The Successful Bookkeeper Podcast

"The mission was always to build a million dollar bookkeeping firm. Our goal was to grow a large bookkeeping firm with clients and staff across Canada. That's what we wanted to do. And that's kind of what we are now." 
–Teresa Slack

In part one of this special four-part series, Teresa Slack, co-founder of Financly Bookkeeping Solutions, shares the honest story of launching a virtual bookkeeping firm in 2014 with big goals, low pricing, and no clear path to profit. She shares how her business grew fast and looked successful on paper, but behind the scenes the pressure was intense as underpricing, early hiring, and years without owner pay slowly drained the firm and took a personal toll.

In this episode, you'll learn:
Why rapid client growth exposed serious pricing & margin issues
What really happens when you hire staff before fixing your business model
How fear, stress & lack mindset show up when owners stop paying themselves
To learn more about Teresa, click here & email her at [email protected].
Connect with her on LinkedIn.

Learn more about Pure Bookkeeping.

Subscribe to the Value Pricing Academy YouTube channel.

Join VIP list for free training from Mark Wickersham here. 

Get your free copy of How to Price Bookkeeping eBook (the tool Teresa used to turn her business around).

Click here to join the VPA on Skool platform free training & support.

Time Stamps

01:14 – Launching a virtual bookkeeping firm in 2014
03:15 – Using cloud tools & early adoption of QuickBooks Online
03:35 – Running free financial literacy seminars to attract clients
04:01 – Growing from five clients to dozens across bookkeeping, tax & consulting
04:21 – Feeling overwhelmed & deciding to hire staff
05:09 – Charging hourly rates that left no room for profit
06:06 – Paying staff & overhead while taking no income
07:03 – Driving hours to Toronto to build a client base
08:25 – Why the numbers looked good but the business wasn't healthy
08:44 – The original vision to build a million-dollar firm
09:50 – Not getting paid & questioning personal success
10:34 – Realizing they needed help but feeling unable to afford it
11:16 – Fear, lack mindset & pulling from savings to make payroll
12:39 – The emotional strain of running a business with a sibling
13:18 – Creating "business hat" conversations to manage conflict
14:20 – Keeping communication open during stressful seasons
14:43 – What's coming next in part two

Your expertise has more value than you think, so Own Your Authority at The Successful Bookkeeper Summit 2026!

It's a high-energy two-day virtual experience for bookkeepers ready to lead with confidence and elevate their impact.

Join inspiring leaders on November 4th–5th to gain actionable strategies, powerful tools, and the clarity to shape the work you want, not just keep up with it.

Don't miss this incredible opportunity!

REGISTER TODAY!

"The hardest thing is to not try and solve their problem in the sales interview, just listen to the business case, and then come up with clever ways to achieve that business case really as easily as you possibly can. So you're looking for smaller projects, not bigger projects. It's, it's a complete mind shift."
-Jonathan Stark

Jonathan Stark,  author of Hourly Billing is Nuts, breaks down why hourly billing holds you back. He shares how shifting to value-based pricing changes your income, your clients, and your time. Jonathan explains how writing, teaching, and niching help you stand out, and why clients buy outcomes, peace of mind, and confidence, not hours.

In this interview, you'll also learn:
Why hourly billing rewards inefficiency & limits growth
What mindset shifts you need to stop selling time
How specialization & authority support higher pricing
To learn more about Jonathan, click here.

Get a copy of his book, Hourly Billing Is Nuts, at this link.

Connect with him on LinkedIn.

Time Stamps

00:58 – Why hourly billing is nuts & how Jonathan discovered it
04:00 – Discovering value-based fees & applying them in year one
05:40 – Breaking the habit of scoping during sales calls
09:18 – Pricing options based on outcomes, not deliverables
11:30 – How fixed pricing improves trust & client behavior
16:21 – Connecting your work to revenue growth or cost reduction
18:55 – Selling peace of mind as a measurable outcome
20:58 – Why working fewer hours should not mean earning less
22:31 – How AI & automation increase value, not risk
25:35 – Why predictable pricing benefits both you & your clients
29:00 – Identifying what different clients truly value
31:09 – Letting go of poor-fit clients to grow sustainably
36:10 – Why Jonathan wrote Hourly Billing Is Nuts
38:57 – Books that support the shift away from hourly billing
42:17 – What it means to "own your authority"
44:25 – Why being different matters more than being cheaper
47:07 – Using specialization to escape price competition
48:57 – Writing as a long-term growth strategy
50:12 – Where to find Jonathan's free resources
Your expertise has more value than you think, so Own Your Authority at The Successful Bookkeeper Summit 2026!

It's a high-energy two-day virtual experience for bookkeepers ready to lead with confidence and elevate their impact.

Join inspiring leaders on November 4th–5th to gain actionable strategies, powerful tools, and the clarity to shape the work you want, not just keep up with it.

Don't miss this incredible opportunity!

REGISTER TODAY!

"Slow down. I think we move so fast and we're trying to go in straight to the solution and there could be multiple things that the customer needs and we miss opportunities when we move too fast."
-Syvonia Brown

 In this Spotlight episode, Syvonia Brown, Director of Sales at Sage 50 US, talks about emotional intelligence and why it matters more than most bookkeepers realize. She shares practical ways to handle tough client conversations, slow down reactive thinking, and build trust without taking on unnecessary stress.

In this interview, you'll learn:
How active listening changes difficult client conversations
Why silence can be a powerful communication tool
How to show empathy without absorbing client emotion
To learn more about Syvonia, click here.
Explore Sage at this link.

Time Stamp

01:20 – What emotional intelligence really means in client work
02:10 – Checking in with yourself before client conversations
02:55 – Why jumping to solutions causes problems
04:25 – Using silence to help clients feel heard
05:17 – Simple techniques to avoid filling the silence
06:46 – Phone, video, or email how & tone changes everything
10:42 – Empathy without taking issues personally
12:21 – Why apologizing can make things worse
14:06 – De-escalating upset clients without matching their tone
16:14 – Taking accountability when mistakes happen
18:30 – Handling issues when you don't know the full story
20:01 – Embedding emotional intelligence into firm culture
21:22 – Training teams to lead with empathy
23:21 – How emotional intelligence drives loyalty & referrals
25:29 – Practical habits bookkeepers can apply immediately

Your expertise has more value than you think, so Own Your Authority at The Successful Bookkeeper Summit 2026!

It's a high-energy two-day virtual experience for bookkeepers ready to lead with confidence and elevate their impact.

Join inspiring leaders on November 4th–5th to gain actionable strategies, powerful tools, and the clarity to shape the work you want, not just keep up with it.

Don't miss this incredible opportunity!

REGISTER TODAY!

" Selling is not necessarily the answer. Exit can mean continuing to be part of it, but in a different way."
–Salim Omar

In this episode, Salim Omar, CPA and author of The CPA Firm Exit Playbook, shares what it takes to build a firm that works without constant owner involvement. Drawing from 30 years as a firm owner, Salim explains how systems, marketing, and leadership shape firm value and future options.

In this interview, you'll learn:
Why owner dependency limits growth & firm value
How systems & teams prepare your firm for the next chapter
What buyers actually look for in an accounting firm
To learn more about Salim, click here.

Get a copy of his book, The CPA Firm Exit Playbook.

Connect with him on LinkedIn.

Time Stamp

01:49 – Salim's journey from CFO to firm owner
04:22 – Discovering The E-Myth & changing how he ran his firm
06:03 – Shifting from technician to business owner
08:49 – Leading with curiosity & leaving ego behind
12:37 – Why Salim wrote The CPA Firm Exit Playbook
14:14 – The biggest exit planning mistakes firm owners make
16:15 – Removing owner dependency years before selling
18:21 – Why growth & marketing matter to buyers
22:49 – Education-based marketing & attracting better clients
29:01 – Redefining exit without fully stepping away
30:59 – Straight Talk Transitions & available resources
Your expertise has more value than you think, so Own Your Authority at The Successful Bookkeeper Summit 2026!
It's a high-energy two-day virtual experience for bookkeepers ready to lead with confidence and elevate their impact.
Join inspiring leaders on November 4th–5th to gain actionable strategies, powerful tools, and the clarity to shape the work you want, not just keep up with it.
Don't miss this incredible opportunity!
REGISTER TODAY!

" We need to do things that the other people aren't doing because that's how you make ways, that's how you revolutionize, that's how you pave a new path for the other people that think like you, but maybe don't have the strength at this point yet to pave the way."
-Sharrin Fuller
In this episode, Sharrin Fuller, strategic advisor and founder of Glass Wallet Ventures, shares why she believes the future of bookkeeping is client-facing, relationship-driven, and systemized. She breaks down how she scaled smarter, reduced her team, embraced technology, and rebuilt her firm to run smoothly with less effort. Sharrin also shares the thinking behind her book, Unfollow The Rules: The Messy Truth About Burnout, Bad Decisions And Building Until It Worked and why challenging traditional models matters more than ever for firm owners.

In this interview, you'll learn:
Why scaling smarter beats hiring more staff
How technology replaces tasks but not relationships
What bookkeepers must do to stay relevant as AI advances
To learn more about Sharrin, click here.

Connect with her on LinkedIn.
Buy her book, Unfollow The Rules, at this link.

Time Stamp

00:00 – Why only client-facing roles matter in the future
01:03 – Sharrin's career journey & building multiple firms
03:47 – What inspired her book Unfollow The Rules
11:23 – Scaling smarter without adding people
12:23 – Reducing a team from 12 to 2 without losing clients
14:45 – Challenging traditional business models
19:53 – How to decide what to outsource or automate
24:08 – The downside of fast-changing technology
27:56 – What Sharrin is building next & where to find her 
Your expertise has more value than you think, so Own Your Authority at The Successful Bookkeeper Summit 2026!
It's a high-energy two-day virtual experience for bookkeepers ready to lead with confidence and elevate their impact.
Join inspiring leaders on November 4th–5th to gain actionable strategies, powerful tools, and the clarity to shape the work you want, not just keep up with it.
Don't miss this incredible opportunity!
REGISTER TODAY!