The Bean Counter: Recent Episodes
Julie Bonner
People think that accounting and finance can be difficult to understand because it is math based. However, these topics can be difficult because they are conceptual and thus you have to learn about finance and accounting topics from someone that can build your thinking pathways to be receptive to the information. Subscribe today and learn this important skill, not only for your career but for your personal life! Be sure to visit our website at www.coeurbridge.com.
For some reason, many people believe that math prevents them from being financially intelligent. Math is NOT the issue. Bookkeeping is a logical system, and you have to understand what you are looking at, and that is how a bookkeeper can help you make sense of your business in your financials.
Meet with a bookkeeper: www.calendly.com/coeurbridge
Obtain your full copy of the book, OWN YOUR NUMBERS, on Amazon
Hosted by Julie Bonner. Bookkeeping and financial help for business owners — https://coeurbridge.com
When a new client or a referral partner asks what you do, do you have a clean answer ready to send? This episode walks through the one-page handout I use for my own bookkeeping business — who we are, how we got started, and the ways we help. Mine is a simple black-and-white PDF I email when someone inquires; no printing, no design budget, nothing fancy. You can take it as a template and build your own. It fits a service business especially well, and it's a solid starting point for just about any business that needs a simple way to introduce itself.
Need our assistance? https://calendly.com/coeurbridge
Grab Your Editable Handout: https://coeurbridge.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Coeurbridge-LLC-One-Pager.docx
Hosted by Julie Bonner. Bookkeeping and financial help for business owners — https://coeurbridge.com
The cheapest, most reliable marketing for a service business isn't ads — it's people who send you clients. This is how you build a steady stream of them, on purpose. Start with your natural referral partners: people who already work with your ideal client but don't do what you do. For a bookkeeper, that's CPAs, enrolled agents, tax pros, financial planners, and solo CFOs — they all have clients who need bookkeeping and usually don't want to do it themselves. Bankers too: someone turned down for a loan over messy books is exactly who you can help. Find them on LinkedIn, in your network and just outside it, and ask for a short conversation. Most people say yes. The conversation is low-key — half an hour, often over Zoom. You're not pitching; you're introducing yourself: here's who I help, and if you ever hear someone frustrated with the financial side of their business, send them my way. Hand them your one-page handout so they've got something to pass along. Keep your antenna up, do them consistently — one a week if you're introverted, more if you're not — and reward the people who send you business with a thank-you gift or a credit. I'm highly introverted, and this still works because it's one person at a time, and you believe in what you do.
Be sure to update your documents!
Budget/Cash Flow: https://coeurbridge.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Sample-Cash-Flow-Forecast.xlsx
Business Plan: https://coeurbridge.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/SCORE-Startup-Business-Plan-Template.docx
Need our assistance? https://calendly.com/coeurbridge
Hosted by Julie Bonner. Bookkeeping and financial help for business owners — https://coeurbridge.com
The most daunting part of starting a business isn't the idea — it's finding the first client. This is the overview: where your people actually are, and how to reach them. It depends on what you're building. A retail shop has foot traffic; a virtual service business has to go find its people on purpose. So the first question is always the same — where do the people who want what you sell already gather? Festivals and farmers' markets for the honey maker, a Pike Place booth for the candle maker, referral conversations for a bookkeeper. Find where yours are, then start small: try one channel, keep it if it works, drop it if it doesn't. I'm highly introverted — and word of mouth still beat every ad I ever ran. Not parties and schmoozing, just sitting one-on-one and explaining clearly how I help. That, a simple handout your referral partners can pass along, and a clear sense of who your ideal client is — that's most of the early game. This episode is the landscape; the deeper how-tos come later.
Cash Flow: https://coeurbridge.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Sample-Cash-Flow-Forecast.xlsx
Business Plan: https://coeurbridge.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/SCORE-Startup-Business-Plan-Template.docx
Do you need bookkeeping help? https://calendly.com/coeurbridge
Hosted by Julie Bonner. Bookkeeping and financial help for business owners — https://coeurbridge.com
Getting a federal EIN — your employer identification number — is one of the first setup steps, and it's free straight from the IRS. The real question most new owners have is just whether they need one, and how to do it without paying a service to do it for them. You're required to have one the moment you run payroll. But even as a sole proprietor with no employees, two reasons make it worth getting: it keeps you from handing your Social Security number out all over town, which matters in an age of identity theft, and most banks want an EIN before they'll open a business account. You can apply online in a few minutes, or mail in Form SS-4 — either way, it costs nothing, and the IRS has a short questionnaire that tells you whether you even need one. One order-of-operations tip that saves a headache: reserve your business name with the Secretary of State first. I've watched owners get the EIN, then change the name — and now they're redoing the federal paperwork too. Name first, then EIN.
Snail Mail Fillable PDF: https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/fss4.pdf
Applying online: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/get-an-employer-identification-number
Do you need an EIN: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/employer-identification-number#whoneedsanein Need help doing this for your business?
Find a local bookkeeper or use our service: https://calendly.com/coeurbridge
If you prefer to learn by video: https://youtu.be/dOxmvkiww1k
Hosted by Julie Bonner. Bookkeeping and financial help for business owners — https://coeurbridge.com
To start a business in Washington State, you will reserve your business name with the Secretary of State. For those of you starting a business in another state, Google your Secretary of State site. Likely, the process will be similar. Otherwise, contact us or another bookkeeping or CPA company to help you!
If you need assistance, book time here: calendly.com/coeurbridge
Video of this podcast episode: https://youtu.be/g68xkyNmAS0
Hosted by Julie Bonner. Bookkeeping and financial help for business owners — https://coeurbridge.com
If you run an LLC, an S-corp, or you're a sole proprietor, the IRS wants its share as you earn it — not in one lump in April. Wait until then to catch up and they'll penalize you anyway. So you pay quarterly, in estimates. Here's the rough method. Take your net income for the quarter — your bottom-line P&L — and multiply it by your tax rate. Not sure what your rate is? Pull last year's 1040; it's near the top of the first page. It might be 10%, 15%, 20% — whatever yours is, that's your multiplier. It isn't exact, and it isn't meant to be. The goal is to land close, pay a little in each quarter, and stay out of penalty territory. A few wrinkles: in a partnership, split the net income by the number of partners first, then apply the rate. Federal payments go through directpay.irs.gov. And if your state has an income tax — Washington doesn't — you may owe estimates there too. The habit worth building: write your approach down in your business plan so you're not re-figuring it from scratch every quarter.
Need to speak to a bookkeeper? https://www.calendly.com/coeurbridge
Want to see the video instead? https://youtu.be/5oZWqQCqFmg
Hosted by Julie Bonner. Bookkeeping and financial help for business owners — https://coeurbridge.com
When starting a business, which legal form of business should you choose? You can always change this choice, so listen today and use this as a jumping-off point for making this initial decision about your own business. This is not legal advice; for that, you would need to consult a lawyer or speak with insurance providers. However, you will have a good place to start!
Do you learn better on video? https://youtu.be/nNkfg2SeSK0
Cash Flow Forecast Download: https://coeurbridge.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Sample-Cash-Flow-Forecast.xlsx
Business Plan Template Download: https://coeurbridge.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/SCORE-Startup-Business-Plan-Template.docx
Need bookkeeping help with starting your business? calendly.com/coeurbridge
Hosted by Julie Bonner. Bookkeeping and financial help for business owners — https://coeurbridge.com
Any business needs to consider marketing, contracting, tools, and operations in building a company. This is an overview of these areas, which will dive into each of the separate categories in much more detail.
Downloads:
https://coeurbridge.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/Sample-Cash-Flow-Forecast.xlsx
https://coeurbridge.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/SCORE-Startup-Business-Plan-Template.docx
https://coeurbridge.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/ToolsAssessment.xlsx
Hosted by Julie Bonner. Bookkeeping and financial help for business owners — https://coeurbridge.com
How long could a business survive if the money stopped coming in tomorrow? Worth asking about any company you're studying — and urgent about your own. COVID made it real for many owners, and most have never actually run the numbers. There's a simple way to find it — the same way you'd size up a personal emergency fund. Take a month of operating expenses, then the cash on hand that isn't already spoken for. Divide one into the other, and you get the runway: how many months the business could keep its doors open with zero revenue. The episode works the math on a company everyone knows — Costco. Pull the operating expenses, pull the free cash flow, and it's only about three and a half months of cushion, even for a giant. Then you turn the same lens wherever it matters to you — a company you're analyzing, or your own business.
If you prefer video, here is the YouTube video of the same content: https://youtu.be/PbG43B-Mfuw
Hosted by Julie Bonner. Bookkeeping and financial help for business owners — https://coeurbridge.com
Can't I pay them on a 1099? Most owners ask it, because payroll is a hassle and contractors seem simpler. But get it wrong and the IRS comes looking for the FICA and income tax you should have withheld. The IRS weighs three things: behavior (do you control how the work gets done?), finances (who provides the tools, and does this person sell the same service to other companies?), and relationship (reimbursements, uniforms, how permanent it is). A lawyer you hire runs their own show and serves lots of clients — a contractor. A barista you train to do it your way — employee, on payroll. The clearest test is the one owners miss: is the work core to your business — the work that actually generates your revenue? If it is, that person belongs on the payroll. A coffee shop's baristas are core; the bookkeeper who supports the shop isn't. Get that line wrong, and an audit is where you'll find out.
Do you need bookkeeping help? Book time with us to discuss for free! https://calendly.com/coeurbridge
Learn about Coeurbridge: www.coeurbridge.com
IRS Guidance: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/independent-contractor-self-employed-or-employee
IRS Behavioral: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/behavioral-control
IRS Financial: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/financial-control
IRS Relationship: https://www.irs.gov/businesses/small-businesses-self-employed/type-of-relationship
Hosted by Julie Bonner. Bookkeeping and financial help for business owners — https://coeurbridge.com
Many entrepreneurs fail because of cash flow issues. In this episode, I go through a common mistake that business owners make when it comes to sales tax - listen to find out how to solve it!
If you need bookkeeping support, contact Coeurbridge at this link: https://calendly.com/coeurbridge
Hi everyone, in this episode, we discuss the final step in best practices regarding 1099s and how to file them. Depending on your software, you may have to fill these out manually or use a service like Tax1099.com, or you can file them electronically through your accounting software. If you want to take a Best Practices 1099 course with our training partner, Springboard, go to courses.springboard-learning.com and sign up for the 1099 Best Practices course. Use code 1099HALF at checkout to enjoy a 50% discount on the course. Also, if you are a small business owner in need of help establishing this 1099 best practice process, or you need someone to enact this process, contact us at Info@coeurbridge.com. Enjoy the episode! Knowing the best practice for handling this process efficiently and effectively can put your mind at ease!
In this episode, we discuss the second best practices step in handling 1099's as a small business. Here, we discuss updating vendor records and how they map appropriately to 1099 reporting. Also, our partners at Springboard have a 1099 best practices class that you can take for 50% off if you go to courses.springboard-learning.com and use the code 1099HALF on checkout. Also, if you are a small business and want help with 1099's, Coeurbridge can help - contact them at Info@coeurbridge.com. ENjoy the episode!
As part of a series on best practices and 1099's - check out this episode that talks about the first step of the process and the best practice method to follow. Included also is a 50% off coupon for a 1099 Best Practices course with our friends at Springboard. Go to courses.springboard-learning.com and use the discount code 1099HALF upon checkout. Also, if you need bookkeeping help, contact info@coeurbridge.com to discuss how we can help!
Small businesses and entrepreneurs may not know which financial professional can help. Use this podcast to help you start to assess who can help you!
In this production we will examine why profit does not equal cash. We will focus on timing issues that can occur throughout the income statement. It may be surprising that profit does not equal cash, but it is an important idea to get clear in your mind as you examine profit and loss statements if you want to become an entrepreneur through buying an existing business.
In this production we will examine, in much more detail, what you can learn from the public information contained in the 10-k that a publicly traded company publishes to the Securities and Exchange Commission. If you are wanting to start a business or educate yourself as an employee or investor in a company, then the 10-k is a great source of information.
In this production we are going to explore how to start analyzing a company’s financial information. We will be specifically exploring where you can find sources of information that help you analyze financial information so that you can invest or start a business with confidence. In future episodes, we will take an even deeper dive into specific analysis of this information you can get from these sources.
In this episode we are going to explore, at a high level, how to assess company financial information that resides on financial statements.
One of the best ways to understand accounting is to relate the conceptual framework of the accounting field to your own personal life. In this episode, we will discuss how financial statements can be understood if we translate our financial lives into the framework of these statements.