Most people hear the word bookkeeping and feel their energy drop a few notches. Spreadsheets, receipts, reconciliations, “Accounting? Ew!” as Gregory Martin, owner of House of Standard, says jokingly. “I get it, it’s just a bunch of numbers and transactions. How boring. But it’s actually the foundation most choices are built on.”
For Gregory, bookkeeping isn’t just paperwork or business logistics, it’s a vital sign. “Personally, I see it more as vitals-a pulse,” he says. It’s a theme he returns to often: bookkeeping as the heartbeat of a business, a reading of financial health that determines whether a company is thriving, stressed, or in need of a reset. “Just like when we’re unhealthy, there are tools and tricks-often in the form of ideas from the right people-that can get us to a position that’s a little firmer, a more solid foundation.”
He believes clarity creates calm, not just in business, but at home. When money is muddy, tension rises. But when it’s clear? Space opens. Space for joy, for imagination, for legacy.
“When you have your ducks in a row, you live from a center of honesty. Your mind isn’t as distracted or overwhelmed, and when you’re in that space, you can see your moves more clearly. That gives you the ability to make smarter decisions.”
And smarter decisions today, he says, build legacies tomorrow.
Gregory isn’t shy about the “L” word. “I’m huge on legacy. How many people can honestly say they’re leaving one?” He isn’t speaking from a pedestal, he’s building his own, brick by brick. “Granted, I’m just getting started-and anyone else can feel free to get started with me. Why not you? Why not now?”
His vision for House of Standard stretches beyond bookkeeping as a service and into guidance as a partnership. “We’re not here to bother or hound our clients. Our job is to make their lives easier so they can focus on what’s important to them.” He remarks about bookkeeping’s reputation for dullness, yet sees something poetic in it-“Accounting can be a tricky and dull field, and to me, it’s fascinating that something so dull is so important.”
The way he describes a healthy bookkeeping rhythm borders on philosophical: don’t let things pile up, stay organized, create discipline, then, importantly, rest. “Once you’re caught up and organized, breathe and coast. Take some time to look around and enjoy things. You built something—and it works. Good job.” But rest, he warns, is brief; growth calls quickly. “Welcome back to human nature! You’re about to get bored again… because now it’s time to start dreaming.”
Dreams need grounding, though, and he circles back to the pulse. “There’s an anchor-your numbers. What’s true? What can you do with them now that you’ve cleaned them up, gotten organized, and had your rest period? Ask yourself: what’s true? Live there, and keep building.”
Gregory sees bookkeeping not as restriction, but as freedom. Freedom to be generous. Freedom to build for the next generation. Freedom to enjoy a family, not just provide for one. “Any healthy practice you work on will make those highs less high and those lows less low. There’ll be a greater balance than a rollercoaster.”
And that, in his view, is what legacy is: responsibility, pride, and impact-both now and later.
“Welcome to House of Standard,” Gregory says with confidence. It’s not an invitation to bookkeeping. It’s an invitation to build something that lasts.
"Just like when we’re unhealthy, there are tools and tricks-often in the form of ideas from the right people-that can get us to a position that’s a little firmer, a more solid foundation.”