The Successful Bookkeeper Podcast

"If you want to turn your customers into superfans, being good is not going to cut it, you have got to be super!" -Brittany Hodak We'd all like for our potential clients to pick us over the competition, yet we often struggle to communicate our experience and value in a way that speaks to the heart of the customers we want to work with. Awareness of your business isn't the issue; it is apathy that kills revenue. If you can't clearly communicate why potential clients should care about what you do, how can you expect them to care? Once you communicate your value and it reasonates with people then do great work for them, you can create superfans who recommend you to everyone they know. If we can delight clients with every aspect of their experience with us, they will always come back. But more importantly, they become brand ambassadors, which will add more value than any paid marketing. Brittany Hodak, a Customer Experience expert and author of Creating Superfans: How To Turn Your Customers Into Lifelong Advocates, is this episode's featured guest. She shares the five points of her Super Model plan, giving you the tools to create the best possible customer experience and long-lasting customer loyalty. If you are living in a service mindset and are unsure how to create an environment in which clients want to choose you, this is the episode to start your mindset shift into the experience economy. During this interview, you'll learn... The value of creating business superfans How to exceed your client's expectations The importance of an experience-focused mindset To find out more about Brittany, click here. Buy her book at this link! Connect with her on LinkedIn and Twitter. Time Stamps 03:30 - Brittany discusses her career journey 07:54 - Creating superfans for your business 10:54 - Overpowering apathy 16:42 - The Super Model 20:38 - Understanding your customer's story 24:28 - Getting personal 32:00 - Exceeding expectations 35:19 - Repeat for your reputation

"I have been a small business owner, and I know when you are short of cash, that three or four days of time, if you could get that money early, that could be a game-changing event for your life." -Nick Chandi The world is constantly changing, and the pace of that change has never been quicker. Despite this, North America is lagging behind Asia in its adoption of instantaneous payment technologies. We may have digital transactions and payments that seem instant, but even these rely on an old system of checks and balances within our banks to resolve. Nick Chandi, CEO and co-founder of Forwardly is this spotlight session's special guest. He helped create the first real-time payment solution for small businesses in the United States. Creating a platform that can automatically reconcile transactions for a more seamless and modern payment workflow. The old ways are comfortable, but we live in an on-demand economy, we want faster and more convenient services. Services that will become the norm in no time at all. While adapting to change can be stressful, there are people like Nick who make it their mission to make these changes as easy and comfortable as possible. If you aren't sure which direction the future of payments will take, or how it will apply to you, this is the episode for you to hear how your bookkeeping business could change for the better. During this interview, you'll learn... The value & benefits of instant payments How better access to cash flow is better for business The importance of keeping up with the times To learn more about Nick, find him on LinkedIn and Twitter. Time Stamps 01:27 - Nick discusses his experiences founding Forwardly 02:35 - Revolutionizing transactions 05:33 - This bank is always open! 08:16 - The value of access to better cashflow 12:28 - The benefits of instant payments 21:38 - No risk, full rewards 23:46 - The results so far 26:07 - Features for the future This episode is brought to you by our great friends at Forwardly! Join the first real-time payments solution for small businesses in the United States. Start receiving funds three days earlier than ACH and for up to 80% fewer fees than cards! Visit Forwardly.com for more information!

"A good manager is not anymore managing people, but also managing tools…if you give the right instructions, you can manage an army of robots…combining that with your team, and combining that with your robot team, then you can be a great manager." -Nicolas Boucher Artificial intelligence is here to stay, like all great technological revolutions, it can feel scary to have our foundations shaken. That is why it has never been more important to be able to adapt and go with the flow. To ride the wave of AI to new heights in your bookkeeping business, rather than hope it passes you by. It is important to remember that what we think of as AI, isn't a truly sentient lifeform. It is an incredibly complex program for sifting through the collected knowledge of mankind, faster than any one human could do alone. But it is still us, when it generates answers, it takes that knowledge from everyone who has faced that issue and posited an answer online. Nicolas Boucher is a German keynote speaker and expert in leveraging ChatGPT for finance teams. In this episode, he masterfully unpacks our fears around AI, while giving tangible examples of how your business can be dramatically enhanced with the application of AI tools. If you are struggling to get along with AI tech, Nicolas also offers his top tips for getting started with ChatGPT. Helping us to understand the possibilities rather than fear the results. AI will only replace us if we aren't applying our creativity and experience to our work. As long as you love what you do, a computer will never do it better. During this interview, you'll learn... The value of combining people & AI tools How AI can revolutionize our teams The importance of understanding the source of our collected knowledge To find out more about Nicolas, click here. Connect with him on LinkedIn and Twitter. Time Stamps 01:58 - Nicolas discusses his career journey 06:35 - Transform work with AI 10:16 - Understanding the source of AI 14:14 - Incorporating AI into your life 19:00 - Knowing the limits 24:45 - 5 tips for getting started with ChatGPT 28:52 - Getting creative with AI 33:00 - Learning more about Nicolas This episode is brought to you by our great friends at Practice Protect! With Practice Protect, you can access all your cloud apps from a single dashboard with just one click – no more passwords to remember. It also integrates seamlessly with over 6000 cloud apps and platforms, including Quickbooks Online. Take control of your data security. Head to PracticeProtect.com to book a demo TODAY.

"Having a community to support me, it just was instrumental. It's something you can't talk to your friends and family about. They just don't get it." -Paige Papaioannou Not everything is as easy as the internet makes it seem. But thanks to the internet, there is a wealth of information and possibilities for connection with people on a similar journey to you. By being in a community of like-minded people, you can learn from the mistakes of others and support one another. Paige Papaioannou, owner of Books By Paige, is this episode's featured guest. She has spent her career helping businesses thrive through her expert accounting and advisory services. In her conversation with Michael, they explore what it's like to build a business that works for you, not one you are left trapped working in. By creating systems and processes that make the work that you and your team easy to replicate, you'll create a bookkeeping business that can run without you, that won't shut down if you lose any staff, and can be easily scaled to accommodate increases in growth. If you are struggling and want to move from people-driven to system-driven processes, this is the episode to get you thinking differently about the future of your bookkeeping business. During this interview, you'll learn... The value of connecting with a supportive community How to build a bookkeeping business that works for you, not one you work for The importance of building client relationships in your own way To find out more about Paige, click here. Connect with her on LinkedIn. Time Stamps 01:47 - Paige talks about her career journey 07:22 - Juggling work/home life balance 09:52 - Building a business that works for you 13:35 - Trusting the process 17:04 - Do-it-yourself marketing 20:35 - Getting clients in your own way 27:08 - Looking to the future This episode is brought to you by our great friends at Forwardly! Join the first real-time payments solution for small businesses in the United States. Start receiving funds three days earlier than ACH and for up to 80% fewer fees than cards! Visit Forwardly.com for more information!

"By having the opportunity to work with, and work beside, and learn next to, and learn with people who have a different vantage point on whatever the problem is… when we get to be with that other person, our ability to understand the complexity actually increases, and that's where we are able to innovate more impressive solutions." -Deb Mashek The better we are at collaborating, the more likely it is that people will want to work with us. Yet so many of us struggle to work effectively with others. What happens when we sit and ask ourselves what collaboration really means? Are we only happy when we are getting our own way? What does it really feel like and mean to co-create something with other people? These are big questions, but they matter if we are to get to the heart of why it is we need to work with other people. Balance is critical, as is a mutual respect for our skills and the skills of others. If we are able to set effective expectations through a lens of respect, we are far more likely to find success in our collaborations. Deb Mashek, founder of Myco Consulting and author of the new book Collabor(h)ate, is this episode's featured guest. She has spent her career helping people recognize different viewpoints and creating the space for understanding to flourish between seemingly disagreeable people. If you struggle to vocalize your opinion, aren't sure how to speak with someone about viewpoints you disagree with or are finding it difficult to communicate your worth and effort, then this is the episode to take you from CollaborHate to CollaborGreat. :) During this interview, you'll learn... The value of setting healthy expectations How viewpoint diversity can shape your business for the better The importance of building a communal mindset To find out more about Deb, click here. Connect with Deb on LinkedIn. Buy her new book, Collabor(h)ate at this link. For the 10 kickoff questions mentioned in this episode, visit here. Time Stamps 01:50 - Deb discusses her career journey 04:45 - Understanding viewpoint diversity 06:38 - Getting to the heart of collaboration 09:35 - Collaboration through the lens of small business 16:40 - Keeping ourselves community-minded 22:29 - Communicating more effectively 27:04 - Deb talks about her new book

"One of the biggest barriers I experience is my own distractibility, my own attention and how I am focusing it." -Natalie Ruskin What we show others on the outside, is often not aligned with how we feel on the inside. There is real pressure to present a certain way to be considered successful in business. But the reality is, we all have different ways of working and being and we all need help from time-to-time to understand what it is that really matters to us. This is a challenge when negative beliefs can be so addictive. We sabotage ourselves so others don't, or just to make the pressure of doing things we don't love, stop. We will never feel at peace until our outer projection aligns with our inner one. We have to stop seeking to show people we are successful, and live being successful. When we bring awareness to each moment in a non-judgmental way, we can see more clearly the things that truly matter to us. Natalie Ruskin, coach and host of the A Success Of Our Own podcast, is this episode's featured guest. She has spent her career helping purpose-driven people thrive in their work and well-being. She speaks to the power of finding and connecting with our sense of why. How to measure what matters to us, and how simple and consistent changes to your mindset will change your outer world for the better. If you are struggling with your purpose, or are unsure how to measure it, this is the episode to open your mind to the power of your why. During this interview, you'll learn... The value of connecting with your 'why' How to build a success mindset The importance of understanding our internal success metrics To find out more about Natalie, click here. Connect with her on LinkedIn. Listen to her podcast here. Time Stamps 01:54 - Natalie discusses her career journey 09:36 - Creating internal metrics for success 15:50 - Building the habits that will change your life 25:44 - Figuring out your why 31:27 - Holding ourselves accountable 33:25 - She talks about her new podcast

"When you like somebody and they do good work, you're going to refer them. I want my friends to win, I want everybody that I like to win, for their businesses to succeed and for them to enjoy it." -Cara Steinmann Networking is tough. We have all received an email or LinkedIn DM, selling us hard on a person's skills. On their unique ability to fix problems we (because we aren't them) are unable to solve. The people using these methods must have some success, or they wouldn't be so prolific, but for most of us, this way of doing things gives us the immediate YUCK. What would your network look like if instead of thinking about how you could sell your skills to others, you focused on what you could learn instead? If you connect with people who inspire and motivate you, not to sell them your skills but to develop them further. Cara Steinmann, founder of The Ravel Collective & host of the Ravel Radio podcast, is this episode's featured guest. She has spent her career building a space for women to be themselves, share their wins and connect more deeply with other women in business. In this episode, Cara speaks to the power of supportive communities, leaning into the joy of referring, and the need to understand our core values, so we can connect more authentically with others, and create businesses that focus on bringing the right people together. If you are struggling with networking, or just want to understand how much more successful you could be when aligned with your values, then this is the episode to get you thinking about the impact true networking could have on your life. During this interview, you'll learn... The value of supportive community networks How to find people that share your values The importance of understanding core values To find out more about Cara, click here. Connect with her on LinkedIn. Time Stamps01:55 - Cara discusses her career journey 06:20 - Finding the right people for you 11:55 - The power of supportive communities 15:18 - Facing our networking fears 23:24 - Figuring out temperament mismatches 31:04 - Leaning into the joy of referring 38:16 - Uncovering our core values 46:15 - Finding the people who share your values 53:54 - Connecting authentically 58:59 - Where you can network successfully

"I think that the future of bookkeeping really lies in the advisory portion of bookkeeping. I think that we are at the point in technology where we no longer necessarily need a person to do the data entry." -Jennifer Hume It is hard to know our own value. We often undervalue ourselves while overvaluing the skills and abilities of others. Shifting our mindset to one that balances these opposing points of view is the first step in building the kind of future in our businesses that we often covet in others. Technology is progressing ever faster, and it can make us feel like we can't keep up and that our skills aren't as valuable in the face of AI. But AI is sourced from us, and while it may be the future of our systems and processes, we are a very long way away from it being able to convert all that information into truly nuanced and helpful advice. Jennifer Hume, owner of Coronation Bookkeeping & Tax Services, is this episode's featured guest. She has spent her career helping businesses manage their finances and taxes effectively. In this episode, she speaks powerfully about the power of mindset in business success, what the world looks like when we get out of our way, and how our human experience and advice will always trump AI. If you are struggling in your bookkeeping business, not sure how to move up, feeling lost and alone, then this episode will get you thinking about the future differently. One that sets technology to work for you, so you can do more of the work you love. During this interview, you'll learn... The value of planning for the future you want How to get out of our own way The importance of our experience in advisory work To find out more about Jennifer, click here. Connect with her on LinkedIn. Time Stamps 01:42 - Jennifer discusses her career journey 03:34 - Getting out of our own heads 06:44 - The power of the Accelerate 2 Advisor program 08:44 - Blood, Sweat & Tears 19:55 - Planning for the future you want 23:28 - How AI will change bookkeeping 26:41 - Thinking differently about challenges

"It was like I'm on a boat and I'm either working on my navigation charts, or I'm bailing, bailing, bailing…and what I didn't do was look up at the horizon to see, hey wait a minute, we have drifted off course and I really needed to be holding the rudder." -Nancy Gwynne-Vaughan Running a business is hard at the best of times, let alone when we are struck by the unexpected. Despite this, we feel a need to conceal the damage and its effect on us. We throw ourselves into even more work, in the hope that if we just keep doing everything all the time, we will find our way out. But if we don't stop to take stock of where we actually are and where we want to be, we will keep blindly spinning in circles until there is nothing left. Taking a pause might seem like the end of the world, it can feel embarrassing to explain to clients that you aren't the right fit right now, that you need time to get things in order so you can go further in the future. Nancy Gwynne-Vaughan, President of Graham Consulting & Training, is this episode's featured guest. She has spent her career helping lawyers build profitable firms but isn't afraid to explain the real-world impact of giving too much of yourself to others. She talks candidly about what it is to lose ourselves in work, and how to find our way back to a place of strength and peace. If you are struggling within your bookkeeping business, taking on more and more work but not really feeling like any forward or upward motion is happening, then this is the episode to get you back to basics, looking more honestly at where you are in your business, and how to chart a course back to success. During this interview, you'll learn... The value of getting back to basics How to create an effective checklist The importance of building an adaptable mindset To find out more about Nancy, click here. Connect with her on LinkedIn. Time Stamps 02:02 - Nancy discusses her career journey 03:30 - Facing the challenges of the unexpected 12:42 - Building an adaptable mindset 16:30 - Creating an effective checklist 18:25 - Getting back to basics 27:30 - Embracing the unknown

"I am just obsessed with helping people get results, because otherwise why are we reaching out to the community?" -Andrea Driessen The first port of call when looking for a business to support our needs is often a quick Google search. The words, pictures and videos on that business website influence our decisions long before we ever meet the person behind the site. Despite this, many of us don't put much stock in how we are talking about ourselves and what we do online, or in person. Andrea Driessen, a TEDx speaker and award-winning author, is this episode's featured guest. She has spent her career challenging people to think differently about the ways they engage with others. Taking businesses from being all about the individual to all about the services they can provide to their clients. If you are struggling to write about yourself, create videos about what you do, or find it hard to talk to people in a concise and engaging way, then this is the episode to get you thinking differently about how to communicate the why of your business. During this interview, you'll learn... Top tips for speaking success How to elevate the spoken word in your business The importance of helping others reduce pain points To find out more about Andrea, click here. Connect with her on LinkedIn and Twitter. Time Stamps 01:35 - Andrea discusses her career journey 05:55 - Helping others get results 07:30 - Weathering the storm 09:19 - Standing up on the TEDx stage 13:27 - Elevating the spoken word 19:51 - Changing the world with your words 23:44 - Tips for speaking success 31:27 - Learning more from Andrea 33:42 - AI & the future of business