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203: Year-End Financial Planning: Make Your Money Moves Now · Early Childhood Business Made Easy

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_01: You tell yourself you'll deal with your numbers once things calm down.
• 0:04
  SPEAKER_01: And then December arrives and you are staring at a full year of financial decisions that you never actually made on purpose.
• 0:13
  SPEAKER_01: You've tried keeping up with your bookkeeping software, but checking a dashboard isn't the same as having a plan for your deductions, a plan for your profit, or a plan for what you owe.
• 0:23
  SPEAKER_01: Now, confident early childhood operators, well, they don't wait for their accountant to tell them how the year went.
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_01: They walk into December already knowing their numbers, already positioned for the moves that are actually going to save them money.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_01: When you plan your year-end finances now, instead of in a January panic, well, my friend, your tax season stops being something that happens to you and starts being something that helps you.
• 0:50
  SPEAKER_00: I'm Kelly Peake.
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: I've spent the past 26 years growing multiple million dollar early childhood businesses.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_00: I'm here to help you navigate both the messy and magical seasons of your early childhood business with simple, actionable strategies.
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_00: It is my goal to make your life a little easier working with our most prized possessions in life.
• 1:07
  SPEAKER_00: If you're ready to control the chaos, ditch the exhausting overwhelm, and keep the joy, then be sure to join us at KellyPeak.com.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_01: Well, welcome CEOs.
• 1:21
  SPEAKER_01: Welcome to the Early Childhood Business Made Easy Podcast.
• 1:23
  SPEAKER_01: I'm Kelly Peak, and I love to help you find more of that time, freedom, lifestyle you so deserve.
• 1:29
  SPEAKER_01: Now, right now, while you still have time to do something about it, is exactly when your year-end tax strategy needs to happen.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_01: Not in December, not in January, maybe when your accountant asks you for your numbers and when you're piecing them together from memory.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_01: Now, every fall, I talk to other business CEOs who are technically profitable, but they're functionally clueless about what that profitability means for their taxes.
• 1:56
  SPEAKER_01: They know their enrollment is up, they know that this year felt busy, but they couldn't actually tell you what their net profit margin was, what they're eligible to deduct, or what they should make on purpose this year, or maybe wait until January.
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_01: And that's just because nobody ever showed them how to think about their numbers strategically instead of just tracking them.
• 2:17
  SPEAKER_01: Now, in 20 years of operating my own boutique preschools and play cafes, and more than 10 years watching plenty of other owners and operators walk through tax season unprepared, I have learned that the CEOs who keep more of what they earn, well, they're not the ones with the fanciest accounting software or the expensive CPAs.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_01: They are the ones who look at their numbers with intention in October and November while there's actually still time to change the outcome if needed.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_01: So today I'm gonna walk you through three strategies that are gonna turn your year-end financial planning from a dreaded scramble into a strategic advantage.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_01: So we're gonna cover number one, how to get a real read on your numbers before your accountant does.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_01: Number two, how to find the deductions that most early childhood businesses miss or look at in a different way.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_01: And number three, how to build a cash flow plan for next year before this one even ends.
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_01: Now, year-end financial planning isn't a scramble you do for your accountant in January.
• 3:19
  SPEAKER_01: It's a strategic advantage you build for yourself in the fall.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_01: So when you know your numbers and you make your money moves before December closes out, that's when you keep more of what your business actually earned.
• 3:34
  SPEAKER_01: Now, what if, what if the reason tax season feels so stressful every year, that it's not your business, but instead it's the timing.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_01: By the time most of us sit down with our numbers, the year is already over.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_01: And then every decision that could have saved money, well, that decision is gone.
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_01: And you can't retroactively make a strategic equipment purchase in January for last year's taxes.
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_01: And you can't go back and restructure a bonus for better tax timing.
• 4:05
  SPEAKER_01: The window that actually matters, well, it closes weeks before most owners and operators even open their books.
• 4:13
  SPEAKER_01: So here's something the small business administration, well, they've reported that a significant share of small business owners and operators, including service-based businesses like our early childhood programs, will they consistently underclaim eligible deductions simply because they don't track qualifying expenses throughout the entire year, not because those expenses don't exist.
• 4:35
  SPEAKER_01: Now, that data, it's not specific to an early childhood business, I know, but here's why it matters even more for you between classroom supplies that you grab on the run, curriculum materials that maybe you got at a farmer's market, required continuing education that everybody's required to do, those licensing costs that are higher for everyone in our industry, and the fact that ratio-dependent EC businesses, well, they genuinely just generate an unusually high number of small, easy-to-miss deductible expenses all year long.
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_01: And CEOs who understand this data, well, they don't wait until tax season to think about those deductions.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_01: They build the habit of tracking as they go, starting well before December.
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_01: So this is not about adding more to your to-do list.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_01: It's just creating a system that allows you to remember.
• 5:26
  SPEAKER_01: So a play cafe owner that I worked with, well, she was barely keeping her head above water every tax season.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_01: She was handing her accountant a shoebox of receipts.
• 5:35
  SPEAKER_01: Can anyone relate?
• 5:36
  SPEAKER_01: And a general sense of dread and paying whatever tax bill came back without her even understanding why it was that number.
• 5:43
  SPEAKER_01: Now, she was surviving her fan her finances.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_01: She was not leading them.
• 5:47
  SPEAKER_01: She was hoping each year that things would somehow sort themselves out by April.
• 5:51
  SPEAKER_01: Now, the turning point came when she ran through our year-end tax planning checklist.
• 5:57
  SPEAKER_01: She did that in October instead of scrambling in January.
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_01: And she discovered that she'd been fully covering several team training and continuing education costs out of pocket.
• 6:07
  SPEAKER_01: She just forgot to track them as a deductible expense.
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_01: Now, the mindset shift happened when she realized she didn't need to become a tax expert.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_01: She just needed a simple system to capture what she was already spending.
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_01: Now, that year, she identified an additional thousands of legitimate deductions she'd been missing.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_01: She made one strategic equipment purchase in November instead of waiting until she needed it in February.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_01: And she walked into her January account meeting with organized numbers instead of a shoebox, cutting that meeting from three stressful hours down to 45 calm minutes.
• 6:41
  SPEAKER_01: So today, she leads her play cafe's finances as a confident early childhood operator who plans her year-on strategy instead of enduring it.
• 6:50
  SPEAKER_01: And that is exactly what I want for you.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_01: I want you to look at this training today, this episode today, as a way for you to get your hands around what kind of system can you create to start tracking your expenses better.
• 7:04
  SPEAKER_01: We're going to start with our three strategies to do that.
• 7:07
  SPEAKER_01: And strategy number one is the year-end numbers check.
• 7:11
  SPEAKER_01: You know your profit picture before your accountant does.
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_01: Now, when you're operating in manager or director mode, you find out how your yearly numbers actually went when your accountant tells you in the spring.
• 7:24
  SPEAKER_01: And that means that every financial decision for the rest of this year, well, it gets made blind.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_01: But CEOs who've professionalized their cash flow management, well, they know their numbers before that conversation happens, not after.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_01: And this is how confident early childhood operators approach profit booster number six of the CEO leadership and profit engine.
• 7:44
  SPEAKER_01: And that's cash flow management.
• 7:46
  SPEAKER_01: They pull together a real year-end snapshot in the fall.
• 7:50
  SPEAKER_01: That's revenues, expenses, and net profit.
• 7:53
  SPEAKER_01: So they know exactly where they stand while there's still time to act on it and change anything that might need to be changed.
• 7:59
  SPEAKER_01: Now, unlike a business with predictable level income, early childhood businesses often see revenue swing with enrollment cycles throughout the year.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_01: Am I correct?
• 8:09
  SPEAKER_01: There are different times in the year where you're full, where you're slow, where you're busier.
• 8:14
  SPEAKER_01: And that means a mid-year number.
• 8:16
  SPEAKER_01: Well, that's not going to tell you actually where you're going to land by December 31st.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_01: And generic financial advice, well, this is just review your books monthly.
• 8:24
  SPEAKER_01: Well, early childhood businesses, we need something more specific.
• 8:27
  SPEAKER_01: So I want you to run a real year-end projection in the fall because your enrollment patterns, well, they mean the same thing year after year.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_01: And it also could mean that the last quarter, well, it can shift your financial numbers significantly, as we all know.
• 8:42
  SPEAKER_01: Big things are happening in September, October, November, and December.
• 8:47
  SPEAKER_01: So your two action steps here.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_01: Number one, pull your year-to-date numbers and project your full year-to-date total.
• 8:54
  SPEAKER_01: So sit down with your revenue, sit down with your expenses, go through the last couple of months, then use your typical enrollment that you usually have in October, November, and December, and any spending patterns that are normal to project where you think you're going to land by December 31st.
• 9:10
  SPEAKER_01: Now, this is not about perfect accounting.
• 9:12
  SPEAKER_01: It's just about creating a realistic estimate so you can actually act on something.
• 9:17
  SPEAKER_01: So for a small program, this might be 20 minutes.
• 9:20
  SPEAKER_01: Might be your bookkeeping software and a calculator.
• 9:22
  SPEAKER_01: Now, if you're a larger program or you have multiple locations, you might pull this per location and roll up into one combined projection so you can see where each site stands.
• 9:32
  SPEAKER_01: And sometimes one state, one site is going to be at a very different place than another at different times throughout the year.
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_01: So don't just project revenue, project your net profit specifically.
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_01: This is going to force you to look at your expenses as well.
• 9:46
  SPEAKER_01: Now, a business that looks busy on the top line, meaning lots and lots of revenue, well, you can still have a very, very thin bottom line.
• 9:53
  SPEAKER_01: And that's the number that actually is going to drive your tax and cash flow decisions.
• 10:00
  SPEAKER_01: So action step number two, compare your projection against your purposeful profit plan target.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_01: So, as many of you know, we did all of our purposeful profit planning in January last year.
• 10:11
  SPEAKER_01: So again, just a plug for we're doing our be golden annual plan in December.
• 10:17
  SPEAKER_01: That's getting your business vision, your business all set up and ready to go.
• 10:20
  SPEAKER_01: And then every January, we do our purposeful profit planning.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_01: We call it our January jump start.
• 10:25
  SPEAKER_01: We get on target with what our profit is going to be, our profit goals for the year.
• 10:30
  SPEAKER_01: So those of you that were with us last year, you have that.
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_01: So I want you to compare against your target, what your target was at the start of the year to where it is now.
• 10:37
  SPEAKER_01: Now, if you're ahead, that's useful information for tax strategy.
• 10:41
  SPEAKER_01: And if you're behind, well, guess what?
• 10:43
  SPEAKER_01: You still have time in Q4 to make adjustments if you need it right before the year closes.
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_01: And any option to make a decision change disappears.
• 10:51
  SPEAKER_01: Now, this is gonna give you a little bit of time once your projection is done to really think about where you need to be going into the new year.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_01: If you're a small program, you might do this comparison alone or maybe with your own plan.
• 11:05
  SPEAKER_01: If you are again a larger program, multi-site operator, for example, you could look at each location against each location's target, or you could look at your program as a whole.
• 11:15
  SPEAKER_01: And then you're gonna decide where that cue for attention is most needed.
• 11:20
  SPEAKER_01: Now, many early childhood businesses, well, they often look backward at what already happened, but the real value, my friend, the real value of this check is using it to make forward decisions while November and December are still ahead of you.
• 11:34
  SPEAKER_01: And once you know exactly where you stand, you are ready for the strategy that's gonna actually change your outcome.
• 11:41
  SPEAKER_01: And that is our next strategy number two.
• 11:44
  SPEAKER_01: You're gonna find the deductions that many miss.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_01: So strategy number two is maximize your deductions, what CEOs actually track and what some miss.
• 11:55
  SPEAKER_01: So when you are stuck managing and not leading, well, deductions are something your accountant kind of sorts out in the spring from whatever paperwork you happen to say.
• 12:03
  SPEAKER_01: But when you professionalize your financial systems, you begin to see that the most missed deductions, well, they're not complicated, they're just often not tracked.
• 12:13
  SPEAKER_01: And that's what we cover in Profit Booster number six's know your numbers principle.
• 12:17
  SPEAKER_01: We apply it specifically to your expenses.
• 12:21
  SPEAKER_01: And we look at those deductible expenses as well.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_01: Early childhood businesses generate deduction opportunities that are usually a generic small item.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_01: Now, many of the items, a generic small business owner, well, they may never even think to track.
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_01: So I want you to think of things like when you're buying your classroom curriculum or your supplies.
• 12:43
  SPEAKER_01: Are you at Target with your children buying supplies for them as well?
• 12:46
  SPEAKER_01: And you accidentally miss putting something in the right area.
• 12:51
  SPEAKER_01: Meaning, as you know, we're often always so busy, chaotic, running around doing 20,000 other things.
• 12:58
  SPEAKER_01: I know I'm guilty of it too.
• 12:59
  SPEAKER_01: I'll go to Michael's, I'll go to Target, I'll be ready to do my uh school shopping, but I also have my kids shopping that they need for their classroom as well.
• 13:08
  SPEAKER_01: So sometimes I'll just buy a few things and think, oh, it's not that big of a deal.
• 13:11
  SPEAKER_01: Well, it is a big deal.
• 13:12
  SPEAKER_01: Even a small thing of paint, everything adds up.
• 13:15
  SPEAKER_01: So be sure that you track things separately.
• 13:18
  SPEAKER_01: So now what I do when I go shopping, I do two separate transactions.
• 13:23
  SPEAKER_01: So I make sure to separate anything I'm buying personally, anything I'm buying for my business, and I have two separate receipts.
• 13:29
  SPEAKER_01: That way I can keep everything separate.
• 13:32
  SPEAKER_01: So don't let those times when you're busy and chaotic take over and stop you from doing a few small things to make it easier later on, like two separate receipts.
• 13:41
  SPEAKER_01: Think about your required education, the continuing education, your certifications, those kinds of things.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_01: If you've taken a class online, did you teach yourself how to use AI?
• 13:50
  SPEAKER_01: Did you buy a course to help you learn social media?
• 13:53
  SPEAKER_01: If you're enrolled in our courses, Clarity Collective or our Shine membership, all of those things are deductible.
• 14:00
  SPEAKER_01: So make sure that you are counting them.
• 14:02
  SPEAKER_01: And then you have your licensing and compliance costs.
• 14:05
  SPEAKER_01: There are so many things that an early childhood business, when it comes to your building, when it comes to your space, when it comes to repairs, all of that, a lot of that is a licensing and compliance cost.
• 14:15
  SPEAKER_01: So make sure you're tracking all of those.
• 14:17
  SPEAKER_01: If you're a home-based program, the space that you actually operate in, that's a deduction.
• 14:23
  SPEAKER_01: Now, I do want to say really quickly, I am not a CPA, and this is not personalized tax advice.
• 14:29
  SPEAKER_01: Always confirm the specifics with your own tax professional.
• 14:33
  SPEAKER_01: But as a fellow CEO, here's what I've learned to track closely.
• 14:37
  SPEAKER_01: And generic financial advice, well, it just says save your receipts.
• 14:40
  SPEAKER_01: And early childhood businesses need to do that, but you also need to know the categories that are unique to your industry.
• 14:46
  SPEAKER_01: So you're not relying on memory to catch them in every April.
• 14:49
  SPEAKER_01: So when you have that team meeting and you buy supplies for the actual meeting.
• 14:56
  SPEAKER_01: So you maybe buy donuts and you buy paper plates and you buy coffee cups, all the things that you buy, you need to track that.
• 15:03
  SPEAKER_01: Again, busyness in the moment might think, oh, it's not that big of a deal.
• 15:06
  SPEAKER_01: A stack of paper plates doesn't cost that much.
• 15:09
  SPEAKER_01: But when you're doing that all year long, at the end of the year, that can really add up.
• 15:13
  SPEAKER_01: Action step number one, I want you to build your EC specific deduction tracking list.
• 15:18
  SPEAKER_01: So create a simple running list, a spreadsheet, a shared note, a label folder, something that has your deduction category specific to early childhood businesses.
• 15:28
  SPEAKER_01: So classroom, uh curriculum supplies, required training, continue education, licensing, inspection fees, professional memberships, and any program-specific insurance or compliance cost.
• 15:39
  SPEAKER_01: Now, this is something that you can set up super easy.
• 15:42
  SPEAKER_01: And then one little tip I have an amazing app I love on my phone.
• 15:46
  SPEAKER_01: I'm not getting paid for this, it's just something I use.
• 15:48
  SPEAKER_01: It's free.
• 15:49
  SPEAKER_01: It's called Brain Toss.
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_01: And it allows me to uh open it and I can speak something into it.
• 15:55
  SPEAKER_01: I can take a picture, I can copy, but I actually just will write receipt or I'll write marketing or I'll write classroom supply at the top.
• 16:05
  SPEAKER_01: And then I send it to myself.
• 16:06
  SPEAKER_01: And then I can go back into my email.
• 16:08
  SPEAKER_01: It emails it back to me, and I can go back into my email and I can search for those.
• 16:11
  SPEAKER_01: And so at the end of the month, I find all of my marketing expenses.
• 16:16
  SPEAKER_01: I find all of my classroom expenses, et cetera.
• 16:19
  SPEAKER_01: Now, there are many, many, many different softwares, programs, tools, resources.
• 16:25
  SPEAKER_01: There are so many brain toss is just one.
• 16:28
  SPEAKER_01: The key is find something that's gonna work for you to simplify for you.
• 16:33
  SPEAKER_01: So if I'm out and about and I'm at a farmer's market and I see something amazing, and I know this week's uh classroom theme is all about harvest and fall, and I see something super cute that no other program is gonna do, and I know this is gonna really make our families happy, I'll buy it.
• 16:48
  SPEAKER_01: But then I take a picture of it, put it in brain toss, and put classroom supply expense, send it to myself.
• 16:53
  SPEAKER_01: So then at the end of the month, as part of my money date, as you know, I talk a lot about having your money date.
• 16:59
  SPEAKER_01: When I go through, then I make sure to gather all my expenses at that time and I have them right there.
• 17:04
  SPEAKER_01: So the other thing that I do that makes it super easy as well is everything is tracked on a credit card.
• 17:09
  SPEAKER_01: So most all of my expenses are on a credit card.
• 17:13
  SPEAKER_01: So at the end of the month, I just load in the credit card transactions into QuickBooks.
• 17:17
  SPEAKER_01: It makes it super easy.
• 17:19
  SPEAKER_01: And I just go through and quickly and easily move them where they need to be.
• 17:23
  SPEAKER_01: And the great thing about QuickBooks now in AI is that you do it once and then every month it remembers it.
• 17:28
  SPEAKER_01: And so it makes it so easy.
• 17:29
  SPEAKER_01: So again, you can use Xero, you can use QuickBooks, you can use there's so many different software programs for your accounting.
• 17:38
  SPEAKER_01: There's so many great software tools for tracking expenses.
• 17:41
  SPEAKER_01: Just find one.
• 17:42
  SPEAKER_01: My message to you is just find one that works for you.
• 17:44
  SPEAKER_01: Now, again, it could be a small spreadsheet that you update yourself.
• 17:48
  SPEAKER_01: Again, it could be the shared system that you use, but whichever way you go, just make sure you track it.
• 17:55
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, action step number two, do a fall expense sweep before December 31st.
• 18:01
  SPEAKER_01: So before your year closes, go back through the last few months and make sure any deductible expenses you paid out of pocket.
• 18:08
  SPEAKER_01: Again, those curriculum purchases, item you bought, items you bought at the store, a training conference, classroom materials, stuff you bought for the kitchen, anything that you actually log in your tracking system rather than just sitting forgotten in an email receipt, that's gonna be what you're able to deduct.
• 18:25
  SPEAKER_01: Again, this is gonna take a little bit of time, but it will meaningfully change your year-end numbers.
• 18:30
  SPEAKER_01: Now, if you're a small program, again, just grab a cup of coffee in your email inbox and you're good to go.
• 18:36
  SPEAKER_01: If you're a larger multi-say operation, you might have this done for each one of your locations and then report back to you.
• 18:42
  SPEAKER_01: Now be sure not to assume that your bookkeeping software is gonna catch everything automatically.
• 18:48
  SPEAKER_01: It will catch it, but only if it's entered.
• 18:51
  SPEAKER_01: So make sure you enter it.
• 18:52
  SPEAKER_01: So that personal card swipe at a teacher supply store in October, well, that can slip through completely unless you go looking for it.
• 18:59
  SPEAKER_01: So remember, again, keep track of everything.
• 19:02
  SPEAKER_01: Strategy number three, the January ready cash flow plan.
• 19:07
  SPEAKER_01: So next year's budget before this year ends.
• 19:10
  SPEAKER_01: So when you're thinking like a manager, well, January starts with a blank slate and a scramble to figure out what this next year's budget's gonna be, because you're starting from scratch, usually sometime in the second or third week, once all that holiday dust settles.
• 19:24
  SPEAKER_01: Am I right?
• 19:24
  SPEAKER_01: Well, CEOs who've professionalized their cash flow management, they walk into January with next year's plan already built.
• 19:32
  SPEAKER_01: And this again is where profit booster number six comes in cash flow management.
• 19:36
  SPEAKER_01: You become forward-looking.
• 19:38
  SPEAKER_01: So instead of closing out this year and figuring out next year later, you use what you've learned from this year's numbers to help you start building next year's budget with all those insights while they're still fresh.
• 19:49
  SPEAKER_01: So, unlike businesses with steady predictable demand, you, a ratio-dependent business with really unique issues like uh licensing issues and the fact that you are a relationship-driven business, you need a budget that accounts for known enrollment cycles and those staffing costs that are tied to those racial requirements if you have if you have those.
• 20:12
  SPEAKER_01: And that can make a generic January budget template far less useful than one built from your own actual year-end data.
• 20:20
  SPEAKER_01: So, most generic advice would say set your budget in January.
• 20:24
  SPEAKER_01: But early childhood businesses, they do better building it in November and December while this year's real numbers are right in front of you.
• 20:32
  SPEAKER_01: So, action step number one, I want you to build a simple three-line budget draft from this year's actuals.
• 20:39
  SPEAKER_01: So look at your year-end projection from strategy number one.
• 20:42
  SPEAKER_01: Sketch a basic budget for next year.
• 20:45
  SPEAKER_01: Remember, we are not doing a full-blown budget.
• 20:47
  SPEAKER_01: We are just doing a sketch of a basic budget, your projected revenue based on current enrollment trends, your known fixed costs, including your team pay and your target profit margin.
• 20:58
  SPEAKER_01: Again, this is not your final polish and budget.
• 21:01
  SPEAKER_01: It's just a working draft.
• 21:03
  SPEAKER_01: So when you do have time to sit down for a little bit more, a little bit longer, hopefully sometime in January, you'll have real momentum and starting instead of just starting cold.
• 21:13
  SPEAKER_01: So for a small program, this might be a single page with those just those three numbers per month.
• 21:18
  SPEAKER_01: If you're a larger program, multi-location, you might build this again per location and then combine it into one master view.
• 21:25
  SPEAKER_01: Build your budget draft using this year's actual numbers, not your original, not the hopeful projections, the things that you did last January.
• 21:35
  SPEAKER_01: Real data, well, it beats optimism every time.
• 21:39
  SPEAKER_01: So again, this is not your full blown budget.
• 21:42
  SPEAKER_01: You're gonna do that a little bit later, but this will give you some numbers to use so you're not staring at a blank page, and you will be ready to go.
• 21:52
  SPEAKER_01: So, action step number two, I want you to decide on your Q1 team investment now.
• 21:58
  SPEAKER_01: So, those of you that have With me for a while, you know, I always say your number one asset, your number one investment is your team.
• 22:07
  SPEAKER_01: So I want you to start thinking about that now.
• 22:10
  SPEAKER_01: A quality team in any early childhood business is going to determine the success of that team.
• 22:16
  SPEAKER_01: So look at your year-end numbers and decide whether next year supports a team investment and what that looks like.
• 22:22
  SPEAKER_01: Could it be a training budget line?
• 22:24
  SPEAKER_01: You add a new training, something you've been wanting to do, maybe a retention bonus structure, maybe something simple like a fun game you can play, but it allows them to win, maybe some gift cards.
• 22:35
  SPEAKER_01: Maybe it's additional support for one of your lead team members.
• 22:39
  SPEAKER_01: Whatever it is, build it into your draft budget now rather than deciding reactively in the spring.
• 22:45
  SPEAKER_01: This is exactly the kind of investment that's gonna pair naturally with resources like our Chaos Coordinator Collective that we created.
• 22:53
  SPEAKER_01: That is gonna give your team done for you support without you having to build a new line item from scratch.
• 22:59
  SPEAKER_01: So our Chaos Coordinator Collective, I'll talk more about it later, but it is a tool that we've built because we know at the end of the day, there are lots of great curriculum opportunities out there.
• 23:10
  SPEAKER_01: But the most important thing that you can offer your families is a way to protect their future memories.
• 23:17
  SPEAKER_01: When you create magical moments, when you create meaningful memories, those are reasons families stay and new families choose you.
• 23:25
  SPEAKER_01: So we've created the Chaos Coordinator Collective to do that for your team.
• 23:29
  SPEAKER_01: Now, if you're a small program, back to the budgeting, sorry, if you're a small program, this might mean budgeting one membership for your lead teacher.
• 23:36
  SPEAKER_01: And if you're a larger program, it might mean budgeting memberships for every classroom lead as part of your Q1 team investment if you choose to take a look at our Chaos Coordinator Collective.
• 23:46
  SPEAKER_01: Now, think of this draft budget like packing your bag.
• 23:50
  SPEAKER_01: You do it the night before a trip, right?
• 23:52
  SPEAKER_01: You could scramble in the morning, and I know I've done that, and forget something important.
• 23:56
  SPEAKER_01: I have for sure done that.
• 23:57
  SPEAKER_01: Or you could walk into January already prepared for where you're headed.
• 24:02
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, my friends, let's bring this together.
• 24:06
  SPEAKER_01: You projected your real year-end numbers instead of waiting for your accountant to tell you how the year went.
• 24:11
  SPEAKER_01: You're tracking your EC specific deductions that most owners miss, and you're building your next year's budget draft while this year's data is still fresh in your mind.
• 24:20
  SPEAKER_01: This is what it means to lead your finances as a confident early childhood operator instead of reacting to them every April.
• 24:26
  SPEAKER_01: And that's exactly how year-end planning is going to become a strategic advantage instead of that dreaded scramble.
• 24:34
  SPEAKER_01: Now we've moved from waiting until tax season to understand your numbers to actively planning your year-end finances while there's still time if you need to to change anything.
• 24:45
  SPEAKER_01: When you check your real profit picture, track the deductions your industry generates all year long, and build next year's budget early, my friend, you are not just getting through tax season.
• 24:54
  SPEAKER_01: You are not just surviving your finances.
• 24:57
  SPEAKER_01: You are fundamentally shifting from reacting to your finances to leading them as the CEO that you are.
• 25:03
  SPEAKER_01: Now, let's step into our manifestation minute.
• 25:07
  SPEAKER_01: Imagine this it's late January.
• 25:10
  SPEAKER_01: Your accountant meeting takes 45 focused minutes instead of three stressful hours.
• 25:14
  SPEAKER_01: Your deductions, well, they're already tracked, they're organized, and next year's budget is already drafted and waiting for your first team meeting of the year.
• 25:21
  SPEAKER_01: Your finances, well, they are systematized and you know exactly where your business stands and you're making decisions from clarity instead of dread.
• 25:30
  SPEAKER_01: And that's what's possible when you plan your year end with the CEO leadership and profit engine instead of waiting for your accountant to tell you where the year went.
• 25:41
  SPEAKER_01: So, my friend, here are three action steps you can take this week to get that vision.
• 25:46
  SPEAKER_01: First, block 30 minutes.
• 25:48
  SPEAKER_01: Do it this week, pull your year-end to date numbers and project where you think you're gonna land by December 31st.
• 25:53
  SPEAKER_01: Second, set up your EC specific deduction tracking tool, whatever that system is, and start creating a list.
• 26:00
  SPEAKER_01: Now, we created your year-end tax planning checklist.
• 26:03
  SPEAKER_01: You are gonna find this amazing free resource while you're fine uh on our website at KellyPeak.com, where information about podcast episode number two zero three is.
• 26:12
  SPEAKER_01: So even if you only have three expenses to start or categories, start there and then add more as you need to.
• 26:19
  SPEAKER_01: Third, I want you to sketch a rough three-line budget, just the budget draft for next year using this year's real numbers instead of waiting until January to start from scratch.
• 26:30
  SPEAKER_01: Those are your three action steps that you can take to really start this transformation.
• 26:35
  SPEAKER_01: Now, don't forget to go grab that free year-end tax planning checklist that goes with the episode.
• 26:40
  SPEAKER_01: It's gonna walk you through the easy specific deduction categories and the year-end steps covered today.
• 26:45
  SPEAKER_01: So you are not relying on memory to catch them.
• 26:48
  SPEAKER_01: Go find it at KellyPeak.com, episode 203.
• 26:52
  SPEAKER_01: And if today's episode has you thinking about your team members specifically, the people you might be budgeting your training and support for in your Q1, well, this is exactly why we built a Chaos Coordinator Collective.
• 27:05
  SPEAKER_01: It's a monthly membership packed with done for you activities, classroom resources, and clear guidance specifically for your team members to use with your families to create those magical moments, those meaningful memories every day.
• 27:18
  SPEAKER_01: Now remember, it's not for you as the owner, it's for your team to use to ensure that your program is the best in town, the most sought after in town.
• 27:27
  SPEAKER_01: Now, right now, when you join the Chaos Coordinator Collective, you get three months for the price of one.
• 27:32
  SPEAKER_01: So it's a great time to check it out.
• 27:33
  SPEAKER_01: It's gonna make it an easy addition to your Q1 team investment before your new budget year even begins.
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_01: So go check it out at Chaos Coordinator Collective.com to join today.
• 27:44
  SPEAKER_01: Now, if you're looking for your own next step as the CEO leading this financial planning, don't forget about our Shine membership and our Clarity Collective memberships.
• 27:52
  SPEAKER_01: They're gonna give you monthly trainings, templates, coaching, tools like today's year end tax planning checklist to keep building that financial clarity at your own pace.
• 28:00
  SPEAKER_01: Go to KellyPeak.com to find out more.
• 28:03
  SPEAKER_01: Now, if today's episode gave you a clear plan for year-end finances, I'd love for you to subscribe so you don't miss what's coming next.
• 28:09
  SPEAKER_01: And if you are already dreading your January accountant meeting, well, keep joining us.
• 28:16
  SPEAKER_01: We are building a community of confident early childhood operators who plan their numbers instead of fearing them.
• 28:22
  SPEAKER_01: My friend, you started your early childhood business to create something meaningful for children and families, not to spend every spring anxious about a tax bill you never saw coming.
• 28:32
  SPEAKER_01: And here's what I want you to remember: knowing your numbers, well, that isn't the opposite of caring about your mission.
• 28:39
  SPEAKER_01: My friend, it's what protects your ability to keep funding your mission.
• 28:44
  SPEAKER_01: And that's what a confident early childhood operator builds every single fall.
• 28:48
  SPEAKER_01: It's time.
• 28:49
  SPEAKER_01: Make your money moves now.
• 28:51
  SPEAKER_01: And I am excited to see you next week.
• 28:53
  SPEAKER_01: Take care, my friend.
• 28:56
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks for tuning into our podcast.
• 28:58
  SPEAKER_00: Are you ready to take your early childhood business to the next level?
• 29:01
  SPEAKER_00: Then head over to KellyPeak.com to join a community of other early childhood professionals who are ditching the chaos and the overwhelm and creating a business they love.
• 29:10
  SPEAKER_00: I can't wait to see you there.
• 29:11
  SPEAKER_00: Bye for now.