Run It Like the Rich

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Owner reset ideas, business systems, money routines and Run It Like the Rich lessons.

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Short lessons on business systems, books, compliance and owner discipline.

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2 minutes

Score your back office

Nine questions across Admin, Books and Compliance. See where you stand.

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The Clean Start Checklist

Every setup step for a new company: forming it, banking it, keeping it legal and filing it so a buyer could follow it someday. With a sales tax lookup by ZIP and a compliance calendar.

Open the checklist

The ABC Owner Scorecard

Where does your business really stand?

Rate your back office on nine benchmarks. Your score updates as you go.

A1 · File & information structureWhere are your critical files, emails, passwords and vendor agreements stored?

Scattered across multiple systemsDesktops, email threads, paper. Finding documents takes real effort.In the cloud, but unorganizedGoogle Drive or Dropbox, but no naming convention or folder structure.A structured command centerOne shared hub with clear guidelines, folder structure and password security.

A2 · Owner routinesHow do you handle weekly and monthly admin: reconciliations, billing, reviewing records?

Reactive, from memoryDone when something breaks, an invoice is overdue or a tax deadline forces it.Periodic, but inconsistentI try to do it monthly, but it slips by weeks when I get busy.Scheduled, locked routinesAdmin time is on my calendar every week. Reports happen like clockwork.

A3 · Operations documentationAre your workflows, key contact lists and system procedures written down?

Completely undocumentedIt's all in my head or my employees' heads. If someone leaves, things break.Loose or outdated notesSome scattered docs, incomplete and rarely updated.A clean operating hubEssential procedures and emergency guidelines are documented in one place.

B1 · Bookkeeping healthHow current and accurate are your QuickBooks Online or accounting records?

Months behind, or cleaned up only for taxesNeglected all year, then rushed for the tax preparer.Reconciled, but messyReconciliations happen, but there are suspense accounts, uncategorized transactions or stale bank rules.Reconciled and cleanReconciled weekly or monthly, correct categories, no mystery balances.

B2 · Cash & tax managementHow do you track cash flow, owner pay and upcoming tax bills?

I check the bank balanceThe bank balance tells me if we're OK, and tax bills surprise me.A manual spreadsheetI project taxes and track pay in a spreadsheet, but it falls behind.A structured allocation systemTax money is set aside right away, the owner is paid on a structure, and there's a cash cushion.

B3 · Financial fluencyHow confidently do you read your Profit & Loss and Balance Sheet to make decisions?

I don't look, or don't trust themI rarely open them, or I don't believe the numbers are real.I get the basicsI understand revenue and net income, but not what the statements say about cash.I review them every monthI know my cost of goods sold and gross margin, and I price from facts.

C1 · Compliance calendarHow do you track annual reports, sales tax, payroll tax, 1099s and key renewals?

When the letter arrivesWe react to mail and notices. Late fees happen.Dates on a calendarDates are on someone's calendar, without checklists or reminders.A full compliance scheduleEvery tax, corporate and insurance deadline is tracked with 30 days' notice.

C2 · Legal & corporate recordsWhat shape are your corporate records, operating agreements and contracts in?

Outdated or missingNo minutes in years, unsigned operating agreement, handshake contracts.Partial, rarely reviewedBasic documents from when we formed, never updated.Current and stored safelyAgreements, resolutions, vendor contracts and licenses are current and filed.

C3 · Audit & due diligence readinessHow fast could you hand a bank, auditor or buyer clean, complete files?

Weeks of stressful cleanupIt would take a big, expensive effort with an accountant.A few stressful daysWe have most of it, spread across accounts and drawers.Right nowOur file hub lets us share complete, clean reports immediately.

The ABC framework

Three letters every owner needs, in order.

A

Admin & Operations

Files, passwords, workflows, SOPs and the weekly, monthly and yearly rhythms that keep things moving.

B

Books

Clean books, real reconciliations and reporting you can actually decide from.

C

Compliance

Filings, licenses, payroll and the deadlines that cost money when they're missed.

The Business Reset

Five R's to fix it while it's running.

Reveal
See what's really happening in the business, not what you hope is happening.
Reframe
Decide what matters. Edit the plan, not the mission.
Rebuild
Put the Admin, Books and Compliance systems in place.
Refine
Tighten what works. Automate the ordinary.
Repeat
Run the rhythm every week, month and year. Process beats panic.

Read the series

Building the Business You Can Retire From

For owners 5–10 years from retirement. The company you retire from is being built right now.

Part 1

The business you retire from has to learn to live without you first

Part 2

The paper pile didn't disappear. It moved to the cloud.

Part 3

Before you replace your back office, train the people who already know your business

Read the series on Substack See StoryBook Exit

Owner rules

Say them until they stick.

Data over drama.

Process beats panic.

Automate the ordinary.

Edit the plan, not the mission.

Standards build culture.

Build it like you could walk away tomorrow.

Shop the motto

Admin. Books. Compliance. Then everything else.