In this episode of The One Small Change Podcast, host Yvonne McCoy welcomes Candy Messer, who shares her journey from an unexpected entrepreneurial path to becoming an expert in bookkeeping and compliance. Candy offers valuable insights into the common pitfalls entrepreneurs face when managing finances and compliance. She emphasizes the importance of understanding financials, staying organized, and investing in professional guidance to navigate the entrepreneurial journey successfully. Tune in to discover actionable steps and mindset shifts to ensure your business's financial health and compliance.

Guest Bio:

Candy Messer is a seasoned accounting professional with years of experience providing critical financial services to entrepreneurs. With a background that spans from retail to full-charge bookkeeping, Candy's journey into entrepreneurship was driven by a desire to balance family life and professional aspirations. As the owner of Affordable Bookkeeping and Payroll, she is passionate about helping business owners navigate financial complexities with ease, educating her clients on compliance, and empowering them to achieve financial success.

Key Points Discussed:

1. Candy's Unexpected Journey into Entrepreneurship (00:01:07): Candy shares how she never intended to become an entrepreneur, starting from a stay-at-home mom to helping a preschool with accounting and eventually launching her own business.
2. Importance of Financial Education for Entrepreneurs (00:04:24): Candy highlights how many business owners are unaware of compliance requirements, leading to penalties, and stresses the need for financial education.
3. Understanding Cash Flow vs. Profit (00:06:50): Candy clarifies common misconceptions about cash flow and profit, sharing how entrepreneurs can misinterpret their financial standing.
4. Role of Accountants as Business Partners (00:12:04): The conversation delves into how accountants can provide insights into business trends and develop a partnership with business owners to enhance profitability.
5. Practical Steps for Financial Organization and Compliance (00:17:04): Candy offers actionable advice on setting reminders for important deadlines and staying organized to prevent financial pitfalls.

Main Quote:

"If you're gonna be an entrepreneur, you can't just do the thing you love per se; someone has to do the financials and reporting to make sure your business stays compliant."

Links:

• 1099 guide: https://affordablebookkeepingandpayroll.com/1099-guide/
• Guide to financial lingo: https://affordablebookkeepingandpayroll.com/free-report/

Welcome everybody again to the One Small Change. As always, I

am thrilled that you're here to be on this journey of exploration and

transformation with me. I'm your host, Yvonne McCoy, and I

bring almost 30 years of entrepreneurial experience and passion

for discovering how growth can come from even the most

seemingly small change. So if you're on the

entrepreneurial journey, whether you're at the beginning or the end, I think you're

gonna find some great insights because we are

talking to the amazing Candi Messer. Candi.

Hello. It is so good that we get to swap podcasts.

Mhmm. It's been a little bit, but I'm glad to see you again. Yes. So

when I did your podcast, I did not have a podcast. So I am so

happy that I can reciprocate. But even more than that, I

am excited about what you can tell entrepreneurs.

Because I remember when we talked, we had so many things that we clicked on

and agreed on in the entrepreneurial journey and

why what you do is so important. So tell us how you got started

and, you know, what made you do what you do. Sure. Actually, I

never intended to be an entrepreneur. I was, you know,

in retail for most of my career, up to

the time from when I first started, a a real job, let's

say, until I had my second child. And I thought thought at first

I was gonna go back and do that. But then I just decided it didn't

make sense with my kids. I wanted to be able to be home with them,

and so I was home. I was at home mom for 3 years.

And then someone asked me, like, to help out at a preschool,

and that's kinda when I started doing the accounting things. I was, you know, keeping

track of, you know, the parents having to pay for their child and all of

those kind of things. And one that led one thing led to another. You

know, had a corporate job after that, for about 6

years as a full charge bookkeeper. And so someone knew what I

did with the numbers reconciling, and her

husband had a business. And she said, I hate reconciling.

Like, I will invoice the clients. I'll pay the bills, but I hate reconciling the

books and making sure everything's accurate. Will you please help? And so that's how

I got started. She she bugged me for, like, 3 or 4 months before I

said yes. And then I thought, well, now I need to get some

additional clients because I have to do everything legally. I have to have a business

license. I have to buy equipment. I have to buy the software. And

so I was doing my, quote, unquote, real job, and then I

had on the side, you know, this one until about a year and

a half later, my husband said, quit your job and focus on your

business. You're good at it. People love what you do. You provide a great

service. You know? So so convinced me.

So like a lot of entrepreneurs, you kind of,

you know, you you didn't wake up one morning and go, I'm gonna be an

entrepreneur. Right. And, you know, you kind of found

your way there by by hit or by miss. And the thing that's so

funny is that you're very lucky that you had your

spouse say, quit your job and do this. Mhmm. You know, many times it's

the opposite kind of reaction. And I know

that, you know, my mother would

call me on a regular basis and say, what? You know, get a job.

Or if I would say to her, I'm working, she goes, you're not. You don't

have a job. Mhmm. It's true. He

actually had to convince me. I was nervous because maybe some of your listeners are

in the same position, but I had a guaranteed paycheck that I knew. I went

to work for so many hours. I came home with pay. Now if I quit

that job and it's all on me to create this business, that

can be a scary thing. So it took him just saying, I

know you can do this. You're really good at it. You know? And it's

like, what if something happens? Right? What's the worst that could happen? Right? You could

go back and get a job. Right? You know? So So you're I

mean, I think you hit on something else that entrepreneurship is not for

everybody, because it definitely is is a life

of uncertainty. For sure. And and I I mean, I had

a client. She goes, I just wanna work so many hours, and I just wanna

know that I'm gonna make this kind of pay. And I go, that's called a

job. Mhmm. You know? So tell me more tell me

more about, you know, what you've learned working with entrepreneurs

and and why it's so important that we keep our our stuff

together. Well, as I said, I, you know, I started helping

this person and and slowly added some clients.

And as I started working with people and adding additional services, at first,

it was just the bookkeeping, and then it became payroll and sales tax

and 10.99. It's like all the compliance. The a lot a lot of

times, I would see business owners didn't know what they were supposed to be

doing, and they'd end up with these penalty notices. Like, you should have done

this, and because you didn't, now we're gonna charge you a penalty and

then interest because you didn't pay this on time. And a lot of times,

that interest was more than the amount they owed in the 1st place because it

took the government so long to get to them. And so I

decided, like, I wanna help educate entrepreneurs, let them know what they

need to do. If they don't wanna do it, give them a resource where

they can do what they love. So many people really hate this

art part of the business. Right? But it it's necessary. If you're

gonna be an entrepreneur, you can't just do the thing you love per

se. You know, someone, whether it's you or someone else, has to do kind

of the financials and the reporting and making sure you have your business license and

all of those things. So that's kinda where I came in is I can

teach you what you need to know, and you can do it on your own,

or we can do it for you. So

you're absolutely right. First of all, this shows that we absolutely are

live, and then I have a dog. So if you have a pet, you know.

But, you know, I think it real I think part of it

is we feel like you have plenty of time to do it. I'll do it

later. Mhmm. And second of all, you say something

like, maybe I'm

not making enough money or, you know, I need to spend more time making money.

So then, you know, then you don't put people, you know,

into it. So keep talking. Tell me more. Sure.

Well, as you were even saying, a lot of times people put this part of

the business off because they need to

get the customers, right, to bring in the money, and they're working so many

hours as it is. They're like, well, I'll get to that later. And then

later becomes your CPA gives you a call and says, okay. I need your information

now. We need to do your taxes. And then it's a completely

overwhelming feeling because you have all of this information that has to be put

together. You have to let your, you know, CPA know how much money

did you make or hopefully not lose, but, you know,

sometimes there's that negative profit and a loss. We

don't wanna put it on paper if we're losing money. Right. It's so true.

And a lot of times, people don't understand the difference between cash flow and profit.

So they might have in their head, well, I don't have any money in the

bank, so I'm not profitable. And that could be completely

false because if you're living off of the earnings, the government

says, well, that's taxable income. It's just like if you were at a job and

you got your paycheck, you have your earnings, then they take out the taxes, and

you go home with the net, and you live off the net. And that's where

a lot of people get themselves into trouble too is because they're living off of

their earnings, not realizing that that's taxable. And

then now it's time to file your tax return, and the CPA says you owe

this much, and they don't have the cash. Right? And so that gets

themselves into a little bit of a problem as well. So

so, you know, I I did taxes for 15

years and seen the good, the bad,

and the ugly. And so

for entrepreneurs, especially those

that, you know, it's like, the this is not my

forte. I'm not good with numbers. I you know, blah blah blah. I'll wait till

I can hire somebody. Whatever whatever the excuse is,

what are some of the very basic things

that you can do to make this easier? And and I'm

gonna maybe challenge you a little bit and ask you

to start with a mindset piece

that they need to get into the right mindset to do to make

this work. Right. Well, if you're talking mindset, I

think one of the things is to admit to yourself,

you don't have to be a math expert to be able to do this, number

1. And I think that's what a lot of times people avoid it because they're

like, I'm not good at math. Right? You don't have to be good at math.

You just have to have your paperwork organized. You can use a software

that helps put the information in. If you learn how to use that properly,

you can get good reports. Right? That's another thing, though, is actually learning how to

use it because sometimes the software is so easy that you could put something

in incorrectly as well. Right? But I would say number 1, don't

think you have to be an expert and be, you know, fabulous at math

because that's not true. That's a misnomer in terms of this field.

I I think the other mindset is you need to know

your numbers if you're running a business. And so

if you, you know, if you don't wanna do your numbers or whatever, then you

probably have a hobby. Mhmm. You know? And you need to know your

numbers so that, for instance, you know, when I talk to clients,

sometimes I'll say, which which one of your products has the biggest

profit margin? Which do you make the most money from? Because that's the thing we

should be doing more of. Mhmm. They're like, oh, I

never thought of that before. Alright. So that's just that's just one

thing. I have to tell you, and I apologize. Apparently, not only

do I have a dog, but I have a grandchild that just walked in the

house. That's alright. It's life.

That life goes on. Right. So so tell me 2 other things

Mhmm. That entrepreneurs need to know. Sure. Well, I agree with you in

terms of the numbers and really understanding what those are. And

so I would also say it's okay to tell someone that

you're working with that you don't understand what they're trying to explain to you too.

So if you're having a meeting to go over your finances and you don't

understand something on the report, it's okay to say, like, I don't

know that because, like, some of us are really good at that. We might

think that we're being clear and maybe we're not. So it's

okay to say, like, can you tell me this in a different way, or can

you use another example? But like you said, it's important to know. And

if you don't wanna look at those numbers all the time yourself

and prepare them, then use someone like us that can put that

financial information together for you and then have a meeting with you and say,

you know, in comparison to before, this is how you're doing revenue wise,

or are you aware that you have spent this percentage of this

expense account from your revenue that might be too high? Right? Like,

maybe advertising is a little bit out of whack or, you know,

are you aware that you actually are losing money, like you

said, on this product or things you know, there's things like that that they still

don't have to do themselves. They can hire someone like us, but you still

should look at the numbers. And one of the things that frustrates us is

bookkeepers a lot of times too is if we wanna have time to sit

down with someone and they think it's not important or,

once again, like, well, I have other things I have to do, and maybe we'll

get to it, and then that maybe never comes. And so put

yourself first as well too in terms of, yes,

you need to have your clients, but you also need to make sure that your

business is gonna continue to run. Like, if you're not profitable, if you don't have

cash flow, you know, if you don't have your business set up

where it's going to be successful, then you're not ultimately helping your

customer because you're gonna be gone, and then they don't have you as a service

provider. Alright. So I'm I'm gonna kinda take a little left

turn. You said something that I

think I hadn't really thought of

before, and that is what you're

talking about is that your accountant can help you with

trends in your business Mhmm. If you ask

them. So so the first part of this is,

ask questions and let

the the, you know, the accountant know what's important to you and what you're

trying to achieve so that they can be a resource for you

and actually translate some of those numbers for you.

Mhmm. Because it's a relationship. It's a

partnership. Right? Mhmm. The other thing is

the flip side of that is, I think and this is what I find that

a lot of times women do, is they go,

I'm gonna learn how to do this. And so, you know, their business is

like here, and they take a totally different turn and you you know, like, I

was talking to somebody about AI the other day, and I said, well, did you

do this as and she goes, no. I decided to get AI

certified. And I'm like, why? This is not

Right. This is, like, so peripheral. So I think

the one thing that I think I would really I mean, I probably knew this,

but I don't think I knew it in the way that you're talking about it,

that your accountant

can be not only just somebody who crunches the numbers for

you, but somebody who can give you insight into your

numbers as you're growing and learning so that you can

be more profitable and more stable. Right. Well, let me

give you an example of what happened. So this happened many years ago.

Someone came to me, and it started with she had a notice from

the IRS that she owed taxes. The CPA had filed the

return, and she was completely shocked to find, you know, that she

owed because once again, she was living off of the earnings. So she came

to me and she said, I need to understand, like, how this happened

in the first place. How am I profitable? And talk to me like I'm

5. Right? And because I don't understand numbers, I'm very creative. And

so, like, these facts and figures are hard for me to understand.

And so we started doing the bookkeeping for her. And then

every quarter, we met, and we would look at where

are you this quarter, and let's compare your figures to last quarter, and

then let's look at your expenses. And so one of the things that we looked

at for her was she was almost every day going out, grabbing

a meal, and thinking that it was an expense, but you can't

expense your lunch. Right? If you have a business meeting, that's another thing. But

just because you're buying groceries or a lunch, you can't. So I started showing

her you've spent this percentage of your revenue just on your

groceries. Like, are you aware that you have spent this much? And she wasn't. Right?

Because you just buy here or there. You don't realize how much. So when we

sat down and I said, you've literally spent, you know, this

percentage of your revenue on groceries and meals, and this

isn't tax deductible because it's technically not a business expense.

It was eye opening for her, so she was able to see, like, okay. I

need to change that. And she was able to reduce the spending

on on that category. And then we looked at another one, which was

her professional development, which professional development's great, but it's like,

are you aware you've spent, like, this year, 25% of your revenue,

right, on professional development? And she was like, no. But she just

saw something like, this is a great class. I think I should do this and

didn't realize how much she was spending. So we literally would sit down every

quarter, and I would review those expenses with her, and then she would make

changes. And over time, she did become much more

profitable because it became something she thought about

and focused on, like, should I be spending this money on this

right now, and how much is it really costing me? And

she learned not to eat lunch by herself, but to take a business friend with

her. Have a business purpose. The IRS wants

you to have, you know, a person, a purpose. Like, why are you talk

you know, talking business? Yes. So

so I think, you know, the biggest takeaway is

this is a part of your business that you have to do. If it's a

part of your business that you dread doing, you still

have to do it. Mhmm. So why not do it with a partner that can

help you and then understand it and make it easier? I mean,

you know, because I you know, one of the things that is

the earlier you start on this, the better the less you have to dig yourself

out. And if you set up the systems and where you know, that

so they work for you, do you know, then your

results are gonna be much better. This has been amazing

and and, you know, very eventful.

So the other thing is

just a couple of practical steps and then also what what you're gonna give

people. So, you know, we're we're in that

transit. You know, it doesn't it doesn't people need to start

today whether today is at the end of the year, the beginning of the year,

where if you haven't done anything, you need to start today. So with that

in mind, what are the first things that people need to do?

Well, I would say number 1 is find out what you need to do to

be in compliance for your business. You know, make sure you have your business license.

You issue 10.90 nines if you're supposed to do that, if you're supposed

to make estimated tax payments. Like, really find those things that you should

be doing. And if you're not sure what those are, I do share a lot

on my YouTube channel too. I have my own podcast, like you said, or I

have videos that I will record. I have blogs. You know? So

because, again, I'm trying to educate those entrepreneurs, but I'd say

really look at compliance because if you don't do what you're supposed to, those

government penalties can really, really hurt you

financially. And so that would be first

step, I believe. Number 2 okay. I was just saying

go ahead. I I think we need something easier than that. So,

like, we you need to put aside some time every week or month

to to start collecting your go

ahead. Well, I'd say I always say too, put reminders on your

calendar. Right? So whether it's, you know, a digital calendar

or some people still use written, you know, documents on their little

desktop or something. But put in there when things are due

because, again, you get so busy. You think you're gonna remember,

like, my estimated tax payment is due in April. Right? You're gonna think you're gonna

remember, but then you might get so busy you forget. So whatever it

is as a reminder for you, put those reminders in there so that,

again, you don't lose track and end up into

some place you don't wanna be. Right? Right.

So what is your gift? You we obviously, we're gonna put the link to your

YouTube channel in there, and your podcast, but you've got

something else. Right? Well, I have a few different things I could offer.

I didn't know when this was gonna air, be because we're recording towards the end

of the year. But if it airs before the 10/99 deadline, if anyone

is unsure how they should be filing because there's 2 different

forms, there's different deadlines, I do have a free guide, to that

as well. And I believe if you go to affordable bookkeeping and

payroll dot com, I think it's, free dash

guide, but I what I could do is send you the link. Notes. We'll we'll

we'll give you a resource. We'll give you a resource that that's

evergreen that you know, where you can find information.

So, you know, I I

just find that when I talk to you, I mean, there's so many things that

I see, you know, that entrepreneurs are doing and why they could use

their service. So I know that you're you're always into the

numbers and the deadlines and stuff like that. So but so let me ask

you. When was the last time you did something new for the first time?

Actually, in October, I went to see

someone who's been working with my company for a long time,

and she lives about 4 or so hours

away from where I am. So I actually went to visit her, and they love

to play games. So I learned 2 new games that, they were

really fun. And so I've actually decided, I

would like to have those in my own home at some point so I could

play some games too, but that was really fun. It is. It is fine

when you you break up the the routine. I mean, we need structure, but

we also need some spontaneity. Right? Mhmm. So let me

let me, you know, pay the bills. So if you're

listening to this, I would love it if you would, you know,

subscribe and share and and engage in some of the conversation.

And, you know, the one of the reasons I do this and bring you different

kinds of of guests is so that you can supercharge your business.

This is a way for me to give back to the community so that you

can have a bigger impact. And I hope that you

will continue to join me because we're gonna have all kinds of interesting

guests. Because the entrepreneurial journey is not a

straight line. There's a lot of things that can happen, and even the 10 year

shift, you know, can give you a transformation that you

weren't expecting. So if you haven't done it, you might wanna listen

go to the podcast page and listen to some of the other podcasts that are

there. So, Candy, give us some

words of wisdom. What are your last words? You know,

I would just say for the entrepreneur, if you are, like,

struggling financially too, I would recommend a resource by Mike Michalowicz

too. I love reading his books, but Profit First.

So if you really want to figure out your finances, make sure you're

putting money away for yourself first and not just paying all the

expenses. So I would just recommend reading that, as a book,

and then I would just love for you to follow, you know, my channel as

well too where I share tips. My passion is really to educate

entrepreneurs so they'd be successful because too many fail. And

so my goal is to really help you succeed. So I would love if you

would just follow that. Let me know if there's a topic you would enjoy as

well. I'd be happy to share that too. That's fantastic. And and and I

think the thing is when you when you say pay yourself first,

that is so important. And the the the thing that I always found

when I was, teaching money management

is that it's so much easier to say, I'm gonna

use percentages instead of dollars. Mhmm. Because you

when you start out, you go, well, this is such a little bit. Mhmm. You

know, that it's not worth doing. And then when you get you're actually

making money, it's like, this is so much. I don't so it's it's

before you make your money, it's a really good thing, I think, to

say, I'm gonna put this percentage here. I'm gonna put this percentage here. I'm

gonna put this percentage here. And, you know, if you need to adjust

it as you go along but it it's a way to get started,

and it's a way you know, I always say it's a way to say, I

manage my money. Mhmm. You know, even if it's just a little

bit of money, and then by the time you're making a lot of money, it

it's a habit. Exactly. Ugh.

I'm sorry. We have to stop. So

talking about habits, you know, remember change can be simple, but

it's not always easy. And it requires an effort. It

requires courage, resilience, and a willingness to step outside your comfort

zone, so it's not always fun. So I hope that as you're

making changes, you'll join me again for the one small change as we embark

on a journey of bold vision and innovative possibilities.

And I will see you next time. And until then, stay curious.

Candy, thank you so much.