on like helping people get another right word to use, but like, I know that I do. I can't, I can't, I feel like I get, I stand up taller. I stand up stiffer when someone asks me, I need you because I feel powerful. When someone asks me that, like, I. Got past my barrier to be able to ask you for help. I want to do anything that I can to like, well, how can I help you? What can I do? Sometimes maybe I'm tired or I don't feel like doing anything. And I get that. There's those moments, but deep down, I think humans in general, genuinely actually like helping other people if they're being asked. They do. And it's like, you have to close your eyes out to the negativity. Like I used to watch the news all the time because my mom, it's like, oh, I need to watch the news too. It's like, Stopped watching it because I'm like, watching the news will make you afraid to go out of your house and do things. And when you think about it, I said, The news is focusing on a small percentage, so small, you know, and it's like, when you, when you shut that out and you just live your life and do what you need to do, it's like, you realize, Oh my God, there's so many great dynamic people out there that will go out their way to help you out, or if you need help, you know, vice versa, you know what I mean? So it's like, We, we can self sabotage ourselves, you know, because we let our mind to think that, Oh, I don't know if anybody's going to really help me. They might look at me like I'm crazy. And when you ask you're just like, It wasn't that bad. I was tripping for no reason, you know? Yeah. Yeah, 100%. I'm, I'm definitely great that we, glad that we are having this conversation because I think I might have needed it more than I did just because of what I've been like experiencing today. I don't know what was the trigger. Actually, I do know what the trigger was. But it just kind of spiraled today. And I'm like, I just need to ask people. And I, what I did was I ended up calling my business, Steve Brook. And I was like, I just need some help. Like, how do you work through X, Y, Z? And like, sometimes you feel like you're going to be a burden or all these different things. So I'm just very grateful for people who do answer or are there. And if they don't answer, I always can like bother the next friend. And then they assure you, they're like, Hey, it's okay. Or if you have any more questions, let me know. Okay. Don't tip me because I will call you in a few minutes. Stop. It's gonna be all bad. I think this past year I have gotten a lot better at like reminding myself that it's okay to ask for help, that it doesn't make, cause I've always in my mind have considered that it's weak, that if I need help, whether that's like, for example, it could be something that nobody even knows about. It could mean be like signing up for a course or taking something like I like don't want to, because like I should know how to research on my own. So I get like that. so I have my own internal bat. And it's funny, cause like I am a course creator. So like I am a teacher and I really wish someone didn't feel like that, but I totally get that because that's how I've always worn it. But then now I'm at a place in my business where it's like, I do like to still learn things, but like, I no longer desire the long nights and the long stress and like the having to find all the answers. And I think that like this past year has really put into perspective the importance of. Just stopping and just asking, and it could be the littlest thing. Can you just put the dishes away? I mean, right. Little things. Yes. And it makes you feel so much better. It's like these dishes are put up, you know, like my, kitchen counters are cleaning. Wow. I really wish I asked. Yeah. I wish my dog can help. He doesn't do much. He's cute. It's all that matters. That's all he serves for me. When I started teaching the boys how to put their, utensils in the dishwasher. Oh my gosh. When I tell you, it's like even the baby, he's three. I'll say, okay, go put your spoon up. He said, Hey. And he said, mama, I did it. I said, Hey, thank you. And in a few months, I'm like, I'm going to teach you how to load this dishwasher now to turn it on I'll probably, I'll probably have a six year old do it, but, It's just like a sense of accomplishment and they're so proud, like, when they're doing it too, like, yay! Yeah, I'm like, that'll fade when you become an adult. It's like, now it's no fun. Yeah, it's just like, oh God, okay. I totally get it. Totally get it. Well, man, I love, I love this. I do want to kind of circle into your firm and kind of what you have going on, because I know that you're also juggling full time. So, I'd love Like to talk about where are you currently at? Like in the business, what are you offering right now? What are you really focused on? I know, I believe you have a niche I think is what you kind of mentioned to me. So kind of give me some context about the firm and what you've got going on. Absolutely. So I work with started out working with wedding planners photographers and corporate events and, I've actually started networking with a lot of balloon artists and florists. So I'm thinking it's just more of like a wedding and event type of bitch. Yeah. And I really enjoy it because deep down inside, I always wanted to be like a wedding planner. Oh, same. So I feel like really? I didn't know that. Where, so where like I really, I used to buy, like at Barnes and Noble when I was younger, like all the money that I had, I used to buy a little wedding planning. Wedding planning books. Mm-Hmm. like event planning things. I really thought I was gonna be an event planner. Yes. And here we are not event planning. Well I just knew I was gonna be. A wedding planner. I just like, Oh my gosh, like you guys put on these elaborate events and it's so lush and so like everything just like, you know, I just knew I was going to do that. And here I am with an accounting degree, but it's okay. But I really enjoy working in that industry. Like I, I like it. I love and I'm an Instagram girl. So I love looking at the pictures and all of that. So like seeing the full picture come together, it's just like, Oh, and then seeing it behind the scenes, it's like, Oh, it takes all of that to put on the wedding. I'm like, you got to talk to this vendor, but you got to pay this. You got to do it. So I like to see like what's going on behind the scenes, but, um, I got started. Okay, so this is this is how I think I started. I relocated from South Florida to Central Florida. I was working in law enforcement still in an accounting capacity. I started working at a local school district. And when I got to the school district, they were like, Oh, we need you to. Support some of the school bookkeepers and I'm like, what? And they're like, we just need you to go over and look at like the, the monthly reports that they submit to the district, making sure that they're accurate. Okay. So when I started doing it, nobody was in that position before me. So for me, it was just like, there's no like, where the SOP is like, I need to know what to do because I don't really know what y'all want me to do. So I ended up making the position like my own or whatever. And I started working with school bookkeepers who had no financial background. They were either school clerks school crossing guards, or former bus drivers who didn't want to be bus drivers or crossing guards anymore. They wanted something that was in the office, and I had to teach them how to do their bookkeeping, how to read a bank statement, you know, how to enter a deposit into the system. That's it. To reconcile their, they had P cards. So how to reconcile your P card, how to keep your documentation, things like that. And I enjoyed it because I was able to break down basic concepts and make it in a, in a bite sized pieces in a level that they can understand because they're like, you know, we try to work with other people. They're using all these terms and I don't really know what that means. And so I would just break it down. I was like, well, let's think about you paying your bills at home. Okay. You know, what would you typically do in this situation or when it's time to get paid, do you go through and look at what bills you have coming up? Or do you just pay bills and just wing it and pray and just hoping everything goes through, you know? And so I realized like, wow, I really like doing this. So I stayed there for about seven years. And, while I was there, covid happened. Mm-Hmm. And Covid kind of put things in perspective because it's just like, oh, okay. What's happening in the world? Like, they're like, am I gonna have a job? Like, and I just had my second baby and I was all on Instagram hearing about side hustle, side hustle, side hustle. I'm like, well, maybe I need a side hustle.. Now I have two kids. Like, what can I do? A side hustle That is your side hustle. Hustle . Yeah. So I was just like, uh, I don't know. So I came across this Instagram post, somebody put on there. She's a CPA. And at the time he was launching her own firm and she was like, I'm ready to outsource and hire somebody. So when I saw her post, I was just like, whatever. And I went on, did my own thing. Well, her post showed up again and I was like, why do I keep seeing this? So when I saw it again, the third time I just went ahead and applied I ended up. Getting the job from her. She reached out to me, interviewed me, and that's how I got started in a virtual bookkeeping, like working with small business owners. And with me working in corporate, I never used QuickBooks before. I heard about it, but I never used it. I was always using Oracle, which is completely different from QuickBooks. So working with her. Allowed me to see how things work in QuickBooks and what it's like working with small business owners and seeing what it's like to own your own business and work from home. I like the flexibility because I could do my bookkeeping for the clients that she assigned to me. I can do it at night. I can do it on the weekend. I can do it while the boys are asleep. As long as I had everything done by our monthly deadline, they care less what I did. Yeah. So I'm like, okay, you know, so she started me out with four clients and she gave me five. Then I got eight, believe it or not, this is going to sound so crazy. I'm going to have my firm and I still subcontract for her too. Oh my gosh. You just like forgot that little piece. Yes. I still subcontract her because she's such a beautiful spirit. Like she's an amazing person. Then even if I decide, like, I don't want to have that full plate, I would probably still like do like one or two clients for her because I just love her that much because she gave me that opportunity, he poured into me and I just admire her and just seeing like how her business has grown and transformed. So, that kind of made me look at things differently. Right. So with me working at the school and. The politics of stuff going on in the school district. I was just like, you know what? Now that I'm a mom, maybe I should start looking at things from a different perspective, as far as starting my own business and one day being able to take that full time so that I can have a true work life balance that works for me and not have to worry about working in a corporate environment that can be, not can be, that is toxic, you know? So. I did that work with her for a few years and still working with her. And in 2023, the end of 2022, 23, I was like, you know what? Maybe I'll just step out on faith and do my own thing. And sure enough, I did. And I, believe it or not, I got my first client within a month. I got my second client the next month. When I ended last year, I was just five clients, but didn't want to Put too much on my plate and set myself up for unrealistic expectations. And, I love it. Like all my clients, except one they're quarterly, because I feel like that just works better for me and my schedule right now, most of my clients, still have full time jobs and they're, you know, working on their businesses part time. So I'm like, you know, we have something in common, you know, And, this year I dubbed three more, but I have seven clients now. And I think I'm kind of going to stop there until, you know, I'm make some changes or do whatever. I really like working with my clients. They're very easy to talk to. They know going into this, that I have a full time job. They know that I have three kids. They are aware that I work in the wedding and event industry or work with people in that space. And, I'm enjoying it. I have faced some challenges as far as not necessarily knowing everything, but I like that because that allows me to dig a little deeper and to learn more instead of just being like, oh, well. You have like, for instance, a new client, I have, she had her honey book hooked up with her quick book and my God doubles up everything. It's like, oh my God, it's the worst. Oh my God. So I was just like, oh my goodness, this is insane. Yes. And so I'm like, okay, I'm glad that I accepted this challenge at all. I know how to go through it and deal with it. You know, because had I not, I. Wouldn't have known that it was such a nightmare like that, but I'm grateful that I was like, you know what, I'll go ahead, see what this consists of that she didn't really have too many clients inside of HoneyBook, which was a blessing in itself. Yeah. still, it was, It's a little mess. Yeah. Yeah. We just signed on a cleanup client that is an ops like specialist. And so they help a lot of different businesses with like operations and stuff like that. And so she has Dubsado and she hooked up her Dubsado because someone told her somewhere to hook it up. And I was like, there's probably an influencer who told you this, who gave you terrible advice. And now everything's duplicated. And then even then the other day we reached out to him. We're like, Hey, By the way, we need you to disconnect Dubsado. And we gave her the instructions, which were to do the disconnection from within QBO. Yes. And she actually ended up was thinking that we also were like, Oh, go into Dubsado and disconnect it. So she disconnected it from Dubsado, but she also had given permission from QBO. And so when you're also giving, just because you disconnected from Dubsado, doesn't mean that you also didn't just give permission to QBO. To go from their way into Dub Sado. And so even though she disconnected with it, we were like, we're still seeing it, but then I was like, maybe give it 24 hours and maybe it'll go away or whatever. It didn't, it kept bringing in all the different, the invoices and kept repeating everything. So then we looked in the apps again. So we sent her the instructions again, which were the same SOP. And I was like, Hey, just to remind you, like you need to disconnect it from within QuickBooks online. And she's like, I already disconnected. I was like, you have to do it within QuickBooks online. Cause you're also telling QBO. That you're giving it permission to pull in from Dubsado just as much as you told Dubsado you were giving QBO permission. So you just doubled your connection. And that's why it was doubling the data on top of the other transactions coming to the bank fee. So it's like three times the work. so we got her to disconnect it, but a lot of people don't know those things. Well, like you said, it's like a blessing that there wasn't a lot of stuff in there for a person to do it. Right. But at the same time, it's nice because these are also things that help with like, What can I talk about on my social media? Because these are common mistakes that business owners make. Exactly. And she's like, I didn't know. I said, I wouldn't expect you to. I said, but same for me. I didn't know either. You know, I said, because I could have a client that has a honey book and didn't connect the two and everything flowing smoothly, you know, and then seeing yours, I'd be like, well, what's going on. This is so it's okay. I said, I really like it. You learn. And I think a lot of times like we're always expecting it. To have these perfect scenarios, but I think imperfect scenarios really help make or break you. It's like, do you want to take this on or do you not, you know, and I just grateful for, you know, I can't get upset. I can't get mad because it's, it's a part of learning and growing from it. And if there's something that I don't know. I don't mind doing the research. I don't mind asking somebody or even ask her like, Hey, when you went in there, what did you do? Let me see this. Let me see that. Like she even, um, I told her, I said, I'm gonna give you an A for effort because She was trying to do her own, but keeping herself, like categorizing her transactions and setting up rules and doing that, I give you credit for that because some people won't even do that, you know? So you had the right mindset. You had the right intentions. I said, you just need someone to help you out and clean it up and make sure everything is good to go. But, you know, like I told her, I said, sometimes we see when you're not familiar. And it's like, okay, I'm going to just go ahead and categorize. I think, what was it? Line of credit was what she was using for her credit card transactions. And I was like, no, no, no, no, no. I said, that's not the same thing. And I explained to her what that was. And she was like, Oh, she says, you know, I'd never even thought about that. She said, I didn't even think to research it. You know, I said, but as a small business owner doing all the things, I wouldn't expect you to research a line of credit. You know, some people may know what it is. Some people may not know, but I can't pop you on the wrist. We're like, you don't know what a line of credit is. You don't know what that is. You don't can't do that, you know, because everybody does not know and it's okay that they don't know. But I think in this space, it's good to have that teachable, like type of spirit, you know, so that you're able to. teach and help and encourage and not to make somebody feel bad not to condemn them like so stop doing it like that because that's not right you know because that adversity can cause someone to just stop in their tracks and be like I don't want to work with this you know like I don't want to you know don't work with this she talked me crazy she do it's like I don't want to do that I want you to know that working with me is important. I'm here to help free up time, definitely free up stress. Like I like looking at the numbers. I like going in and drilling into it to see what's going on. You may not like it. You might just want to sit back and say, Hey, can you help me understand how to read my PNL? Can you help me? How did you reconcile? Like, I would like to reconcile. How did you do that? What does that mean? You know, You know, so I always just want to go into it as like a teachable or approachable type of thing, not to scold and condemn, you know, because they already feel bad if they haven't been keeping their book, keeping up. You know, a lot of time it's like, when you, for instance, like I talked to a lot of people on Instagram, so they'll reach out and they'll say, Oh, I do this, I do this, I do that. And then the more that they build that relationship or that connection with me, they're like, I thought I was doing that, but I really wasn't doing that. Or I had every intention to do that, but I didn't do it. It's like, you get, you get the truth behind it. And all that is, it just helps me to understand, okay, this is how I can approach X, Y, and Z with this person and start talking about bookkeeping from this perspective, not to make them feel bad because they already feel guilty, like, I haven't filed my taxes. What am I supposed to do? Or I haven't done any bookkeeping, you know, am I supposed to slap their wrist? No, that's wrong. Like. It's not going to make them feel good. And I say all the time that the two most vulnerable things is being naked in your finances. Because to show that side of, like you said, there, this is totally normal. I'm sure all of our listeners here too are also going to think the same, that like a lot of clients will come up to you saying that they're vanity metrics of like, I make this money and like I, this, and then like you go behind the scenes because it's easier to say. You're here versus like what the reality actually is. And people feel shameful. So we find that a lot of people are resistant to working with someone because like, how scary is it to actually like give someone and pull back the curtains to something that's one of the most vulnerable things that you could give up, which, cause our society, says that more money equals you are more valued. Like you are a better person or whatever they say, right? Like, I don't, I don't believe in all that stuff, but like, you definitely are like, you got more money than you're higher up and that you have a better life. And like, there's all these, you know, connotations around all that conversation. And I think that when clients come to us, when they have that like you said, it changes the game for them to finally open up because I can't tell you how many times I work predominantly with women. I can't tell you how many times like women come to work with us and they're like, I get mansplained and this is no offense to all the men out there. We love you. But they get mansplained or like big words are used or they feel really overwhelmed or they feel dumb. And this also can come from women too, like women doing the same thing, but like big words aren't cute. Like, they do nothing for someone who doesn't understand them. Like, their idea of debits and credits is like my debit card and my credit card. Right. Yeah. Yeah. You know? Yeah. They do. And it's like, I had someone that worked with, she's a client. When we started working together, she was so nervous about messing things up. had, think she had like 12 bank accounts because she was like, all my income comes in here. And then I transfer it to this account, and then out of this account, then I transfer my taxes to this, but I have two tax accounts, one for odd years, one for even years, then I have this, and she was like, she was just so nervous because she was like, everyone talks about co mingling funds, co mingling funds, and I just didn't, so I was like, okay, step back, that's it, take a breath, it's okay. So let me explain it to you. Your bank account that you use every day for you, not your business, but for you. I said, do your business expenses come out of that account? It's like, no. I say, is your business income going into that account? Like, no. I said, so you're not co mingling. I said, co mingling is If, and I used to always explain this at the school a lot because what we found out at the school, it wasn't necessarily business and personal at schools. It was faculty and students. So that's how we always had to talk about co mingling. So, I explained to her, I said, so imagine you have your business account, right? Your mortgage is due, you're going to pay your mortgage out your business account your home mortgage. It's like, no, that's a desk co mingling. Same thing on from the school side of things. If the students have a parking lot account where juniors and seniors buying parking passes, their juniors and seniors are funding this account. Did I see end of the year teacher celebrations come out of that? No, because the teachers didn't contribute to the account. So it's like, you got it, you know, explained that way. I said, so don't feel like you have to confuse yourself and put more work on yourself by getting an individual account, because you just don't want things to be messed up because you feel like you're going to get a snap on the wrist. I said, you're doing fine. I said, but You're putting additional stress on yourself that you don't have to put on yourself by having 10 different accounts. I said, I applaud you for being able to keep track of all of this stuff. I said, but let's try to consolidate that because you don't need to have all these extra accounts like that. Like, yeah. Yeah, exactly. And I think a lot of this space has what I like to call fear mongers. So people who are like, the best way to describe this, they're like the narcissists of the business space, like the ones that make you feel like you can never not work with them, because if not, business will crumble and like you could never not do it. And I've seen that in like the accounting space to where like, Preparers or certain CPAs will make them feel like if you don't do this and you don't do it my way and with us like you are gonna crumble and you're gonna get audited and like this fear that they instill and it's and it's almost like it's literally that's the best way I can describe it is like a Very narcissistic relationship because at the end of the day who's picking up the pieces the friends and family So the people picking up the pieces are the bookkeepers and accountants and those out there who genuinely want to help But them trusting them Is going to be really hard because this person has convinced them that like they cannot work with anybody else Right if they one time accidentally pay their mortgage to their business account like and they accidentally do it All of a sudden you're going to get audited and you're just going to go down the drain. It's like The IRS also is pretty understanding. I think people are scared of them all the time. They're not like, they just don't do it all the time. Like it's going to happen. They get it. Yes. I had, so like my bookkeepers that when they had like the, the district P cards and one of them was like, I went to McDonald's and I used it to buy my leg. Like she called the office. I got there in the morning. She called frantically crying. I just know I'm going to lose my job. I'm going to lose my job. I'm like, what happened? She's like, went to McDonald's and I just bought a breakfast sandwich with my P card. You just wanted a detached branch. So I said, what? Because when she said it, I was like, okay. She was like, but it wasn't for personal, it wasn't for school use. It was personal use. I said, it's okay. I said, all you have to do is just write the district a check. I'd say when that check comes in, deposit it back into that account. It's okay. I said, now it happens. I said, but next time I said, put a label on that card, right? District P card, whatever you need to do. So when you pull it out, yeah, because with, with the school bookkeepers, a lot of times they would have to go to Costco or Sam's. So they always carry card on them. We have other personnel or they did. Cause I'm not there anymore. Some of them, you don't need to carry the card, but for the ones that could carry the card, I'm sure, you know, it's like, what? We're not crazy enough to leave that limit wide open. I think their daily limit was just 200. So they couldn't go crazy if they wanted to. But Yeah, but it's just like, Ooh, like, yeah, but they get overwhelmed. Yeah. Oh, yes. Yeah. Comfortable. And they just, yeah, I find that like the more that we can relate to the clients and get down onto their level. And like, when people say like, you always want to explain something, like you're talking to a third grader and it's not disrespectful and it's not rude, it's genuinely like, but you shouldn't be condescending when you're doing it, obviously. Like you don't want to sound like you're really talking to a third grader, but you're talking in the terms of like, Okay, the different, what debits and credits actually means and what we're talking about is this. Reconcile means this. Remember your old school little checkbook and you used to like write down all the double check and put the double checkmark. It's the same thing. And I think the more that we've become that approachability, what it sounds like, that's what you're doing as well, which I can just get that in like the way you talk. You probably make people feel so comfortable with not feeling so guilty because they do, clients do feel shameful. They feel overwhelmed. They will ask questions like yeah. So do you happen to know like your, you know, your profit margin? Like, we're just like having a casual combo. And usually I don't like to use that word anyways, cause that's already a lot for some people if they don't know it, but like, that's just something as an example, and there'll be like, I'm so embarrassed that I don't know this. Or I'm, I hear that all the time, but what we've done recently is like we hooked up with our Our social media managers to start doing more campaigns around like the things that the people are saying that we're finding that they're constantly in fear of. So for example, like it's okay that you don't know your profit margin. Like it's okay that you don't know these things. The fact that you're even sitting here reading this post tells me that you want to know about it, right? That you're here on this call. The fact that you showed up to this consult. So we have to like almost over like, Over, celebrate with them that they showed up to the call that like the fact that you don't know is okay. Like the fact that you're here is the biggest first step and I'm very grateful for that. That means that you really truly desire to fix something. It's just that you don't know where to start and you're trying to lean out to like an expert, you know, I've said that to clients too. They're just like, I just don't know. I said, well, let's shake that. I don't know off. I said, because you needed a standing ovation, a round of applause, I said, because you're great. It's a. You know, ownership in this, I said, and I said, did you go to school? Do you have a degree in accounting? You're like, no, I said, so take that off. I said, I'm not a photographer. I'm not a wedding planner. I can't put these elaborate bullet. Now I can do it if I put my mind to it, because I think I am very creative. I said, but at all, I said, you can't do everything in your business that you're trying to be the accountant. You're trying to be PR. You're doing customer service. Like. You got to give yourself some grace. I said, take some of that stuff off of your plate. That's even when you have a nine to five, I said, payroll does the stuff that we don't even think about as, you know, small business owners, when you become a small business owner, there's like, oh dang taxes, you know, but when you're a W 2 employee, you don't think about that stuff. You worry about getting your paycheck. Yeah, you know, so I said, the shake at all, and it's gonna be okay, you know, and I, and I try to talk to them the way that I would like someone to talk to me, but I'm a Southern girl. So it's a lot of y'all my girl stop, you know, and I don't mean it in like a. You know, I'm like, girl, you better stop. And they're like, I know Shatori, I don't know. I don't, I don't like, yeah. I said, what can we do to change that? You know, or they'll even call and say, let me tell you what happened. It's not even business related, but let me take, because they just want to vent to somebody. I said, well, what happened? And I'll sit there, we'll sit and talk about it. Again, building that rapport up so they can feel comfortable with coming to me talking about their finances. when I, when I went to a, I did my first in person, speaking engagement this year down in Miami, with the group of balloon artists and bounce house stylists, I guess is what they call themselves. So I asked him, I said, do you know the difference between revenue and profit? And they were just like, so I explained it to them and I did it real basic. And they were just like, I never thought about it like that. I said, so I said, think about it this way. I said, one thing that we see on Instagram all the time, reels or whatever, I make 20, I had a 20 K month. I had a 30 K month at a 75 K month. Right. I say, but my question is, what do those expenses look like, is what I want to know, you know, what do you take home? What's your profit? Yeah. I said, because you can sit back and say, Oh, well, you know, I had a 5k month, great now when you paid your bills, what was left over? And so when I explained it like that, they're like, Whoa, is that what profit is? I said, yeah. I said, you can't sit here and just bank off of your sales and be like, yeah, I got this. No, you don't. No, you don't. The IRS is like, not today. You you think you have that, based on your sales, but we look at that bottom line and see after everything came out and we see that you thought you had a, a six figure month when you had a six month, then it's like, Hmm, I said, but that's the beauty of bookkeeping. You get to see the numbers for yourself. You can't hide from it because it's on paper. You can't hide from it, you know, and, and it's okay if you have that thick You know, because now, you know, moving forward, what changes do I need to make so that I can't have that six figure month, five figure month? What do I need to do? What do I need to look at? What do I need to cut back on? A lot of times, one thing I've noticed with some of my clients is that we sign up for the subscription for these trials that you put your card on file and then you tend to forget about it. Always. So we go through, you go through your P& L. And it's like, okay, so you have ConvertKit and Flowdesk. Which one do you use? Oh, I use Flowdesk. I said, do you realize you've been paying for ConvertKit for like seven months? No! I'm like, yeah. I'm like, you're paying for ConvertKit. Whoa, how did that happen? I said, well, did you sign up for a free trial or anything like that? And they said, no, I didn't. And they said, yes, I did. And I put my card on file. And I said, I was going to cancel on the 15th and I didn't yeah. But I'm guilty of it too. I said, but being able to see it on paper and seeing that you can discharge every month, you want to sit back and say, Oh, wait, no, let me cancel that. Now that now you save us some money. I said, but if you're not looking at that PNL, you don't know what's coming in and out in your head, you may have an idea. Yeah. Paper. Low def, I pay for HoneyBook, I pay for this, but if you're not looking at a paper and it's somebody like me that has three children, I need to see it on paper. I can sign up for something seven minutes ago and be like, did I sign up for that? Like, I need to see it. Yeah. Yeah, it's crazy. Yeah, I think that just like being able to be open, honest, and vulnerable and tell them like, this is me too, this is my everyday of my life, like, trust me, like, this is life. it's such a great message and I hope that like, especially everyone listening to like resonates with that because I think at the end of the day, We're all guilty. I have definitely admitted that I've co mingled like here and there like I try my best. Like I've put things on the wrong things in the wrong places and I think that that's okay to like admit and talk about. And I think it just creates more of a a bond with other people just knowing that like you're human and that no one's perfect. Nobody can get it all right, you know, at the end of the day. So I think this is amazing. And I'm so excited to be releasing this episode because I feel like you've just been so relatable to a lot of our listeners and a lot of people who like interact in our, industry and our space, who are juggling all the things and who might just be going through maybe a hard time of like, I just need to ask for more help or how can I just be more receptive to my clients that big words aren't always cute. Like they're just be a decent. Human, just be a good human person to just help people. And I think it just goes a really long way. So I really appreciate you being here today. I do want to say before, before we kind of leave off today, I wanted to see is there any piece of advice or anything that you want to give to someone who's maybe just starting out their journey of something that you wish you would have known when you started? So one thing I wanted to share with those who are just starting out, because although I have this degree in accounting. That doesn't mean that I know everything about bookkeeping, and you have to give yourself grace and I, and I always think about it this way. When starting out, you think of it as you're in high school in the ninth grade. In ninth grade, you shouldn't know or be where a senior is, you know, where they're currently at in their matriculation as a high school student. You're on the ground level, so it's okay that you don't know everything. You're not going to know everything starting out, so it's okay if you're unsure or uncertain about something, so use that to your advantage. And Last questions, do some research, build some connections. Like I reached out to women that I connected with on Instagram. And I'll have connections with these women. I've never even met them in person, but we built that rapport online. So I know I can go to them and say, Hey, can I ask you this question about strife, can I ask you this question about PayPal or Dub Sado or HoneyBook? It's okay to ask questions. You would be surprised with how. Receptive people are when you approach them in the DMs and you approach them genuinely because I have received DMs from people that are just like, how do you know they come at you wrong? And it's just like, yep, no block. but when you show up as your true authentic, so people will be more than happy to help, use the DM, but give yourself grace, and don't expect to just know everything it's going to come in due time. You're going to get to where you aspire to be, you know, and after that first year, celebrate yourself that first month, celebrate yourself when you, when you get that first client. Celebrate it. When you get that second client celebrated, do something for yourself. So you could say, you know, yeah, I'm a brush these shoulders off. I'm a treat myself, to lunch or dinner, whatever. I might buy that Pandora charm that I want. Treat yourself like, don't do all this hard work and think that you can't preach yourself like you're in charge, you're the boss, but. Don't be afraid to ask questions. And if somebody says no, there's going to be several other people who are willing to say yes. So step out on faith, just. Do it and have no reservation because in a year you'll look back and be like, you know what I did that and you're going to keep doing it. give yourself grace, take a deep breath and just be like the little engine that good. Like, I think I can, I think I can adopt that mentality. Cause I promise you, it will carry you throughout that journey. Yes. I love that. Great tip. I absolutely love all of that. Now, where can people get immersed into your world, connect with you? Where can they find you? So Instagram is my jam. I hang out there like all the time. So you can find me on Instagram at the virtual bookkeeper. Sweet. I love it. And we'll put any links below for anyone. Thank you so much for being here today. I'm just so excited and I really appreciate you. Oh, thank you. Thank you so much for having me. I had a blast. Yay, same here.