If your style of bookkeeping looks more like a box of crumpled receipts than intentional organization, your business’s finances may be in need of a makeover.
For Joy Baker of Baker Bookkeeps, there’s nothing she loves more than helping transform someone’s stressful financial records into an organized dream, all while educating clients so that they feel in control of their money.
“Just that clarity side, of them really understanding what's going on in their business and having a good plan, where they can be as involved and as detailed as they want,” she says of the peace and understanding she provides clients. “It's really looking at ‘where are they right now? What are they in need of?’ It’s that peace of mind that their numbers are correct. There is a clarity there and that is a continually evolving element. I just love guiding people from where they are, even if they begin with zero clarity…to really having a good handle on it and sleeping better at night. It really does make a difference.”
A Bellevue resident and mother of three, Baker specializes in working exclusively with businesses. Her passion for bookkeeping began while working for her family’s business, where she found that bookkeeping duties—which can be intimidating to many—were her favorite responsibilities to oversee. That passion eventually led her to branch out on her own and establish Baker Bookkeeps in 2021.
Working with all sorts of businesses from videographers to construction companies, her firm not only handles traditional bookkeeping for businesses, but also consults and specializes in a cash flow management system. While the focus is on business bookkeeping, the practices she teaches can also be used in personal finances.
Baker’s style of bookkeeping is unique in that she’s a Profit First Professional, making her one of fewer than 1,000 people with this certification.
The Profit First mission is to eradicate entrepreneurial poverty and as a Profit First Professional, Baker has incorporated that mission into her own business.
“We've really expanded our services now to do a lot more of that,” she says of focusing on the Profit First mission. “It’s incredibly powerful and very effective. The implementation process is very much a transition, so guiding people through that is a really important step so that they can fully get implemented and make the most of it. It’s a continual, living, breathing [entity]. You need to be constantly reevaluating your numbers.”
Among the questions that often come up from her clients are: what should they be paying themselves, should they increase their salary after a good quarter, are they in a position to hire additional staff or if it’s feasible to purchase new equipment.
“All of those questions are constantly being asked by just about every business owner, and one bank balance doesn't give you enough definition to answer them,” Baker says. “It’s all based on you moving money based on percentage of revenue, moving it into these different buckets. The logistical aspects of moving money around and calculating percentages is only half. The other half is [entirely] psychological. It's really amazing, the kind of good habits that are developed by viewing your money that way and handling it differently. And even for myself, it’s been a massive, massive game changer.”
If your business’s finances need a makeover, visit BakerBookkeeps.com.