Create Your Financial Roadmap Today (with Jessica Blasingame): Episode 345 - Rachel Ngom (2024)

Takeaways

• Jessica talks about financial roadmaps or forecasts–putting numbers behind your plans for the future. Start to think through your plans and put those numbers down. Ex. Offering a new service, this is how much I will charge, this is how many people to enroll, or you need new software or insurance, so you put those numbers down. This is an important exercise to show if what you’re offering will be profitable. Jot down your numbers before you launch!
• If you have a business with launches, Jessica says you can adjust your roadmap. When you first start out, it’s assumption based. But as you go through your business and you see the highs and lows of profit, you can begin to plug in numbers you can expect to see every launch.
• Jessica says to figure out what your offer should be/profit margin. She says often people look or a 50% margin, but the best place to start is plugging in your income and expenses you foresee–then tweak. If you’re profit is not what you want it to be, then adjust the prices! Play with different scenarios.
• Jessica recommends at the start of each year, do a financial forecast. Then every month, go in and estimate at the beginning and tweak at the end based on your data–did you hit the forecast you thought? Or can you adjust it?
• Your profit and loss statements are not a judgement of your performance. It’s informing your future actions!
• Income minus expenses is your profits.
• Then 25% of the profits are going into a savings account to pay taxes. This is where you can set aside for expenses that might be coming up outside the regular expenses.
• Jessica says to makes sure you have 3+ months of business expenses in your savings at all times. This way if something happens, you have that safety net of 3+ months to cover you if necessary.
• The fear mentality with money. Fear keeps us from trying things. Don’t let the fear of making or having enough money keep you from launching that next thing, or investing into your business.
• Jessica talks about how the biggest financial mistake she sees people making is that they are disconnected from their finances. She says any step is helpful. Keep your finances as a tool–get over the fear and get connected with your finances and you will be a more effective business owner no matter what.
• Find someone to help you with your taxes that you can learn from. Ask for guidance through the tax year instead of waiting until you owe, so you can set the correct amount aside!

Highlights

• (1:31) A little more about Jessica.
• (2:30) Why it’s so important to talk finances.
• (2:45) How to create a financial roadmap.
• (4:27) Creating a financial roadmap with a fluctuating business.
• (5:40) How to figure out what your offer should be/profit margin.
• (7:28) How often should you be doing financial forecasting?
• (8:39) What should you be looking at in your P&L’s.
• (9:32) You are not your results.
• (10:20) How to stop yourself from working for free.
• (12:19) How much should you be paying yourself?
• (15:32) What’s a good amount to have in a savings account?
• (19:00) The fear mentality with money.
• (20:46) How to know when you can hire the next hire and what to pay them?
• (23:43) The biggest mistake Jessica sees people making with their finances.
• (25:39) My scary tax story…
• (26:05) How to prep for tax season early on.
• (27:51) What it means to Jessica to make an impact.
• (29:49) Companies are making money off of your debt.
• (30:27) Where to connect with Jessica.

Quotes

“Looking at the outcome, then tweak the profit from there.”

“Your profit and loss statements are not a judgement of your performance.”

“You are not your results.”

“What can you be reinvesting back into your business?”

Resources

Connect with Jessica:

Website: beamfinancialgroup.com

Tiktok: @jessblasingame.cpa