Suzanne Proksa:
Welcome to the Suzanne Show with me, Suzanne Proxer, HR and business strategist, former featured Etsy seller, plan added concert lover, gardener, landscaper in trading, and humans straight up obsessed with helping others in sharing on women. Here, we talk a little business, personal development, women's health, and a whole lot about things that matter, help people, and give them joy. Grab your coffee or your wine. Break out 1 of your hundreds of notebooks, light that soy key and all, and let's dive in. Welcome, everybody. I have got such an amazing episode for you today. This information is so important. We are going to talk about how to know when it's time to hire a CPA with Crystal and Sheldon. Crystal and Sheldon is a licensed CPA and QuickBooks' top 100 pro adviser helping startups small businesses, and million dollar companies alike take control of their finances through accounting software training, and consulting. Crystal's number crunching interest was sparked after taking a high school bookkeeping course In uncompleting the course, she was determined to become a CPA. For the last 20 years, she has done just that leading accounting departments for Fortune 500 companies like Intuit, Texaco, and Paramount Pictures. In 2010, crystalline went on to find her own consulting business. Since then, She has gone on to publish Mastering QuickBooks, a 3 time Amazon bestseller now in its fourth edition. Coached more than a hundred clients, all the while serving as an adjunct instructor at the University of California Los Angeles UCLA for the last 13 years teaching bookkeeping and QuickBooks courses. Along with her fulfilling consulting business, crystalline enjoys trying new restaurants with her husband and watching her beloved Dallas cowboys play. Crystalen, do you have anything to add to that intro?
Crystalynn Shelton:
Wow. Thanks so much, Suzanne, for that awesome introduction. I actually don't have anything to add. You covered it all. But thank you so much for having me on your show. I am thrilled to be here. Alright, Crystal. And let's just dive right into this. So there are
Suzanne Proksa:
a lot of people who have started businesses recently There are a lot of people like me who started back 2015, 2016 ish at varying stages of business. And so I think the top question to start off with is what are the most immediate signs that it's time to hire a CPA for your business?
Crystalynn Shelton:
You know, Susan, in my opinion, you should start out by partnering with a CPA or accountant. You know, most miss most business owners don't have an accounting or bookkeeping background. So if that's the case, you should partner with an accountant from the start. They can help you to choose the right accounting software for your business, They can set the software up for you and train you and your staff on how to properly manage your book. That is what I do every day. The key really is to get started on the right foot and not wait until your books are a mess to reach out for help. Okay. So
Suzanne Proksa:
with that, what did you say to somebody who Either, says they can't afford to hire a CPA, or they really truly can't afford to hire a CPA. What do you say to that person? You know, maybe how do they go about figuring out how to afford it?
Crystalynn Shelton:
That's a great point, Susan. You know, I would say that QuickBooks is 1 of those software packages that it's very user friendly. And so my recommendation for people who are strapped for cash is you can actually do it yourself. If you can't hire a CPA and you can't hire a bookkeeper, to set things up for you and teach you what to do. Next best thing is pick up my book, Mastering QuickBooks 20 23. It actually has been written for a business owner who needs to get their the books up and running, and they're gonna do it themselves. And so it takes you from start to finish, from creating a QuickBooks file, and it teaches you how to enter those day to day transactions. So that's what I would recommend. I also would say that you don't necessarily have to hire a CPA to help you set up the books. A bookkeeper who has a lot of experience will work just fine. And so I recommend that they do that even if you just hire that person again to set up your books and to teach you how to do it yourself. So that's
Suzanne Proksa:
pretty much what I would recommend if you just can't afford to hire a CPA at this point. Excellent. Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts on that. Because it's certainly something that comes up often.
Crystalynn Shelton:
My next question is what are the best ways to find it qualified certified accountant, or bookkeeper? Great question. So I am a certified QuickBooks pro adviser And as a certified pro adviser, I am a part of a directory that Intuit has. It's called the find a pro adviser directory. So your folks can actually Google QuickBooks accountant or find a pro adviser And then when they go to that link, they will be able to put in their city or their ZIP code, and they can actually find someone with in their area if they like. Personally, I take clients who are located all over the United state, and so my clients are everywhere. And so that's 1 of the things I love about technology. Right? We meet over Zoom. And it works out really great. But, yeah, on that website, what's nice is they have the certifications that the pro adviser has as well as their specialty, like, if they specialize in certain industries, and they also have client reviews. And so, absolutely, I'd recommend that they go to the find it provider website, put in their city or their ZIP code, and they can find a certified person in their area. And if they want to work with me, they can actually go to my website, chris lynchilton dot com, and schedule a 30 minute complimentary consultation And within that consultation, I will get some information about their business so that we can formulate a plan.
Suzanne Proksa:
Excellent. Okay. So you you take the plunge, you figured out how you're going to afford to hire a CPA, all of that good stuff. What kind of benefits can be seen from hiring a CPA?
Crystalynn Shelton:
There are several benefits to having access to a CPA. I would say the first 1 is you would have access to reports that will tell you the overall health of your business. And so that will help you to determine if you're making money, if you're losing money, if you're cash strapped, or what's actually hapily happening with your business, so that you can make solid business decisions. You'll have an adviser who can help to ensure that you are recording things properly. So let's say you have a CPA. They set you up. But you were the business owner and you're managing the books yourself. Someone like me can set up a review. I have clients who I review their books on a sleep basis and clients who I review their books on a quarterly basis just to make sure they're on the right right track and that things are being recorded properly. You know, this goes a long way to making sure that when we get to the end of the year, We can close the books, and there's no longer this mad dash to tax time. Right? A lot of small businesses are used to you know, when January first gets here, they, you know, go into, okay. I need to pull together the last 12 months' worth of data so I can get my taxes done. Right? That goes away. If you've got a CPA that you're partnering with and they're keeping track with you throughout the year, then believe it or not, you can actually look forward to tax time, and it won't be as stressful because you have kept up with your books throughout the year, and you've had to CPA doing those review.
Suzanne Proksa:
Okay. Awesome. So we know the benefits. We know what a great investment this is. How will hiring a CPA actually affect your business long term?
Crystalynn Shelton:
Yeah. Great question. I mean, some of the things that just mentioned probably also are, you know, the long term effects of partnering with the CPA But I would just say 1 of the thing that many business owners miss out on is applying for a line of credit or a loan when they needed more even a small business grant. A lot of those programs require that you supply updated financial statement by current financial statement. And so the benefit of having a CPA is you've got access to get those statements because you've got that person overseeing your books. And so I would say that's very helpful, obviously, to get the funding that the business might need, right, to grow or to even just to make payroll. I would say just another benefit is to just to have a go to person to ask questions about how to handle different types of expenses or to talk through what if scenarios, if I do this, How will that affect my, you know, my business, my bottom line, and that sort of thing? Also, I would just say, you know, being able to have access to reliable financial statement will help you determine if the products and services that you're offering, you know, are are serving you. Right? So for example, in QuickBooks, you can generate a report that tells you what the top selling parts are, as well as what are those products that, you know, are sitting on the shelf and not moving. Right? And so just from a report like that, you could make a decision to either stop carrying products that aren't moving or, you know, have a sale, right, to get rid of those products that aren't moving and to make sure that the you know, you don't order those in the future. Instead, you may be place an order for products that you can't keep on the shelf. So a lot of different long term benefits from having a CPA, you know, on staff or just someone that you can reach out to and partner with if you need it. Alright. So I have
Suzanne Proksa:
a very important question, 1 that I see asked all the time. And that is, how do you know when you have to pay tax on courses sold in multiple states? Do you have any thoughts on that? And are there ways to improve your chances of not having to pay tax? I'm just curious to hear your thoughts on this very popular question.
Crystalynn Shelton:
That is a great question. Unfortunately, I am not a tax expert. So, you know, some CPAs, do taxes. I'm 1 of those CPAs that I don't delve into the tax world at all. I have my you know, my plate is full with staying on top of QuickBooks and accounting software technology. So I would defer to someone who actually
Suzanne Proksa:
files taxes and prepares tax returns. Thank you so much for weighing in on that 1. Okay. So We know when we should get a CPA. We know the benefits. We know how to figure out how we can afford it. What are some ways that people can find you? How do they reach out to you? How do they get that help that they need? Do you have any like, tips and tricks and things like that that you send out to people by email. Tell us all the things
Crystalynn Shelton:
Yes. Please reach out to me. So first of all, I have a couple of gifts for your listeners today. If they go to crystalline shelton dot com backslash podcast, they can download to checklists. The first checklist is 8 steps to closing your books. So this checklist is awesome because it provides you with the step by step of all the things that you need to do to properly close your book before you file your tax return. The other checklist is for your folks who are brand new to QuickBooks. Maybe they purchased it, and then they're like, okay. What do I do now? I have a checklist called your first 7 day in QuickBooks, and so that checklist will take them through step by step of what to do. And what's nice is it's a companion to my latest book, Mastering QuickBooks 20 23, which is available for purchase on Amazon dot com. So if they sign up for those lists, they will automatically be added to my new letter. So my newsletter goes out once a week, and it has awesome tip on not only keeping and how to manage your books, but just a lot of great information about managing your money and just you know, great info that small businesses could use. And so they will automatically be signed up for that if they download 1 of those lists. And then last but not least, I'm really thrilled to announce that my brand new online course is out, and they can purchase that also on my website, chrislyn shelton dot com backslash podcast. It is A44 courses in 1, and so it is going to I'm actually recording I have recorded videos. Basically, lots of resources to teach business owners how to set up their books, how to record their sales, how to record their expenses, and how to prepare for tax season. And so what's nice is I know business owners don't always have a lot of time during the day, and so, you know, you can log in to this course. At midnight, you know, and learn some things that you need to know about QuickBooks. And so I'm super excited about that course. It's called QuickBooks boot camp basic training.
Suzanne Proksa:
Alright. Perfect. Perfect. This is the part of the show where I asked you to give 2 or 3 things that you really want people to take away from this from this podcast. You know? What do you want them? To make sure they write in their notebook and take some action on.
Crystalynn Shelton:
That is a great question. So, you know, each client that comes to me, you know, it really varies on what their needs are, but I do have a few corporate that I impart on all of my clients in order to be successful. The first 1 is, do not co mingle your business in personal account. You need to open a separate business checking and a separate business savings account. I see business owners who have their business and their personal funds in the same bank account, and this is just not going to allow you to really see how your business is doing if it's commingled with your personal funds. The second principle that I always recommend is to automate as much as possible. So if you're using Excel spreadsheets, You are wasting your time. Accounting software like QuickBooks will help you to automate things For example, you can connect all of your bank and credit card accounts to QuickBooks so you're not entering anything in manually you're really just reviewing those transactions that are automatically being imported into the software. My third principle that I recommend is try to use as little cash as possible to pay for expensive. You know, This will ensure that you're using a debit card or a credit card, and so there's always a record of your expense for your business. And I would actually take that a step further and try to just use a credit card that's strictly for business expenses only. And so if you do that, what's nice is you're not trying to pull together 2 and 3 different debit cards and a credit card here to add up all of your expenses for your business. If you've got 1 go to card and you use that card all the time, for most of your expenses. You might have some of those vendors that don't accept credit card, and that means you may have to write a check. But for the most card, I would stick to a credit card when you're purchasing something for your business. So you always have a record on that credit card statement, and you don't have to go looking for a seat. And then I would just say the last advice that I would give is to you know, whether you have accounting background or bookkeeping background or not, you can absolutely learn how to do your bookkeeping. Many clients that come to me have this limiting belief that because they don't have an accounting degree or they're not a CPA, that they can't do the book. Trust me, I teach business owners every day how to manage their books, and they are so grateful and just happy to be empowered with that knowledge. And I'll tell you something else. Even if you do have a bookkeeper on staff that's managing your books, you need to know what that person is doing. So it's really important for you to learn as well. And if you can't learn from that person, you can come to me. Again, I take clients who are located anywhere. And so, absolutely, that's what I recommend is you you need to power yourself to know what's going on and to look at your report so that you know how your business is actually
Suzanne Proksa:
Thank you so much for joining me on the show, Crystaline. It this is such an important topic, and I am feeling so blessed that you are able to join me and talk about this and share with my listeners. Believe me, I know there are thousands of them that need this information. So I am so appreciative, and I look forward to talking to you again soon. Thanks so much for having me on the show.
Crystalynn Shelton:
I really hope that the information that I shared today was helpful to your listeners. And, yes, take care, and, hopefully, we will talk soon.
Suzanne Proksa:
I hope that you loved this episode. If you did, give me those shout outs, show me some love on iTunes, give me a rating. And, hey, if you wanna know where to find me, You can find me on pretty much all social media at Suzanne Proxa. That's SUZANNEPR0 KSA. And you can also head over to my website, Suzanne Proxa dot com. And tell I'll see you on the next episode, and here is the birthday music for you.
