The $10,000 Mistake That Wasn't
"Sometimes what looks like failure is actually a setup for success."
When David first called me, he sounded defeated.
"I think I'm failing," he said. "My restaurant shows a $10,000 loss, and I don't understand how. We're busy every night."
I could hear the frustration in his voice. David had been trying to manage his QuickBooks himself, uploading receipts manually and watching his bank transactions import automatically.
What he didn't realize was that he was accidentally counting every expense twice.
Picture this: He'd buy $500 worth of ingredients. He'd upload the receipt to QuickBooks (counting it once). Then the bank transaction would import automatically (counting it again). QuickBooks was showing double the actual expenses.
Even worse, he'd been categorizing his food costs as regular business expenses instead of "Cost of Goods Sold" - which completely skewed his profit margins.
Three weeks later, I called David with his corrected books.
"You're not losing money," I told him. "You're actually profitable."
The silence on the other end lasted so long, I thought the call had dropped.
"You mean... I'm not failing?"
"David, you're succeeding. You just couldn't see it through all the confusion."
Today, David's books are clean, his categories are correct, and he finally sees the true health of his business. More importantly, he can make decisions based on real numbers, not phantom losses.
How clear is your financial picture? Sometimes success is hiding behind messy books.
Don't let confusing books hide your business success! If you're interested in getting the clarity you deserve with your finances, reach out to me. Let's uncover what's really happening with your money.
As a 30-year veteran of running childcares, I've been managing my own books for decades - and now I help other business owners get the same clarity and organization I've always maintained. I especially love working with out-of-the-box entrepreneurs who need that extra support with organization and systems.