The Savvy Accountant®

@FortWayneCPA Thanks for sharing all this!

We successfully hired a Staff Accountant today. We are ecstatic! Life is good. We ended up interviewing seven candidates in our office last week. My partners felt six could work. My partners interviewed them together at the same time last week. I did final interview yesterday and candidate accepted this morning. 142 people applied through Indeed and the advertisements both went up on Dec 19th and down on Dec 30th. Another person applied who heard about the job in the grocery store line... So 143 people applied. The ads were for a hybrid or in office position. I did the initial screening and forwarded 18 resumes to my partner Brent. Meaning there were 18 I thought looked good on paper. He chose 8 of them to interview. Karena and Brent then interviewed 7 of them; one chose not to be interviewed. 42 of the resumes I put as maybes and all work in private accounting with no public accounting experience. It was shocking how many people in private accounting are looking for a job. 83 resumes I rejected. I am pleasantly surprised how many qualified people applied and I learned a lot. I posted on ad that was the way I always post ads and it failed and drew one person we wanted to interview. I posted another one in a very different manner and it succeeded wildly and drew 16 candidates I liked on paper. Then one from the grocery store line. Karena and Brent felt six of the seven could do the job and they forwarded the top 2 on to me and they agreed on who was #1 and who was #2. We spent $1,409.81 with Indeed and invested about 15 hours of partner time. Win/win. Note Fort Wayne, Indiana is about the 100th largest city in the US and hiring can be hard here because half of those who graduate college leave the area for a bigger city. I am going to put up a pretty detailed post inside The Collaboration Room later today and then if there is enough interest from members I will host a one hour session about hiring for members. You can join The Collaboration Room newsletter here: manage.kmail-lists.com/subscriptions/… You can join TCR here: thecollaborationroom.circle.so/c/join-now/ This went very well. It is hard to believe that many qualified people applied between Dec 19th and Dec 30th. I am excited and happy! Are you surprised we got this many qualified applicants?

@wifemomcpa100 Right lol and hubby does not do that so it's even funnier bc why are you like this sir lol

@wifemomcpa100 Omg! Mine is about to be 11 on Friday and yes!! Doorbell rang and talking about why didn't you tell me someone was coming over... 1st of all I did and 2nd of all, I told you to put on clothes too lol

Does anyone else’s 11 year old son walk around in his draws like he pays rent.? #TheDancer

@wifemomcpa100 Congrats!!

It’s ribbon cutting day at our new office. ✂️

@LoganGrafTax I'm not your typically Accountant I guess bc no, I do not struggle spending money lol

Do any other accountants struggle with spending money? I'm talking about personally, not for business. Is this an accountant thing or how I was raised? Or maybe my circumstances growing up caused me to be an accountant? I'm cooked.

@thecindynoir So then wouldn't the stickers be made to be gotcha or in your face instead? Not sure how we know what the people are thinking by the stickers? It can fit either narrative

The thought that Susan B. Anthony would be proud to see a Negro Woman running for president lets me know yall ain’t do your research😂

@wifemomcpa100 Happy happy birthday baby girl!!

I spent nearly 9 years battling infertility, feeling lost and asking God why. Then, one night, He gave me a vision of a bouncing baby girl and reminded me of Romans 10:11: “Everyone who believes in Him will not be put to shame.” Fast forward, we got a call—a baby girl was born, and we were asked to adopt her. That baby was Madison, our gift from God. Today, our bouncing baby girl is full of life, joy, and her signature colorful personality. We love her dearly, and today we’re making her birthday extra special. Join me in wishing Madison Blye Davis a HAPPY BIRTHDAY! 🎉🎂 #HappyBirthdayMadison

@cordes_tax Thank you for this! God bless you!

I want you to know how much you are loved, needed, wanted, and cherished. If no one told you that today, I am telling you now. You are important and have had an impact on many people. Your smile matters. Your laugh matters. Your tears matter. Your feelings and emotions matter. YOU matter. You have a purpose. You are consequential to those around you. You are NOT invisible. You are seen and heard. You are NOT alone. God has seen you when you felt unseen. He has loved you in the midst of your despair. He sent His Son to reconcile you to Himself. You are special to Him. And not just Him, but your family, your friends, classmates, teammates, coworkers, and more need you to be there and be you. You are vital to the social garden in which God planted you. You were called to love and be loved. You were created for a purpose that is of eternal importance. Know this. Feel this. Live this. Be this. #MentalHealth #GodLovesYou

@moethecpa @CPATaxTeam I would love for veterans in the game like this to do a Masterclass

@CPATaxTeam Wow I guess I was under valuing myself. But I do know of an older CPA been doing it for 40 years does 1.6 million has a full time secretary, part time dude who has like less than 3 years of bookkeeping experience...and he claims he takes off 11 weeks every year. Art of pricing

How much gross income can a solo CPA make before feeling the pain of being overwhelmed and overworked? Meaning how far can you push the business without making that first hire That first admin or bookkeeper/light tax prep I'm hoping I can do 300k before needing to expand...

@LoganGrafTax Lol talk soon - not really bc lol thanks for sharing!

New client meeting scheduling is completely automated for me. A few years ago, I got tired of being ghosted after potential client meetings because they were not good fits. It was a waste of time and money. So, I created a system of apps that auto-accepts/rejects potential clients based on their intake form score. The form also filters out clients while they are filling it out based on their answers to questions like "Do you have income outside of Texas?" I also started charging for these meetings because I provide value during them and want to continue to filter out those who don't value a professional's time. So far, I've made about $14,000 from these new client meetings, and I do not regret having fewer of them due to charging for them and being picky. I save time, make money, and have higher quality leads. Do you want to demo the intake form without sending me all your answers/auto acceptance or rejection? Here it is! graftaxco.typeform.com/to/rBVEe3mc

@TheTaxNomad I'm trying to get to this exact model

Bookkeeping… For my smaller clients we offer basic bookkeeping. Basically memorialize the transactions and reconcile every month. For our service based (RIA+Realtor) clients in the $300k-$600k space this works out great. For my larger clients ($1M+, all Ecommerce) we only focus on tax planning. Bookkeeping is handled: 1. Internally 2. Outsourced to 3rd Party (preferred) If you are an agency, e-commerce brand, or in construction trades I have some great Virtual CFOs I can refer. #smb #Taxes

@TheTaxNomad @ToTheMoon10k I'm in awe! Let me think about this method lol

@ToTheMoon10k Tax planning meetings On call advice Tax notice resolution 1099 prep

I have 88 clients that pay a monthly subscription. 76 of them we meet semi-annually. 12 we meet with quarterly. For most folks 2x a year is enough. Most clients pay between $300 and $500/month. #taxtwitter

@NayoCarterGray Yes i agree you shouldn't have to...

@AccountantSavvy I’ve done that too but why should I have to! Hotel conferences should just have better options. These workarounds are a hassle and make the attendees feel like a burden.

Three toxic conference breakfasts in a row 🚩

@NayoCarterGray @umichjean Yes breakfast included should definitely have options for different dietary restrictions

@umichjean @AccountantSavvy Everything I prefer to eat for breakfast is parrishable. I could bring oatmeal but why should I have to if my registration fees cover the breakfast?

@NayoCarterGray Yea, not having non pork options is not a good look... did they have fresh fruit by any chance? I saw a lady request real eggs once bc she couldn't eat the scrambled eggs and they were able to do that bc she asked the staff not the conference ppl... might be worth a try

These conferences breakfast that I don’t eat ever 😞 🚩I don’t eat pork. They always have bacon or sausage and the last three conferences only had pork sausages. 🚩I’m lactose intolerant so I don’t do powdered eggs. I can eat oatmeal as long as it doesn’t have milk and the last few conferences didn’t do that either 😞

@NayoCarterGray I hate this stupid debate already! Sorry that ppl are glossing over your accomplishments to try to include you in a dumb debate that shouldn't be. Congrats on the publication!!

Imagine not reading the question as written about HOW I WORK with CPAs and tax attorneys but instead make the assumption that I, Nayo Carter-Gray, would disparage the EA credential that I personally hold in order to “further my personal brand”. This is absolutely ridiculous. Also imagine saying you “used to hold esteem” for me but never once reach out to me directly about this matter that you aren’t sure if I was misquoted in. But instead you quote the tweet of another EA who also did not read the question or my response as written but instead questioned if I believe that EAs are not qualified to handle complex tax matters. Not once did I say that. Nor do I believe that. I know some pretty smart EAs, CPAs and tax attorneys. And I push hard for recognition in all spaces for enrolled agents. But in this interview I was not asked how I handle complex tax matters. I was asked how I work with CPAs and tax attorneys. In my response I even say I don’t usually work with tax attorneys but when I do it’s in “this way”. I swear some of you all are looking for a fight every day. I don’t have to disparage anyone to make my light shine bright. I know how to toot my own horn and celebrate myself and those around me. My personal brand is doing just fine. And it’s crazy that all of you EAs that are talking 💩 aren’t celebrating an EA being interviewed in this publication but instead you in group chats and DMs questioning my character. If you don’t mess with me anymore just say that. It’s cool. I will be ok. No need to do this kinda subtweeting stuff. I’m super secure and will be ok if you decide to not to interact with me or content by and/or about me anymore. Again if there is anyone else who has question about ME and MY experience. I’m an open book. Feel free to ask. Just please stop with this nonsensical judgment…

@MikeSyl36625988 I like Necessities or Essentials...I think they convey bare minimum

I am changing to package pricing 1 1 25. Can someone explain to me why I cannot name my lower end package "bare minimum." Please explain to me like I am in 6th grade. #ea #cpa

@MikeSyl36625988 How much do you charge for a Discovery call and how long are they? Just curious if it is more a consult vs. discovery

Some of these paid Discovery calls I am doing are wild. A growing number of people really do not want to pay taxes and they really think that paying taxes is not for them. Some of the ideas they come up with are wild. For example; today: "Why can't the land contract be setup to gift $15,000 to my kids and wife per year so no income taxes are paid? My CPA told me I cannot do this; however, I think I can right?" Most of the paid Discovery calls are great and the clients are a good fit and we work together to mitigate their taxes long term. Plenty of legal ways to do this. Plenty. A few, maybe 15%, are wild and we amicably part ways at the end of the call. Surprisingly, almost all of them are happy with the call and the fee they paid, I ask every time. I have been doing this for 20 years, and the number of wild ideas from potential new clients is getting a little more aggressive each year. Congress needs to listen, there is a growing number of Americans who do not want to pay tax rates that were considered reasonable by most 20 or 30 years ago. The only Americans who want to raise taxes, are those who want to raise other people's taxes... This is honestly not going to end well... #cpa #ea

@hollowearthterf It's crazy that I'm seeing this today. We sound like we have mirrored lives. I feel the resentment building everyday. I literally said 5 mins ago that we would be better off co-parenting.