11. Seasons of Business and Life

Oct 2

Welcome back to The Accounting Edit podcast.
I'm Leah McCool from Orca Accounting.
And I'm Aminder Mann from Sequoia CPA.
Thank you all for joining us again.
We are recording an episode that's a little bit different today.
It's based on just the seasons of business and life.
And so it really is just gonna dive behind the scenes of who we are as business owners, kind of what our last few seasons have been like, adjusting into this new season of fall, and thereby Q4.
So we're excited to just chat through some of these topics and just kind of get more into the behind the scenes of it all.
This is gonna be more of an interview style of episode.
And so our first topic is just gonna be reflecting on the summer because everybody, it feels like everybody is kind of coming back from summer and all the business owners that have maybe been on vacation or doing their own personal things are now coming out of the woodwork and more interested in clean ups and everything.
So I feel like we've both been very busy in these last few weeks of September.
So for summer reflections, what would you say, did you do anything fun this summer?
What was the highlight of your summer, Aminder?
Yeah, it's kind of crazy that summer is almost wrapping up here.
We're wrapping up Q3.
We're moving into Q4.
I'm kind of blown away that it's already the end and we're moving into a new season.
But I think for me, one of the highlights really was how much time I got.
This is my first summer working as my own business owner, and so time was a huge luxury.
And so working in corporate before, I felt like I didn't have much, and I didn't realize I didn't have that much time until this summer came along and the days just slowed down.
I got to spend a lot more time outdoors.
I got to spend a lot more time doing activities with my husband, just time outside in my garden and nature.
And I was just blown away at how long the days are when you're not just scrambling to work from 7 a.m.
to 7 p.m.
So I still got all my client work in.
I still was focusing on a lot of my marketing, growing my business, but it was so nice to be able to just take that extra time and invest it in myself and into my family.
How about for you, Leah?
It definitely is such a huge shift of mentality, and just having that extra time is such a beautiful thing of entrepreneurship that I think that other entrepreneurs will agree with, because I felt the same way.
I think with this being my second official summer of owning a business and running it, last summer I was just getting started, so it was a little bit busier on just scrambling to try and get my first client and everything.
But this summer, it was very lovely.
I was able to really learn how to prioritize my time and protect my time.
And it was a lovely experience to be able to have all of that freedom of, when I want to take some time off, I don't need to request it off.
It just is something that I am communicative with my clients about, and it is really lovely to just be able to take a step back when you need to.
And I've told many people this, I unintentionally kind of took a European summer this summer because I was still doing everything that was recurring, and I was doing everything that I needed to do, but I really did not feel too much pressure to grow outside of that.
And so it was nice kind of taking a step back and just having more time for personal stuff as well.
It's been lovely just having that restorative experience of summer.
It feels like summer vacation in a way.
That's amazing.
Yeah, and that's the whole reason we started our businesses, right, is to have that flexibility in that time.
And it felt like a luxury in corporate, but it feels like a necessity almost now to have that.
Thinking back to our corporate days, when we first connected, I remember we always chatted about how when we were working for startups, it's just not built into the culture of startups to take a relaxed summer.
At least in my old startup, they saw summer as an opportunity where a lot of people have downtime, and so it's our time to really just push hard and, you know, take advantage of the extra time, so working longer hours.
And I think that it's lovely having the flip side of that, because that is why I started my own company.
I wanted to have more freedom.
I wanted to be able to walk my dog in the middle of the day, and no one really wonder where I am, or like this summer I moved, and it was amazing to just not have to take any time off or worry about, okay, like I have to be online and move my mouse.
And so it is a wonderful thing.
It's been such a...
Especially in the second year that I've really been in business, it's been a lovely start to the second official year of having that time and freedom.
That's amazing.
I'm super excited for you, and then also for myself to see the second summer.
So I'm looking forward to that next year.
And then in terms of this summer, did you try anything new?
Did you have like a new hobby trip, any experience you have that was really memorable?
So, really what I did this summer in terms of trying new things, I guess my answer to that would be I acquired a new puppy.
Yeah!
That has been a new experience for sure, I think, in addition to everything else.
I still have been going to the gym and really just getting back into that because now I have so much time.
And so it's just lovely having time to be active in the summer, during the winter in the Pacific Northwest, for anyone that is listening and not in the Pacific Northwest.
Winter can be kind of groggy and you don't want to go outside, or at least you're less enticed to go outside.
And so just having a new puppy in addition to having just the sunlight and everything, it has been quite a new experience dealing with a new puppy.
Yeah, I can imagine.
Yeah, but it's been a lovely sort of thing to also fit into my life now that I have more time to be able to stay home with the puppy and play with him and everything and just do whatever I need to do with him.
So that's been kind of like my new experience, I guess.
What about you?
Did you try anything this summer?
Yeah, I think for me, we really got into biking.
So we actually bought two bikes.
And so my husband and I have been biking there's this trail here in Redmond.
It runs along the river.
And so you can go for miles in either direction from where we're located.
And so we've just been biking the trail almost every weekend, just getting out there and enjoying the sunshine, the beautiful weather.
I'm not exhausted from my long work week.
So I have energy to go out and do these things.
So that's been a nice discovery to enjoy nature outside and just walking because we love walks too.
And then farmers markets.
I had, when I first moved here, really enjoyed attending farmers markets.
But then again, work got busy, corporate life was insane and then kind of fell off.
And this summer we've been really enjoying going to farmers markets again, getting fresh fruit.
We have really good produce here in the Pacific Northwest.
And so having all that local fruit and vegetables has been just amazing.
And like sometimes we pick stuff up, like we got these plums and they were so delicious.
I've never had sweeter plums in my life and I was just blown away.
And then every weekend we show up to the same vendor and like, I need more of these plums.
We're like, here you go.
But it's been great.
When you find fruit that is just so naturally sweet, it is the most amazing thing to me.
It makes me so happy when I find peaches that are just so amazingly sweet and they're not too mushy.
It is like Christmas.
It's so amazing.
Yeah, that's so funny.
Okay, so in terms of moving into our second topic of wins and lessons, what would you say is a personal win that gave you momentum heading into fall?
Okay, yeah.
I think what's really helped me is I've been trying to get my health on track.
I think, again, working in corporate the long hours, I just was neglecting my health quite a bit, and I didn't realize the toll it had taken.
So this year, I've been trying to build a lot healthier habits.
So walking has been a really good way to not only get outside, get sunlight, but also to kind of get my body in a more healthy shape and get more exercise in, also healthy eating.
I've been really focusing on plant-based eating and eating local.
So this is where, again, the farmers markets have been really helpful.
But that's kind of helped me create really good habits in terms of being healthy myself, so that I can have the energy to kind of support my business.
And so I'm using that to kind of go into fall.
I know the days are getting shorter.
It's getting cooler, so it's kind of harder to get outside.
But we still go for our walks as long as we can.
And I enjoy that I'm going to have the flexibility that I can go out at lunch rather than waiting till the end of the day.
Even if it's raining, I can throw on a rain jacket.
But then also on a personal front, just being able to block that time and being diligent about it.
I think a lot of times I've allowed work to seep into personal time, but using that same habit of, no, be diligent, even if the days shorter, I can get off at five and do my personal thing.
I don't have to keep working.
So that, I'm hoping, will help carry me into Q4 and help me with some better work-life balance.
How about yourself, Leah, and what are some good habits that you're taking?
I completely, I love everything you're saying because I feel the same exact way.
I think really over the summer, something new that I didn't talk about, but I definitely have just done, and it's been so subconscious, is I've started cooking more.
And I, in my family, I am not the typical cook in my family.
My husband typically does.
But it's been so fun for me because I had just time, and there was so much good produce, like you said.
And so I have just been getting so much more into cooking, and that's just been lovely feeding into also just how I've been trying to just get my routine with going to the gym and just having an active lifestyle.
It just fits so perfectly into that because I noticed that when I cook more, when I notice more about what I eat, because I love to eat, I love to go out to eat, but cooking and seeing what's going into the food that you're making and eating, it's such a fun thing to then...
And I think that also when we talk about routine, it's...
I love a routine, and so almost planning meals and having that time blocked out in my week, in a way, keeps me more organized with other areas of my life as well, because I just feel more discipline.
And so I'm hugely fingers crossed that that's gonna help me as we go into these sort of gloomy months where sometimes I'm like, oh, I just want to make a pizza, and I just don't want to do it, you know?
So I'm hoping that that will...
Yeah, exactly.
I'm hoping that that will also help me stay consistent this winter as well.
That'll be really nice.
That's amazing.
Yeah.
I think hopefully these habits carry forward.
But in terms of any lessons from this summer, are there any that you're taking with you into Q4?
I would say a big lesson for me that I learned this summer that I spoke about briefly previously was how lovely it is to protect your time and the learning curve that's required in order to feel okay and not guilty doing that.
So I think that that is definitely an area where, especially just working in corporate, it's hard to protect your time.
You don't feel like your time is your own and you feel pressure from other people to just have your time be that of the company.
And I think that really just shifting from that mindset took a little bit for me to not just work 11 hours a day now that I've been working for myself, but really teaching myself how lovely this summer was and knowing, okay, I want this to continue.
Same as like my routine and my productivity, I want this protection of my time to continue into the fourth quarter as well, because it does get busy.
We as accountants, fourth quarter is really busy.
And so is the first quarter of the new year.
And so really just making sure that I have that down before starting into this new busy season is going to be something that I'm hopefully going to stay consistent with.
What about you?
Yeah, I think for me, it's time as well.
It was so nice that summer allowed the extra time.
Like when the days are longer, I feel like all that extra sunlight, all those hours are mine.
And so being diligent about it, moving into fall time as the days get shorter that I don't feel like just cause it's getting darker sooner that I need to always be working.
And then also in terms of just protecting time, when it comes to my work, I know we were talking about this earlier as well.
When it comes to leads and not feeling like we're giving away too much of our time and taking on too many leads or too many projects, making sure we're taking on qualified clients that align with our values in our businesses and using that filtering process to be diligent so that we do protect our time.
We're not overextending ourselves in a way and then stretching ourselves, then leading to burnout.
And I know like you said, this is gonna be my first Q4, but not being like too greedy in taking too many clients, being diligent, and that's one of the things that I've been trying to be mindful of is I want to give all my clients really good service.
So I want to be able to take on a certain amount of clients each month and not overextend and work long hours myself.
So the quality of my work matters, but I don't want to be taking on extra long projects where I'm working 11, 12 hours just to try to make up for it.
So I think time is going to be one of those key challenges that I'm hoping the habits that I made in the summer will kind of hopefully move through Q4 and then through 2026.
Yeah, I couldn't agree more.
And I think that's something else that I a lesson that I took from just this year.
And I think the last year that I was in business to learning what to say no to, that's the method of how to protect your time.
And, because ultimately, saying no allows you to say yes to other opportunities, which sounds so simple.
But saying no is so scary and just goes against my natural response to things.
Like, I just want to say, yes, I can do that.
And, you know, I'll figure it out.
I think that kind of speaks to just us being in the field that we're in and our past experience.
Yeah.
But I do agree.
I think learning to say no to people that just don't really fit what we're looking for now and being more intentional about who we're taking on so that we can continue to grow sustainably is a very exciting lesson that now I am also implementing and it's very exciting.
That's amazing.
And now just shifting a little bit to the personal side.
What does your typical weekend look like outside of your firm?
So what do you like to do on the weekends, Leah?
Weekends are so amazing.
I love my weekends so much because it just feels, just to have nothing planned out for the day is such a lovely thing.
But also I do have a little bit of a routine to my days just as they are.
But really on weekends, I'm just starting my days the same way.
I'm taking care of my dogs and just going and getting outside and for a walk or so.
But really what I love to do on the weekends is if I've neglected going to the gym at all during the week, then that's kind of where I'll go and I'll kind of just enjoy a long workout that's uninterrupted and I don't feel pressure to do anything.
And I love to cook on the weekends.
That's my favorite thing to just get all my groceries in.
I like to plan out what I'm making for the weekend.
So I have a very accountant approach to it.
Oh, my goodness.
I plan out my whole grocery list and then I cook whatever I want and whatever my husband wants.
And it's so amazing to just have that time to dedicate to that.
And also, it sounds maybe very simple and simplistic, but I love the simple, just kind of reset of a weekend and hanging out with friends, maybe here and there and going to a football game or baseball game or something like that because I live in a college town.
And so, yeah, just a really simple kind of go with the flow, seeing what other people are up to, just making sure that I have my routine down, that's setting me up for my week.
It's a very lovely, simple weekend, but I love it.
If I'm not going to Portland or anything, then that's typically how it looks.
I love that.
Yeah, that's amazing.
How does your weekends typically look?
I love quiet weekends as well.
So usually we take it pretty slow.
We love catching up on a good documentary on the weekend.
So Netflix documentaries have been our favorite.
So we will watch it.
What's a good documentary that you've watched recently?
So there's one on the Fire Festival.
I don't know if you've heard of that one.
So that one was really good.
So usually we'll watch something and it's sometimes like a really dry topic, but sometimes it's like one of those juicy fraud stories.
So we really love the good fraud stories as accountants.
It kind of gives you good insight on what not to do on the back end of things.
And so there's been really good ones on Netflix that we've really enjoyed.
But the Fire Festival is good.
Yeah.
A fraud story is so fun.
Like, I love anything about the Enron Arthur Andersen case.
Whenever I see anything about that, I am obsessed.
I'm like, I need to listen to this or watch it.
So tell me more.
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
So we usually start out with our mornings like that.
And then pretty slow, just like catching up on routine, catching up on chores.
But we like to get out now that it's been summer.
We've been doing a lot of like outdoor biking happens on the weekend, the farmers market, and we'd love to go to coffee shops.
So this is something new that we've started is we try to find a new coffee shop each weekend and try different types of coffee.
And there's this new place here in Kirkland near the waterfront, and it's a Turkish coffee place.
And so they have these cute little cups, and it's traditional Turkish coffee.
And so they serve it with water and a little Turkish delight.
And it's so good.
It's just like a shot of coffee, but it's like delicious.
So my husband and I, we've been loving that.
And so just trying to incorporate that into our weekend routines.
And then now that fall is coming up, hockey season is kicking off.
So we love to go see hockey games.
So we'll probably start that here in the next couple of weeks.
Sounds so fun.
First of all, Turkish coffee I've heard is amazing.
I've actually never tried it, but I really want to.
It's really, and I didn't realize, because my husband heard of it, and he's like, I want to try it.
And so I looked up Turkish coffee places, and there was only like one here.
And so I'm like, okay.
And it's like a food place and a coffee shop.
And so we're like, okay, let's try it.
And they have like the cutest cups, and I just couldn't get over it.
And my husband's like, okay, I think it's more about the coffee.
You're like, no, it's for the vibes too.
The whole other part of it.
Yeah.
And I took some pictures, so I might post something on like Instagram of the cute little cups.
We'll see if I can work it in.
Absolutely.
We love the behind the scenes of cute coffee shops.
That's literally what I live for when I go to a coffee shop, is how are the vibes?
And then the coffee is also important, but it's not the whole picture.
No, it's the experience.
Exactly.
That is so fun.
And then just kind of moving into our last section of looking into fall, we've kind of touched on, okay, what have we done during the summer?
Just lovely things that we've taken away from it.
But do you have any new habits or rituals that you are excited for moving into the fourth quarter of the year?
I think for me, again, going back into planning and time, so trying to be diligent with my time.
So I've started tracking my time to see how much I'm spending on different tasks.
And so I'm trying to streamline a lot of my processes, so I'm not wasting a lot of my time and being efficient as possible.
But then also, I like to do like a recap at the end of my week.
This is everything I accomplished.
These are the things that are outstanding.
Create a guide for the following week.
And so I'm trying to be a little bit more ritualistic about that, so that I can set up my week's months in a more diligent manner, so that I have my networking events lined up, I have all my client dates that I work on their books.
And so there's a clear outline coming up.
So I've really been trying to understand where my time's going, and also how can I be more efficient with it.
So I'm hoping I can carry that into Q4, and then also streamlining my lead generation process, and really looking at top of funnel, and my marketing, and seeing, okay, how can I refine this a little bit more?
So I've been working on a lot of social media marketing, playing around with a couple of things on my website, but hopefully they come to fruition in Q4, and so that can really start refining and locking down that top of funnel.
But Leah, what about yourself?
But that sounds like a fantastic plan.
I think you are my goals when it comes to just how consistent you are with marketing and that sort of discipline, because I am actually, that's something that I am going to start as a habit in the fall.
I've committed myself to it, because now I've posted on my Instagram that I've committed to it.
Yes.
I'm going to be starting something called The Weekly Pod, which is just a play on the fact that my business name is Orca Accounting.
So, I love it.
I love that.
I felt very smart actually with that.
And so, I am so excited because really what it's just going to be is just me popping up either in a reel or a carousel or something like that where I am going to be sharing just a bite-sized accounting tip that will keep me consistent in posting something at least once a week.
But then also, I'm hoping to just kind of have more of a rhythm with my Instagram and just dedicating just some time to creating those posts and creating the content because I think it's such a wonderful way to just have more traction.
I read something the other day that Google is using SEO from Instagram posts now that will also lead back to my website.
So I think it's such a fun way where I could dedicate more time to marketing and it will only help the leads to my website.
So I am excited for that because I historically have not been consistent at all when it comes to marketing.
And so I'm hoping to really get into a good routine with that as well.
And just kind of focusing more on blog posts.
I'm implementing a new sort of weekly task list for myself when it comes to marketing.
But then I'm also coming up with actually physical copies of what my client's clothes checklists are for the months.
And so just having something on paper as well as being tracked overall on a Google Sheet or Planner app as well, is something where I'm really excited to just kind of go into fall with my system set up.
And it'll be an interesting experiment.
Yeah, that's super exciting.
I'm so excited to see your posts that come out of the pod.
I think that's going to be such a cool way to share all those tips, your own personality, everything that comes through.
I feel like it's the great way to kind of flex your creativity.
I know early on, we discussed, like, I was nervous about putting my face out there on social media, but I've been, like, tiptoeing into that.
So maybe...
You've been doing so well.
I'm so proud of you.
Thank you.
So maybe a real or two is in my future, but we'll see.
Oh my god.
I am so excited for that day.
I'm going to comment, like, 50 times and just be like, yes, we love to see it.
Yes.
But I'm super excited about your marketing also, and coming to Fruish.
And so I'm super excited for both of us moving into fall, wrapping up Q3, going into Q4.
I loved how we still stayed connected this summer.
I love all our wins.
And then all the habits that we've created that we're going to hopefully carry through into Q4.
And I love hearing all the stuff we do outside of just our business.
So hopefully this episode was a great recap of what's going on in our life on the different seasons of our business and our life.
Yeah, we are hoping that you had a lovely summer and we can't wait for you to join us in fall and just can't wait to hear how your guys' summer is going and or just how you're feeling going into fall as well because there's always so many good ideas out there.
So we hope you have a lovely rest of your week.
And thank you for listening.
You've been listening to The Accounting Edit, a podcast by Aminder Mann of Sequoia CPA and Leah McCool of Orca Accounting.
And if you're enjoying the show, don't forget to follow us so you don't miss an episode.
And if you have any feedback or thoughts, we'd love it if you left us a review.
It really helps us out and we'd love to hear what you think.
Does your business need help on the accounting side of things?
We would love to help you.
You can find Aminder at sequoia.cpa.com or on Instagram at SequoiaCPA.
You can find me, Leah, at orcaaccounting.com or on Instagram at orca-accounting.
We'll be posting new episodes every other week so be sure to follow so you don't miss out.

Summary

In this episode of the Accounting Edit podcast, Leah and Aminder reflect on their summer experiences as business owners, discussing the joys of flexibility, personal growth, and the importance of protecting their time. They share personal wins, lessons learned, and their weekend routines, while also looking ahead to the fall and setting new habits for their businesses. The conversation emphasizes the balance between work and personal life, the significance of self-care, and the excitement of new marketing strategies.

Takeaways

• Flexibility in entrepreneurship is a significant benefit.

• Taking time off can lead to personal growth and reflection.

• Cooking more has enhanced my routine and health.

• Protecting personal time is essential for work-life balance.

• Farmers markets provide fresh produce and community engagement.

• Saying no to clients can open doors to better opportunities.

• Tracking time can improve efficiency in business operations.

• Creating a structured weekend routine can enhance relaxation.

• New marketing strategies can lead to increased engagement.

• Building healthy habits is crucial for sustaining energy in business.

Thanks for listening!