July 2023 Income At-A-Glance
Gross Income for July: $138,973
Total Expenses for July: $15,953
Total Net Profit for July: $123,020
Difference b/t July & June: -$32,698
% of net profit to overall gross revenue: 89%
Why We Publish An Income Report
This monthly income report is created for you, Fire Nation!
By documenting the struggles we encounter and the successes we celebrate as entrepreneurs every single month, we’re able to provide you with support – and a single resource – where we share what’s working, what’s not, and what’s possible.
There’s a lot of hard work that goes into learning and growing as an entrepreneur, especially when you’re just starting out. The most important part of the equation is that you’re able to pass on what you learn to others through teaching, which is what we aim to do here.
Check out all of our monthly income reports – from the very beginning!
Let’s IGNITE!
**We’ll receive a commission on the affiliate links below. If you click on my affiliate link and sign up for the products and services I trust and recommend, then I will earn a commission.
Ron Parisi’s Monthly Tax Tip
Hello, Fire Nation! Ron Parisi from CPA On Fire here with our July 2023 Tax and Accounting tip.
At CPA On Fire, we specialize in working with entrepreneurs to minimize their tax liability while keeping them in line with the ever-changing tax laws.
Our firm has been working with JLD & Kate at Entrepreneurs On Fire for years now, and they’ve included me in these monthly income reports with unlimited access to all their accounts so I can verify that what they report here is complete and accurate.
And because they believe in delivering an insane amount of value to you, my job doesn’t stop at the verification level; I also provide a new tax and accounting tip every month!
Ron’s July Tax Tip: A mid-year check in
This month we’re doing a check-in for you!
As we are through the first two quarters of 2023, everybody should have a good idea of the results for the first half of the year with your accounting and financial statements in order.
As you review the first half of the year, you want to check in on the following.
1. Financial Reporting
I recommend reviewing your budget-to-actual numbers and checking to see if there is any room for improvement in the last four months of the year.
Think through whether to create a new or revised budget.
2. Tax Plan
It’s important to review your tax plan and make sure you have the cash available for the upcoming third quarter estimates, due on September 15th.
Take a moment to re-evaluate your tax strategy and make sure everything that needs to be done, like the Augusta rule, reimbursements, or other strategies, is taken care of before the end of the year.
3. Let your business serve you
Lastly, I want to remind you that your business should serve you, not the other way around.
Take a step back and ask yourself if your business is helping you build personal wealth, or if you’re tirelessly serving your business.
At CPA and Fire, we believe that your business should be your personal wealth-building machine. Remember to prioritize your own success!
Just some food for thought as we dive into the second half of 2023!
Thank you for listening, and I look forward to checking in with you again next month.
Those of you in Fire Nation who are entrepreneurs and business owners and are looking to upgrade your financial operations in 2023, check out our website: CPAOnFire.com!
We’ve been able to get our clients amazing results and would love to help you out as well. Book a call through our website and let us show you how we can help your business grow.
David Lizerbram’s July Legal Tip
How to Determine the Fair Market Value of a Small Business
What’s up Fire Nation! David Lizerbram here, and I’m excited to be back with another legal tip for you!
I’ve been practicing law for 21 years and have loads of free content over at LizerbramLaw.com.
This month’s legal tip is all about how to determine the fair market value of a small business.
Clients often ask how to determine the fair market value (FMV) of a small business.
On one level, the goal is to establish a price that a willing buyer and a willing seller would agree to in an open and unrestricted market. There are a variety of ways to establish FMV, and the choice of valuation method depends on the business and the reason for the valuation.
For example, let’s say you’re in a two person company and your partner wants to leave.
They’ve offered to let you buy them out of their share, with the price being based on the FMV.
But what value are we talking about – the value of the business today, with both partners working in the business? Or the value after the sale, when the size of the workforce has gone down by 50%?
This is just one example of the complicated nature of what seems like a simple question.
That said, here are some common methods of determining the FMV of a small business, along with some of the pros and cons of each approach:
- Asset-Based Valuation: This method looks at the business’ tangible and intangible assets.
It calculates the cost it would take to replace all physical assets (like real estate, equipment, inventory) and intangible assets (like brand value, patents, copyrights, and good customer relations).
Liabilities are subtracted from this sum to find the asset-based value.
This method is best used when a business has significant tangible assets, so it’s a commonly used method in industries like manufacturing or retail. It may be less useful in, for example, a two-person consulting business.
- Income Valuation: This method uses the company’s financial prospects to determine the business value.
The Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) is a commonly used income valuation method that estimates the value of an investment based on its future cash flows.
DCF analysis finds the present value of expected future cash flows using a discount rate. A higher discount rate indicates a higher amount of risk associated with an investment.
This method is often used for businesses with strong predictable cash flow, such as service businesses.
- Market-Based Valuation: This method estimates business value based on what similar companies sell for.
The problem with this method is that it can be hard to find comparable sales data for a small business, making this method more appropriate in an industry with lots of transaction activity.
- Earnings Multiplier: This method is often used for businesses that have a solid history of earnings.
It’s based on the principle that a business’s value is worth a multiple of its profit.
This multiple can depend on the industry, economic environment, and other factors. And it may not be workable in a new business, or one where future earnings are hard to predict or depend on the specific people working for the business.
Each method has its strengths and weaknesses and they often produce different results. Therefore, it might be advisable to use several methods to reach a more comprehensive understanding of a business’s FMV.
Employing a professional business appraiser is another option – they can provide a detailed analysis that can be presented to potential buyers or lenders, adding credibility to the stated business value.
If you have legal questions about your business, feel free to be in touch with me. I’m always happy to talk with members of Fire Nation!
What Went Down In July
Interview of the Month
How Leveraging an Assistant Will Change Your Life & Maximize Your Time with Tricia Sciortino
3 Value Bombs
- As we grow our business, we really need to figure out what it means to not hoard all the work and accept that you must wear all these different hats. You are the sole person to spin all these plates at the same time.
- Trust doesn’t need to be earned; give it away until people prove you otherwise.
- In order to elevate you need to delegate.
Belay Solutions – Download The Ultimate Guide to Working with an Executive Assistant, free!
Montana Mastermind with Cary Jack
Doing a “digital detox” has probably been recommended to you at some point in time, or at the least, you’re familiar with the concept.
Get off grid. Get offline. Essentially, forget about technology for a specific period of time.
Unfortunately, it’s advice we rarely take.
When was the last time you went 24 hours without glancing at your phone?
How about 4 hours?
45 minutes?…
If you’re like me, it has been a LONG time.
That’s why when Cary Jack of the Happy Hustle reached out with an opportunity to spend 5 days in the Montana wilderness masterminding with 14 other entrepreneurs, I knew I had to take the plunge.
Oh, did I mention that fly fishing, fire making, celestial navigation, bow hunting, and numerous other survival skills would be taught as well!?…
So off I went!
I woke up in the Caribbean, and that same evening I was floating down an alpine river in the outer reaches of humanity in Montana.
What a world we live in that this is possible!
The next morning we embarked on an 8 mile hike along the Tobacco Root Trails to our destination: a clearing on a pristine alpine river far, far, far away from WiFi and everything that goes along with it.
Over the next 4 days there were cold plunges, archery competitions, personal and business breakthroughs, as well as my first fish ever caught whilst fly fishing!
The pictures do not do justice to the immensity nor the beauty of Montana, but I hope they give you a glimpse of another way to spend a weekend.
A way that doesn’t include our faces glued to screens, and our eyes dragged down to a 4 inch rectangle, ignoring the beauty that lies all around us.
Cary hosts multiple mastermind excursions each year, and you could be on one of them!
I highly recommend it; it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
July 2023 Income Breakdown*
Product/Service Income: $134,900
TOTAL Journal Sales: $1,976 | Total Journals Sold: 59
The Freedom Journal: Accomplish your #1 goal in 100 days!
- Total: $1,231 (35 Freedom Journals + 3 Digital Packs sold)
The Mastery Journal: Master Productivity, Discipline and Focus in 100 days!
- Total: $545 (13 Mastery Journals + 3 Digital Packs sold)
The Podcast Journal: Idea to Launch in 50 Days!
- Total: $200 (5 Digital Packs sold)
Podcasters’ Paradise: The #1 Podcasting community in the world!
- Recurring: $5,584 (47 recurring)
- New members: $5,782 (6 new members)
- Total: $11,366
Real Revenue: Turn your BIG IDEA into Real Revenue
- Total: $0
Podcast Sponsorships: $121,525
Podcast Launch: Audiobook: $28 | eBook: $5
Free Courses that contribute to the above revenue:
Your Big Idea: Discover your big idea in under an hour!
Free Podcast Course: Create and launch your own podcast!
Funnel On Fire: Create a funnel that converts!
Affiliate Income: $4,073
*Affiliate links below – if you click on my affiliate link and sign up for the products and services I trust and recommend, then I will earn a commission.
Resources for Entrepreneurs: $3,571
- Audible: $40
- Bluehost: $0
- Click Funnels: $3,483
- CovertKit: $48
- Coaching referrals: $0 (email me for an introduction to a mentor for overall online business or a Podcast focused mentor!)
Resources for Podcasters: $306
- Podcasting Press: $0
- Splasheo: $0
- Fusebox: $0
- Libsyn: $212 (Use promo code FIRE for the rest of this month & next free!)
- Repurpose House: $63
- UDemy Podcasting Course: $31
Other Resources: $196
- Amazon Associates: $34
- Other: $162
Total Gross Income in July: $138,973
Business Expenses: $11,032
- Advertising: $24
- Affiliate Commissions (Paradise): $45
- Cost of goods sold (Journals): $278
- Fulfillment: $0
- Consulting: $1,397
- Design & Branding: $0
- Dues & Subscriptions: $115
- Legal & Professional: $0
- Meals & Entertainment: $825
- Merchant / bank fees: $2,488
- Amazon fees: $732
- PayPal fees: $197
- Office expenses: $252
- Community Refunds: $697
- Promotional: $0
- Travel: $32
- Virtual Assistant Fees: $3,875
- Website Fees: $75
Recurring, Subscription-based Expenses: $4,921
- Adobe Creative Cloud: $110
- Accounting: $2,120
- Boomerang: $90 (team package)
- Business Insider: $13
- Authorize.net: $36
- Google: $60
- Cell Phone: $154
- CookieYes: $10
- GoDaddy: $30
- Internet: $68
- Keeper: $215 (annual subscription)
- eVoice: $12
- Keap CRM: $232
- Insurance: $669
- Libsyn: $226
- Linktree: $6
- Taxes & Licenses: $505
- Process.st: $100
- Wordfence: $119 (annual subscription)
- Patreon: $40
- Shopify: $36
- Xero: $70
Total Expenses in July: $15,953
Payroll to John & Kate: $15,900
In our May 2014 Income Report and our June 2016 Income Report, Josh focuses on how to pay yourself as an entrepreneur. Check them out!
Wondering what we do with all of our net revenue? We share all in our April 2017 Income Report :)
Total Net Profit for July 2023: $123,020
Biggest Lesson Learned
Being intentional
I’m taking a page from John’s book this month because one of the biggest things that stood out to me from his time in Montana was his emphasis on doing a digital detox.
When he was talking about it, I realized that I haven’t done a digital detox in a LONG time.
Not because I don’t like doing it (I actually love it).
But because I haven’t been intentional about it. I honestly haven’t even thought about it until hearing John talk about it.
And it reminded me that there are probably a number of things we “want” to see or do in our lives, but nothing happens without you taking charge and putting intention behind it.
If you want to do a digital detox, schedule it!
If you want to take a week-long vacation with your family, book the tickets!
If you want to read more, set aside 30 minutes each day for it.
If you want to exercise more, schedule a weekly walk with a friend.
If we’re not intentional about the things we say we want – and by intentional I mean actually scheduling time on our calendars to do it – then it’s probably not going to happen. It’s way too easy to not think about these things often, or to push them to the back burner because life is “busy”.
But if it’s really important to you, then you’ll find the time.
What’s one thing you want to be more intentional about this month?
Until next month, keep your FIRE burning!
~ Kate & John
Note: we report our income figures as accurately as possible, but in using reports from a combo of Infusionsoft & Xero to track our product and total income / expenses, they suggest the possibility of a 3 – 5% margin of error.
