If you’ve ever found yourself with a heap of digital receipts piling up in your downloads folder or email inbox, you know how quickly things can get out of hand. The problem isn’t just clutter—it’s wasted time when you need to track down a receipt for taxes, reimbursements, or bookkeeping.

One simple solution? Use a naming convention.

Retained Earnings lives on your Balance Sheet in the “Equity” section. But what does it mean? Explained as if you were 10-years-old.

As a consultant, you might not think of your business as "asset-heavy"—but if you use a computer, own a camera, or purchased equipment or furniture for your work, you do have fixed assets. And understanding how to handle them correctly in your books can save you money and protect you during tax season.

Here’s a simple guide to what you need to know.

As a consultant or service-based business owner, your time is precious—and so is your financial clarity. One of the most overlooked ways to gain insight into your business (without crunching spreadsheets or digging through receipts) is by maintaining a clean, purposeful Chart of Accounts in your bookkeeping system.

Let’s break down why it matters—and how to clean yours up.

You log in to QuickBooks Online, glance at your balance sheet or income statement… and something just doesn’t add up. Maybe you're swimming in receipts, avoiding the Reports tab, or wondering why your bank balance in QBO doesn't match your actual bank account.

If your books are starting to feel more like a mystery than a tool, it might be time for a QuickBooks cleanup.

As your consulting business grows, hiring independent contractors can help you scale without the commitment of full-time employees. But working with 1099 contractors comes with its own set of responsibilities—especially when it comes to compliance and bookkeeping.

This guide will walk you through the essential steps to managing 1099 contractors with confidence and clarity.

As a solo consultant, you might know the thrill of landing a big contract—and the anxiety that comes when it wraps up with nothing on the horizon. This “feast or famine” cycle is one of the most common challenges consultants face. The good news? With some simple financial habits and smart systems, you can smooth out your cash flow and gain peace of mind.

When you're a solo consultant, your personal and professional lives tend to blend together—client meetings at coffee shops, late-night brainstorming sessions at your kitchen table, and receipts in every pocket. But when it comes to your finances, mixing business and personal expenses can create confusion, headaches, and even IRS red flags.

Fortunately, you don’t need a team or a finance degree to draw a clear line between the two. Here’s how to keep your business expenses clean, organized, and totally separate.

If you offer multiple services—like Public Engagement, Concept Design, and Final Design—but lump them all together on your invoices, you’re flying blind when it comes to profitability.

When you’re juggling multiple clients, deadlines, and deliverables, tracking project expenses can quickly fall to the bottom of your to-do list. But knowing how much each project costs you isn’t just “nice to know”—it’s essential to understanding profitability and making smart business decisions.

Consultants wear a lot of hats—but “perfect bill-payer” isn’t always one of them. Life moves fast, and sometimes a credit card payment gets missed. Here’s the good news…

As tempting as it is to multi-task, research shows that splitting our attention means we do everything less effectively.

When you’re running a business, it’s easy to fall into the trap of wearing all the hats. You’re the marketing director, customer service rep, operations manager—and yes, sometimes the bookkeeper, too.

Imagine this: you magically gain an extra 60 hours a year. That’s a week and a half of working time—back in your pocket.

Well, it’s not magic. That’s the average amount of time health practitioners and small business owners save each year by hiring a professional bookkeeper.

A good Bookkeeper doesn’t just keep your books clean—they’re also one of your strongest Accountability Partners.

As a chiropractor and health services provider, it’s easy to associate a busy clinic or rising monthly revenue with success. But there’s a crucial distinction many practice owners overlook: revenue is not profit.

Revenue is the total amount your clinic brings in before anything goes out—before payroll, rent, supplies, taxes, insurance, or student loans. It’s exciting to see that number climb, but it doesn’t tell you how much you're actually keeping.

Your real profit—your take-home income—is what’s left after all business expenses are paid. 

Your business is only as healthy as you are. If you’re burned out from trying to do everything yourself, it might be time to let something go.

What’s the difference between categorizing transactions and reconciling your QuickBooks Online account?

Health service providers and business owners often think it’s the same thing, but they’re not—and it’s important to know the difference and to DO both.

Credit Card Payments Should Never Be Captured as an Expense in QuickBooks Online, or any other accounting software.

It might feel like an expense when you pay your credit card… but it’s not.

QuickBooks Online is powerful—but only when it's tailored to your practice. One of the common mistakes practitioners make is sticking with the default Chart of Accounts. It’s quick to set up, but it’s not tailored for how your practice actually operates.

Here are some tips and questions to ask yourself.

Ever made a purchase from Amazon or Costco that included office supplies, materials for a client project, and snacks for a marketing event? It’s important to separate these out into different types of expenses so your books remain accurate. 

Here’s how to split a transaction in QuickBooks Online.