May 18, 2025 • 27 mins
Money talks can feel intimidating, especially when you're juggling the demands of running a business and raising a family. But what if understanding your finances could be as simple as having coffee with a friend who happens to be a numbers whiz?
Samantha Eck, the powerhouse behind Firestorm Finance, joins me to demystify business finances in a conversation that's refreshingly straightforward and empowering. Drawing from her six years in corporate accounting and experience running creative businesses, Samantha shares why she left the security of a corporate job with just two months of savings to help entrepreneurs transform their messy financials into crystal clear roadmaps for success.
We dive deep into the common barriers that keep us from mastering our money – from the crippling belief that we're "bad with money" to the simple fact that most business education completely overlooks financial literacy. You'll discover why looking at profit alone can lead to serious misconceptions (like wondering where that $40,000 profit actually went) and why understanding both your profit and cash flow is crucial for making informed decisions.
For busy parents, Samantha offers practical wisdom: schedule a non-negotiable monthly date with your numbers, even if it means putting on a movie for the kids while you review your finances. This simple habit can transform your relationship with money from one of anxiety to empowerment. We also explore the fascinating connection between physical organisation and financial clarity – how decluttering your space can actually improve your money management mindset.
Whether you're just starting your business journey or looking to take your established venture to the next level, this conversation offers valuable insights that apply regardless of where you live (though specific tax advice is US-focused). Connect with Samantha on Instagram and Threads @FirestormFinance, LinkedIn or through her podcast "Creative Minds Smart Money" for more financial wisdom delivered with warmth and clarity.
Also a special thanks and mention to Mike Nielsen (@_mikenielsen) for connecting Samantha and I. If you are after a great podcast editor and specialist- Mike is your guy!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Mel Schener (00:18):
Welcome to Beyond Organised, the podcast that
helps you simplify your life andamplify your purpose.
I'm Mel Schenker, life coach,speaker, founder of She's
Organised and, more importantly,a wife and mom of four little
kids.
If you've ever felt overwhelmed, like you're constantly
juggling everything but neverquite catching up, this is the
place for you.
Here we go beyond just thetidying up and creating systems.
(00:42):
We're talking about real-lifestrategies that bring order to
your life, but also we talkabout the things beyond the
organizing, the things thatreally matter, like your
parenting relationships and somuch more.
So grab your coffee and let'sdive in.
Welcome to another episode ofBeyond Organised.
(01:03):
I have the lovely Samantha Eckwith us today from Firestorm
Finance.
How are you?
Samantha Eck (01:10):
I'm good.
How are you
Mel Schener (01:12):
Good, thank you.
So just to give you all alittle bit of background on
Samantha, Samantha Eck is thepowerhouse behind Firestorm
Finance, where she transformsmessy financials into crystal
clear roadmaps for success.
With six years of corporateaccounting under her belt, a
formal education in numbers andthe street cred of running two
(01:32):
creative businesses, she'suniquely equipped to help fellow
creatives decode the storytheir numbers are trying to tell
.
When Samantha's not wranglingQuickBooks, you'll find her
dominating on Xbox or curled upwith a page turner and her
husband by her side and her pupVivi, so you can also tune into
(01:53):
her podcast, creative MindsSmart Money, where she makes
money talk.
Feel like catching up with afriend, so it is so lovely to
have you here today, samantha.
Samantha Eck (02:04):
Thank you, I'm very excited to be here.
Mel Schener (02:08):
I am probably more excited than normal just because
you are my first.
You're my first guest, so thankyou so much for joining us and
helping busy mums get on top ofanother part of their life, and
a part that I am not that wellversed in.
(02:30):
Like I've done all right withfinancials and helping with
organizing and stuff, but youare on a whole other level, so
I'm looking forward to hearing.
So tell me what inspired you todo what you're doing with
financial stuff.
Samantha Eck (02:46):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
So I used to be in corporateaccounting and I don't know
something just felt off to me.
I guess I just did not enjoycorporate life.
There was a lot of weekend work, a lot of late night work,
which is funny to say nowbecause, as a business owner,
(03:06):
I'm working weekends sometimesand I work late nights sometimes
, but I think it's differentwhen you do it for yourself and
not for someone else.
But I just found myself feelinglost and I was like I don't like
my work, I don't want to go towork every day.
And so I knew how to dobookkeeping, but I had no idea
(03:27):
how to help people, like how todo client work, like how to talk
to a client.
So I took a course and Istarted to feel really inspired.
I was like I can totally dothis, like I feel like this is
what I'm meant to do.
And I told my husband.
I said, hey, like I know thatwe're not in the best position
right now, because you know it'sjust him working and then me
(03:49):
working.
And I said, but I don't think Ican grow my business without,
like, leaving work.
Mel Schener (03:56):
I was like because they want you to go network.
Samantha Eck (03:58):
They want you to do all this stuff.
And we had two months of savingssaved up and he's like, yeah,
go ahead, go do it.
(04:21):
So I mean the biggestinspiration that was so focused
on creating and gettingsomething out there and making
something meaningful that Ididn't have time to focus on the
backend work.
And every single time when taxseason would roll around, that's
just not in my stomach, like Idon't know what my income was, I
don't know what my expenseswere, I don't know if I made
(04:43):
money, I don't know if I lostmoney.
So it was my inspiration tomake sure that nobody ever feels
like that again, because Idon't want them to walk into tax
season with that knot in theirstomach.
Mel Schener (04:56):
Yeah, Stressful, I've got to say that's probably
one of the things that held meback for so long.
Getting started with my ownbusiness was stressing about tax
, because it doesn't matterwhere you are in the world, it's
not the most simple system.
So it's just it stressed me out.
(05:16):
But someone kind of rememberwhere said how if you have to
pay tax, then that means you'remaking money.
So it's a good thing and justget a professional to deal with
it.
You know, and it's good for meto learn and be across things,
and I know the very basics, butI can totally understand where
(05:37):
you're coming from in going.
I need to be across this, Ineed to know what's going on.
You've learned it and nowyou're like there are so many
people out there that need myhelp.
Samantha Eck (05:48):
Yes, exactly.
Mel Schener (05:50):
That's fantastic.
So what is your process Like?
What do you do to help peoplepeople with their financials?
Samantha Eck (05:59):
Yeah, absolutely so.
I mean I tend not to focusspecifically on taxes.
I help with the tax part ofthings, but I don't focus on
taxes because, for me, myspecific focus is I want you to
be so in tune with your numbersthat you don't second guess
anything.
You literally know them likethe back of your hand.
(06:22):
That you could be like seeing acourse, maybe, that you want to
take and you've been thinkingabout taking it for months and
you're like I can actuallyafford that.
Instead of having to go andlook at your bank account and
being like can I afford this?
I want you to be able to belike yes, I can afford that.
So a lot of it is walking youthrough your financials and
(06:44):
saying, okay, like last monthyou know you spent 30% and I
would use this example all thetime you spent 30% on coffee
purchases.
Is that what you really wantedto do?
And if you're like yes.
I had the best month ever lastmonth.
I was so productive.
Go for it like.
If that's what's keeping youfired up, I have no problems
(07:07):
with that I've got my coffeeright now, yeah and it gets your
creative process going rightyeah but if you're like looking
at that and you're like, uh, Iprobably shouldn't have spent
30% on coffee, you know thatmoney could have gone to
somewhere else in my business,fading my kids maybe as well.
(07:30):
Yes, that's where I really wantyou to start thinking.
Mel Schener (07:34):
And.
Samantha Eck (07:35):
I try and help my clients reverse engineer that as
well, because you know, I thinkthat paying yourself first is
very important, like even ifit's just a small amount,
because I feel like you getreally burned out really fast if
you don't pay yourselfsomething.
So I'll always say, okay, Iknow we're not going to make
that right off the bat, but like, what is your ideal income?
(07:57):
Like, what do you want to bringhome?
And if you're like, okay, Iwant to bring home three
thousand, if you're like, okay,I want to bring home $3,000, and
you bring it.
Let's say, your goal revenue is$10,000.
So essentially that's 30%.
So you want to make at least30% of everything you're
bringing in.
So what I'll tell them is okay,every time you have an income,
you know, make sure yourexpenses are covered and then
(08:19):
pay yourself at least 30% ofthat.
That way you're getting paid,even if it's a little bit, and
you can build up to that $3,000.
Mel Schener (08:28):
Yeah, now, that's a really good idea.
My husband and I have done thatfor years where we pay
ourselves a little bit, butwe've been on such a tight
budget and I've been onmaternity leave and that, so
it's literally like 40 bucks aweek at the moment.
So you know it's it's prettytight, but it's important
because then we know we've gotsome money that we can spend on
(08:51):
whatever it is we want.
If I want to blow it all oncoffee, which I don't but for
example, if I wanted to blow itall on coffee, then I can, and
it's not coming out of thefamily expenses or anything else
.
It's my own thing, but thenthat means I miss out on
something else that I might wantinstead.
Like, that's how it goes.
But I do think having your ownlittle pocket money is
(09:16):
definitely a good thing, but Ihadn't thought about it in the
whole.
Yeah, 30% type thing, like youwere saying, and that's that's
really good, that's really goodadvice.
So what do you think is, Iguess, the main thing that holds
people back from budgeting orgetting on top of their finances
(09:39):
?
What, what do you see?
Samantha Eck (09:41):
Yeah, I think there's really, when I like
really think about it, I thinkthere's three key things.
So there's three things I'veseen patterns of.
The smallest one I've seen apattern of is people who believe
they're bad with money.
So they have this mentality andthis fear and this anxiety
around money avoidance.
So they're like I'm just badwith it, like I don't want
(10:03):
anything to do with it becauseI'm not good at it.
Um, you know, the second thingI think I see is just fear and
like kind of tied to that badwith money, but fear and anxiety
around it, um, but also likejust this mentality that it's
not something that should betalked about or something that
should you should get help withwith, like you should just know
(10:23):
what you're doing with it.
But I always, I always say thislike education on business
finances is so limited, likepeople tell you okay, here's how
you run a business.
There's so many likeself-development books on here's
how you run a business, here'swhat you do, but they don't tell
you what to do with yourfinances.
They don't tell you how tofigure out your finances.
(10:45):
So you're like, yeah, I'm firedup, I can run a business, but
they're not actually giving youthe information.
You need to know what to look atin your numbers to grow your
business and then I really thinkthat the third thing is just
that they don't know what theydon't know.
So again they kind of all tieinto each other, but again
(11:09):
there's not enough education outthere, so they have no idea how
to look at their numbers, howto make sense of them.
So they look at their profitand loss at the end of the month
and they say, okay, I mademoney, but they don't realize
that that's the whole picture.
Like that profit that he made,at the end of the day you
might've already spent it andyou don't know that so now
(11:32):
you're like okay, I have $5,000in profit.
I'm going to go spend $5,000 onsomething, not realizing that
that $5,000 isn't there anymore,being accounted for somewhere
else.
Mel Schener (11:41):
Yeah, yeah, oh goodness, it can be so stressful
, particularly when you'restarting out in a business.
But even just running ahousehold and I'm sure your
skills and that have been veryhelpful with your own household
in keeping on top of things.
And do you find that,particularly because I know I
(12:08):
focus a lot in terms of mums andthe mum side of things if there
were some mums out therestarting a business and that,
what would you think isimportant for them to know when
it comes to their money?
Samantha Eck (12:23):
Yeah, absolutely.
I mean, I think the mostimportant thing to understand is
that it's not scary and insteadof trying to take a big bite of
the elephant especially becausewe all have such busy schedules
and our lives are just- so busy, like take it one step at a
time.
And the one thing I always telleverybody like make a date.
(12:45):
You know, as a mom, I'm surethat you put stuff on a calendar
and I'm sure that you have tofind some way to keep yourself
organized in some fashion.
So make it a non-negotiable oncea month.
You know, put on a movie forthe kids or something you can
sit with them, even on a laptopor a computer, and just look at
(13:08):
your numbers with intention andlearn and use them to grow.
That way it doesn't become soscary.
Because I even tell people this, even if you're not at the
point of hiring a bookkeeper.
This is so important becauseyou need to know what's going on
in your business more thananybody else and, like I've told
clients, I've turned downpeople before because they don't
(13:31):
care enough, like they don'tcare what's going on in their
business, and I'm like you needto care.
Mel Schener (13:37):
Imagine I can't fathom that.
I cannot fathom someone notcaring enough about their own
business.
Samantha Eck (13:45):
yeah, that blows my mind like a lot of the times.
It's like they don't look atthe information I'm sending them
or I.
They're just like, oh, justjust do the or the categorizing
and stuff like that and I'm likelazy half the equation like
that is that's half the equation.
The other half is actuallyunderstanding what's going on
(14:05):
after that yeah, wow, I just.
Mel Schener (14:10):
I mean, I guess we all have different personality
types and all of that, but Ijust I don't know.
Like, especially when you'restarting a business, even if
it's, you know, starting out asa side hustle, you know you're
starting a business, even ifit's, you know, starting out as
a side hustle, you know you'remaking some soaps or something
that you're selling on the side,it doesn't really matter what
you're doing.
I can't imagine someone notwanting to understand their
(14:35):
money.
I mean, what's the whole pointof doing a business if you can't
even look at the money side ofthings like what's working,
what's not working?
And yes, oh my gosh, do youhave any like interesting
stories or anything to share?
I know to put you on the spot abit, but is there any stories
(14:55):
that kind of stand out that youjust think, oh my goodness, like
, don't be like this?
Samantha Eck (15:03):
I mean that kind of ties back to what I was
talking about with, like theprofit thing.
I think there's been so manytimes where people have been
like at the end of the year, welook at their profit and loss
and we say, okay, well, thisyear, you know, you retained 40%
of your revenue.
And I've had this asked acouple of times.
(15:23):
And it's funny because, likeone of the business books that
I've read is Profit First, whereit's all about understanding,
like, what your profit actuallyis.
Because, similar to him, I'vehad clients come to me and say,
okay, where's the $40,000 I made?
And I'm like it's gone, likeyou don't have it anymore, like
here's what's in your bankaccount right now, this $3,000.
(15:46):
But I said that $40,000 you'vealready done something with.
You've either put it towardsexpenses, You've either bought
assets, you've either taken themoney for yourself, like it's
gone.
Made yourself more, yeah, and alot of times they don't.
They can't wrap their headsaround that, because they're
like what?
I don't understand, where didit go?
And I'm like, well, see, that'sthe thing is because that money
(16:09):
is usually already accountedfor, whether it's the next
month's expenses, whether it'smoney that you're trying to take
out to pay yourself, whetherit's, you know, money that
you've put aside for taxesthat's now gone to pay your
taxes.
Mel Schener (16:25):
So, it.
Samantha Eck (16:27):
A lot of times they look at that and they're
like, okay, like I made a lot ofmoney.
But if you don't understand,like where that money's going
every month at the end of theyear, and you're looking at that
and you're saying, okay,where's that money?
Like, how do I get that money?
Mel Schener (16:41):
It's not there anymore, it's just.
Samantha Eck (16:44):
I don't want to say it's a fictional number, but
it really is.
It's an accounting number.
Like profit is an accountingnumber to help you understand
your business better.
And I always tell people, ifyou're only looking at profit
and you're not looking at yourcashflow, then you're just going
to miss out on so much you'renot looking at your cashflow,
then you're just going to missout on so much.
Mel Schener (17:06):
Do you find that?
Because I guess for businessesa lot of people have like credit
cards and stuff, no-transcriptyou know, maybe loans or credit
or other things like thatthey're not seeing numbers
clearly.
Because if it was literallymoney in their account coming in
and coming out, then the moneywould be there if they made that
(17:27):
kind of money and it would beaccountable, because it's just
one in, one out kind of thing.
But because of credit, becauseof loans, because of all of that
, do you find that that can blurthe numbers for people?
Samantha Eck (17:40):
um, I think that that's that's an interesting
question, actually, because I,most of my clients, don't have
credit cards.
Um, okay, a lot of them do havethe one in and out, but I think
there there are quite a fewpeople who just I think they
can't wrap their head around thefact that, like you know, they
made $40,000, but it's just notthere anymore.
(18:04):
Like they don't understand.
And I don't think that's a badthing.
I think it's just like somepeople just don't understand the
concept that profit is likeyeah, that's what you made, but
it's already allocated elsewhere.
But I think that's where Ireally focus on the education,
of helping you understand, like,where your profit is going, so
(18:26):
that you don't have thatquestion.
You're not like where is thatmoney?
Now, you're like I know exactlywhere it went.
Mel Schener (18:33):
Yeah, yeah, that's I'm just trying to think even
just from like a personalperspective, cause I love my
spreadsheet, I've got my budget,got my spreadsheets, I do all
that.
I'm a bit, you know, special inthat sense, but I love a good
spreadsheet and I've been usingit for years now and and I can
(18:53):
see it, and I guess evensometimes at the end of the
month I can see, oh, I'm, I'mdown a little bit or I'm up a
little bit, but then my bankaccount looks completely
different to what it's saying onthe spreadsheet, even though
I've literally tracked to thecent.
So I guess I can kind ofunderstand how, yeah, when
people are looking at their bankaccounts, it's a different
(19:14):
figure to what's showing onpaper, because there's just,
yeah, there's so much that goesinto money.
And what started me on myorganizing journey was money.
It was actually it came down tomy finances because when I came
into my marriage I had debt.
It was terrible, it wasembarrassing.
(19:37):
My husband cleared it at thetime because I guess, you know,
once we're married it's sort ofboth of our problems and that
was really hard and veryhumbling.
But once I started to learn abit more about money, because I
didn't even know about interest,I didn't know anything, like I
was so clueless.
But once I started to knowabout money, I started to
(20:00):
understand organizing better,because then I looked at things
in my home and stuff that I hadthat I went.
I don't even remember buyingthat, but clearly like I bought
it, it costs money, it wentsomewhere and so then you know,
I start decluttering the houseand then I start saving money
because I'm not wasting it onfrivolous things.
So do you find, even from abusiness perspective, that the
(20:24):
more organized someone is, thebetter they are generally with
their money?
Samantha Eck (20:30):
Yeah, I think that plays a big part and I think,
in that sense, like it's kind offunny to say, but I'm kind of
like the home organizer, alittle bit of like your business
finances, because I really dogo in there and like help you
see things clear, like exactlywhat you're saying like,
declutter all the things andshow you what your frivolous
(20:52):
spending is like, where that is.
And again, like I'm saying likeif that, if that frivolous
spending is coffee, and you'relike, hey, like I made an extra
like five thousand dollars lastmonth and you're, that's what's
keeping you fueled a hundredpercent, because I think we're
all different and I think we allhave a different way that keeps
(21:14):
us motivated.
So I would never want to belike okay, like cut that out.
But, I think that's somethingimportant to note too is that
cutting expenses is not going tohelp you grow your business,
because you know, sometimes wedo have to put in a little bit
(21:35):
of money and I'm not sayingdon't, go like I'm not saying
don't go broke, don't go intodebt.
But I'm saying like you,sometimes you have to put in a
little bit more to get more back.
Mel Schener (21:44):
Yeah, yeah, I agree , it's funny because even
starting this business and itsounds very similar to your
story and starting because I I,you know had the idea and
everything, and talking to myhusband about it and he was
supportive and I haven't givenup my nine to five yet, so I'm
(22:05):
scared.
But even talking to my husbandabout it all and I didn't
realize how much it was going tocost to start the business, and
I think now I can understandwhy a lot of businesses fail in
the beginning and I think it'sbecause a lot of people don't
take into account how much abusiness is.
(22:26):
And like, I've got a friend thatmakes soaps, sells them in
markets and does all of that andso and she's put in a little
bit.
But when I'm looking at goingonline, where a lot of people
think, oh yeah, I can makepassive income and I can I don't
know put in 50 bucks and I'mgoing to make a million Not that
I had that, I definitely didnot have that point of view but
(22:47):
so many people do they justthink I go online and I'm going
to be rich and um, and I'vespent so much money and
thankfully, you know it'saccounted for, we're okay, we're
good, but it did cost a lotmore than I thought.
And do you find that perhapswith some businesses that might
(23:09):
not be working out a lot of itis just because they actually
had no idea how much it wouldcost for them to run their
business when they started?
Samantha Eck (23:17):
Yeah, I think that's a thing and I do think
that they tend to miss a lot ofthe expenses, but they also tend
to miss, like, what goes intotheir business.
So you know, the software, thelicenses, the bank fees, the
fees that are like a lot ofpeople are when.
(23:38):
That's been a big thing too iswhen they get the merchant
processing fees taken out,whether that's from stripe or
whatever they're like.
Mel Schener (23:45):
Yeah, is there a way that I can like lessen that
and I'm like really there's not,it's a it's a cost of business
at this point, yeah yeah, and,to be fair, like I don't find a
lot of the processing feesexorbitant, I feel like it's
reasonable for them to havetheir business and for us to run
(24:05):
it using those things.
So it's just.
It's funny how everybody prettymuch just wants things for free
and that's just not how itworks, especially if you're
running a legitimate business,and it can be a bit overwhelming
.
But anyway, I feel like I'veasked so many questions already
and been picking your brain.
It's been fantastic.
(24:26):
So if people wanted to get ahold of you wanted to look, and
I know that you're US-based,particularly in what you do.
So for all the US listeners,they can, you know, actually
work with you.
But even for other peoplearound the world that just want
to get your tips and ideas,where can we find you?
Samantha Eck (24:48):
Yeah, I think that's important to note as well
that, like I can't help youspecifically with like the tax
laws or the financial laws inyour place, but the tips are
still applicable and, like themindset that I have around,
money is still applicable, so Ithink that's a good thing.
But you can connect with me onInstagram and threads at
Firestorm Finance.
I'm also super active onLinkedIn.
(25:10):
So if you're like Ooh, I wantto connect with her, like, feel
free to send me a connectionrequest.
And then, yeah, my podcast,Creative Minds to Mert Money.
If you're like I just need moretips, I need more education on
finances.
Honestly, I would love to callit just like the guidebook to
your business finances, BecauseI just want you to understand
(25:33):
how you can grow your businessin meaningful ways, even without
me, because I want you tosucceed.
I'm someone who wants people toget past the statistics of the
two years, the five years,whatever it is, so that you can
grow a sustainable business.
Mel Schener (25:50):
Wow, that's great.
Look, I mean I'm in Australiaso you know you can't even
necessarily help me with the taxstuff, but I like following you
.
I like actually seeing what youhave on Instagram and a lot of
your stuff even just the mindsetstuff getting your head in the
right space when it comes tomoney, and that it's been
fantastic, and I think you havea lot to offer, no matter where
(26:12):
we are in the world.
So I definitely encourageeveryone listening to follow
Samantha, and I'll pop thedetails in the description as
well.
So if you didn't quite catch it, you can just look at the
description on the podcast.
And, yeah, you can findSamantha.
But was there anything else youwanted to share with the
audience today?
Samantha Eck (26:34):
No, I mean, that's really everything.
And if you are, you're 100%like.
You know what, samantha, theway you talk about money just
makes sense.
I want to work with you.
You know.
Feel free to hit me up on mywebsite and we can chat, and
there's no pressure.
I never want you to feelpressured.
Questions are free.
I'd rather you ask a questionand get support than walk away
with nothing.
And if we don't end up workingtogether, that's totally okay
(26:58):
then walk away with nothing.
And if we don't end up workingtogether, that's totally okay.
Sounds great.
Mel Schener (26:59):
Well, thank you so much for coming on today,
samantha, and I look forward tofollowing you more on the
socials.
Awesome, if you loved thisepisode, don't forget to hit
subscribe so you don't misswhat's coming next.
And if you want to continue theconversation, you can connect
with me on Instagram at @shes.
organised.
Or, for some free resources,head over to beyondorganised.
(27:20):
com.
S toolkit.
Remember, organising is a toolto live the purposeful life
beyond it.
See you next time.
Welcome to Beyond Organised, the podcast that
helps you simplify your life andamplify your purpose.
I'm Mel Schenker, life coach,speaker, founder of She's
Organised and, more importantly,a wife and mom of four little
kids.
If you've ever felt overwhelmed, like you're constantly
juggling everything but neverquite catching up, this is the
place for you.
Here we go beyond just thetidying up and creating systems.
(00:42):
We're talking about real-lifestrategies that bring order to
your life, but also we talkabout the things beyond the
organizing, the things thatreally matter, like your
parenting relationships and somuch more.
So grab your coffee and let'sdive in.
Welcome to another episode ofBeyond Organised.
(01:03):
I have the lovely Samantha Eckwith us today from Firestorm
Finance.
How are you?
Samantha Eck (01:10):
I'm good.
How are you
Mel Schener (01:12):
Good, thank you.
So just to give you all alittle bit of background on
Samantha, Samantha Eck is thepowerhouse behind Firestorm
Finance, where she transformsmessy financials into crystal
clear roadmaps for success.
With six years of corporateaccounting under her belt, a
formal education in numbers andthe street cred of running two
(01:32):
creative businesses, she'suniquely equipped to help fellow
creatives decode the storytheir numbers are trying to tell
.
When Samantha's not wranglingQuickBooks, you'll find her
dominating on Xbox or curled upwith a page turner and her
husband by her side and her pupVivi, so you can also tune into
(01:53):
her podcast, creative MindsSmart Money, where she makes
money talk.
Feel like catching up with afriend, so it is so lovely to
have you here today, samantha.
Samantha Eck (02:04):
Thank you, I'm very excited to be here.
Mel Schener (02:08):
I am probably more excited than normal just because
you are my first.
You're my first guest, so thankyou so much for joining us and
helping busy mums get on top ofanother part of their life, and
a part that I am not that wellversed in.
(02:30):
Like I've done all right withfinancials and helping with
organizing and stuff, but youare on a whole other level, so
I'm looking forward to hearing.
So tell me what inspired you todo what you're doing with
financial stuff.
Samantha Eck (02:46):
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
So I used to be in corporateaccounting and I don't know
something just felt off to me.
I guess I just did not enjoycorporate life.
There was a lot of weekend work, a lot of late night work,
which is funny to say nowbecause, as a business owner,
(03:06):
I'm working weekends sometimesand I work late nights sometimes
, but I think it's differentwhen you do it for yourself and
not for someone else.
But I just found myself feelinglost and I was like I don't like
my work, I don't want to go towork every day.
And so I knew how to dobookkeeping, but I had no idea
(03:27):
how to help people, like how todo client work, like how to talk
to a client.
So I took a course and Istarted to feel really inspired.
I was like I can totally dothis, like I feel like this is
what I'm meant to do.
And I told my husband.
I said, hey, like I know thatwe're not in the best position
right now, because you know it'sjust him working and then me
(03:49):
working.
And I said, but I don't think Ican grow my business without,
like, leaving work.
Mel Schener (03:56):
I was like because they want you to go network.
Samantha Eck (03:58):
They want you to do all this stuff.
And we had two months of savingssaved up and he's like, yeah,
go ahead, go do it.
(04:21):
So I mean the biggestinspiration that was so focused
on creating and gettingsomething out there and making
something meaningful that Ididn't have time to focus on the
backend work.
And every single time when taxseason would roll around, that's
just not in my stomach, like Idon't know what my income was, I
don't know what my expenseswere, I don't know if I made
(04:43):
money, I don't know if I lostmoney.
So it was my inspiration tomake sure that nobody ever feels
like that again, because Idon't want them to walk into tax
season with that knot in theirstomach.
Mel Schener (04:56):
Yeah, Stressful, I've got to say that's probably
one of the things that held meback for so long.
Getting started with my ownbusiness was stressing about tax
, because it doesn't matterwhere you are in the world, it's
not the most simple system.
So it's just it stressed me out.
(05:16):
But someone kind of rememberwhere said how if you have to
pay tax, then that means you'remaking money.
So it's a good thing and justget a professional to deal with
it.
You know, and it's good for meto learn and be across things,
and I know the very basics, butI can totally understand where
(05:37):
you're coming from in going.
I need to be across this, Ineed to know what's going on.
You've learned it and nowyou're like there are so many
people out there that need myhelp.
Samantha Eck (05:48):
Yes, exactly.
Mel Schener (05:50):
That's fantastic.
So what is your process Like?
What do you do to help peoplepeople with their financials?
Samantha Eck (05:59):
Yeah, absolutely so.
I mean I tend not to focusspecifically on taxes.
I help with the tax part ofthings, but I don't focus on
taxes because, for me, myspecific focus is I want you to
be so in tune with your numbersthat you don't second guess
anything.
You literally know them likethe back of your hand.
(06:22):
That you could be like seeing acourse, maybe, that you want to
take and you've been thinkingabout taking it for months and
you're like I can actuallyafford that.
Instead of having to go andlook at your bank account and
being like can I afford this?
I want you to be able to belike yes, I can afford that.
So a lot of it is walking youthrough your financials and
(06:44):
saying, okay, like last monthyou know you spent 30% and I
would use this example all thetime you spent 30% on coffee
purchases.
Is that what you really wantedto do?
And if you're like yes.
I had the best month ever lastmonth.
I was so productive.
Go for it like.
If that's what's keeping youfired up, I have no problems
(07:07):
with that I've got my coffeeright now, yeah and it gets your
creative process going rightyeah but if you're like looking
at that and you're like, uh, Iprobably shouldn't have spent
30% on coffee, you know thatmoney could have gone to
somewhere else in my business,fading my kids maybe as well.
(07:30):
Yes, that's where I really wantyou to start thinking.
Mel Schener (07:34):
And.
Samantha Eck (07:35):
I try and help my clients reverse engineer that as
well, because you know, I thinkthat paying yourself first is
very important, like even ifit's just a small amount,
because I feel like you getreally burned out really fast if
you don't pay yourselfsomething.
So I'll always say, okay, Iknow we're not going to make
that right off the bat, but like, what is your ideal income?
(07:57):
Like, what do you want to bringhome?
And if you're like, okay, Iwant to bring home three
thousand, if you're like, okay,I want to bring home $3,000, and
you bring it.
Let's say, your goal revenue is$10,000.
So essentially that's 30%.
So you want to make at least30% of everything you're
bringing in.
So what I'll tell them is okay,every time you have an income,
you know, make sure yourexpenses are covered and then
(08:19):
pay yourself at least 30% ofthat.
That way you're getting paid,even if it's a little bit, and
you can build up to that $3,000.
Mel Schener (08:28):
Yeah, now, that's a really good idea.
My husband and I have done thatfor years where we pay
ourselves a little bit, butwe've been on such a tight
budget and I've been onmaternity leave and that, so
it's literally like 40 bucks aweek at the moment.
So you know it's it's prettytight, but it's important
because then we know we've gotsome money that we can spend on
(08:51):
whatever it is we want.
If I want to blow it all oncoffee, which I don't but for
example, if I wanted to blow itall on coffee, then I can, and
it's not coming out of thefamily expenses or anything else
.
It's my own thing, but thenthat means I miss out on
something else that I might wantinstead.
Like, that's how it goes.
But I do think having your ownlittle pocket money is
(09:16):
definitely a good thing, but Ihadn't thought about it in the
whole.
Yeah, 30% type thing, like youwere saying, and that's that's
really good, that's really goodadvice.
So what do you think is, Iguess, the main thing that holds
people back from budgeting orgetting on top of their finances
(09:39):
?
What, what do you see?
Samantha Eck (09:41):
Yeah, I think there's really, when I like
really think about it, I thinkthere's three key things.
So there's three things I'veseen patterns of.
The smallest one I've seen apattern of is people who believe
they're bad with money.
So they have this mentality andthis fear and this anxiety
around money avoidance.
So they're like I'm just badwith it, like I don't want
(10:03):
anything to do with it becauseI'm not good at it.
Um, you know, the second thingI think I see is just fear and
like kind of tied to that badwith money, but fear and anxiety
around it, um, but also likejust this mentality that it's
not something that should betalked about or something that
should you should get help withwith, like you should just know
(10:23):
what you're doing with it.
But I always, I always say thislike education on business
finances is so limited, likepeople tell you okay, here's how
you run a business.
There's so many likeself-development books on here's
how you run a business, here'swhat you do, but they don't tell
you what to do with yourfinances.
They don't tell you how tofigure out your finances.
(10:45):
So you're like, yeah, I'm firedup, I can run a business, but
they're not actually giving youthe information.
You need to know what to look atin your numbers to grow your
business and then I really thinkthat the third thing is just
that they don't know what theydon't know.
So again they kind of all tieinto each other, but again
(11:09):
there's not enough education outthere, so they have no idea how
to look at their numbers, howto make sense of them.
So they look at their profitand loss at the end of the month
and they say, okay, I mademoney, but they don't realize
that that's the whole picture.
Like that profit that he made,at the end of the day you
might've already spent it andyou don't know that so now
(11:32):
you're like okay, I have $5,000in profit.
I'm going to go spend $5,000 onsomething, not realizing that
that $5,000 isn't there anymore,being accounted for somewhere
else.
Mel Schener (11:41):
Yeah, yeah, oh goodness, it can be so stressful
, particularly when you'restarting out in a business.
But even just running ahousehold and I'm sure your
skills and that have been veryhelpful with your own household
in keeping on top of things.
And do you find that,particularly because I know I
(12:08):
focus a lot in terms of mums andthe mum side of things if there
were some mums out therestarting a business and that,
what would you think isimportant for them to know when
it comes to their money?
Samantha Eck (12:23):
Yeah, absolutely.
I mean, I think the mostimportant thing to understand is
that it's not scary and insteadof trying to take a big bite of
the elephant especially becausewe all have such busy schedules
and our lives are just- so busy, like take it one step at a
time.
And the one thing I always telleverybody like make a date.
(12:45):
You know, as a mom, I'm surethat you put stuff on a calendar
and I'm sure that you have tofind some way to keep yourself
organized in some fashion.
So make it a non-negotiable oncea month.
You know, put on a movie forthe kids or something you can
sit with them, even on a laptopor a computer, and just look at
(13:08):
your numbers with intention andlearn and use them to grow.
That way it doesn't become soscary.
Because I even tell people this, even if you're not at the
point of hiring a bookkeeper.
This is so important becauseyou need to know what's going on
in your business more thananybody else and, like I've told
clients, I've turned downpeople before because they don't
(13:31):
care enough, like they don'tcare what's going on in their
business, and I'm like you needto care.
Mel Schener (13:37):
Imagine I can't fathom that.
I cannot fathom someone notcaring enough about their own
business.
Samantha Eck (13:45):
yeah, that blows my mind like a lot of the times.
It's like they don't look atthe information I'm sending them
or I.
They're just like, oh, justjust do the or the categorizing
and stuff like that and I'm likelazy half the equation like
that is that's half the equation.
The other half is actuallyunderstanding what's going on
(14:05):
after that yeah, wow, I just.
Mel Schener (14:10):
I mean, I guess we all have different personality
types and all of that, but Ijust I don't know.
Like, especially when you'restarting a business, even if
it's, you know, starting out asa side hustle, you know you're
starting a business, even ifit's, you know, starting out as
a side hustle, you know you'remaking some soaps or something
that you're selling on the side,it doesn't really matter what
you're doing.
I can't imagine someone notwanting to understand their
(14:35):
money.
I mean, what's the whole pointof doing a business if you can't
even look at the money side ofthings like what's working,
what's not working?
And yes, oh my gosh, do youhave any like interesting
stories or anything to share?
I know to put you on the spot abit, but is there any stories
(14:55):
that kind of stand out that youjust think, oh my goodness, like
, don't be like this?
Samantha Eck (15:03):
I mean that kind of ties back to what I was
talking about with, like theprofit thing.
I think there's been so manytimes where people have been
like at the end of the year, welook at their profit and loss
and we say, okay, well, thisyear, you know, you retained 40%
of your revenue.
And I've had this asked acouple of times.
(15:23):
And it's funny because, likeone of the business books that
I've read is Profit First, whereit's all about understanding,
like, what your profit actuallyis.
Because, similar to him, I'vehad clients come to me and say,
okay, where's the $40,000 I made?
And I'm like it's gone, likeyou don't have it anymore, like
here's what's in your bankaccount right now, this $3,000.
(15:46):
But I said that $40,000 you'vealready done something with.
You've either put it towardsexpenses, You've either bought
assets, you've either taken themoney for yourself, like it's
gone.
Made yourself more, yeah, and alot of times they don't.
They can't wrap their headsaround that, because they're
like what?
I don't understand, where didit go?
And I'm like, well, see, that'sthe thing is because that money
(16:09):
is usually already accountedfor, whether it's the next
month's expenses, whether it'smoney that you're trying to take
out to pay yourself, whetherit's, you know, money that
you've put aside for taxesthat's now gone to pay your
taxes.
Mel Schener (16:25):
So, it.
Samantha Eck (16:27):
A lot of times they look at that and they're
like, okay, like I made a lot ofmoney.
But if you don't understand,like where that money's going
every month at the end of theyear, and you're looking at that
and you're saying, okay,where's that money?
Like, how do I get that money?
Mel Schener (16:41):
It's not there anymore, it's just.
Samantha Eck (16:44):
I don't want to say it's a fictional number, but
it really is.
It's an accounting number.
Like profit is an accountingnumber to help you understand
your business better.
And I always tell people, ifyou're only looking at profit
and you're not looking at yourcashflow, then you're just going
to miss out on so much you'renot looking at your cashflow,
then you're just going to missout on so much.
Mel Schener (17:06):
Do you find that?
Because I guess for businessesa lot of people have like credit
cards and stuff, no-transcriptyou know, maybe loans or credit
or other things like thatthey're not seeing numbers
clearly.
Because if it was literallymoney in their account coming in
and coming out, then the moneywould be there if they made that
(17:27):
kind of money and it would beaccountable, because it's just
one in, one out kind of thing.
But because of credit, becauseof loans, because of all of that
, do you find that that can blurthe numbers for people?
Samantha Eck (17:40):
um, I think that that's that's an interesting
question, actually, because I,most of my clients, don't have
credit cards.
Um, okay, a lot of them do havethe one in and out, but I think
there there are quite a fewpeople who just I think they
can't wrap their head around thefact that, like you know, they
made $40,000, but it's just notthere anymore.
(18:04):
Like they don't understand.
And I don't think that's a badthing.
I think it's just like somepeople just don't understand the
concept that profit is likeyeah, that's what you made, but
it's already allocated elsewhere.
But I think that's where Ireally focus on the education,
of helping you understand, like,where your profit is going, so
(18:26):
that you don't have thatquestion.
You're not like where is thatmoney?
Now, you're like I know exactlywhere it went.
Mel Schener (18:33):
Yeah, yeah, that's I'm just trying to think even
just from like a personalperspective, cause I love my
spreadsheet, I've got my budget,got my spreadsheets, I do all
that.
I'm a bit, you know, special inthat sense, but I love a good
spreadsheet and I've been usingit for years now and and I can
(18:53):
see it, and I guess evensometimes at the end of the
month I can see, oh, I'm, I'mdown a little bit or I'm up a
little bit, but then my bankaccount looks completely
different to what it's saying onthe spreadsheet, even though
I've literally tracked to thecent.
So I guess I can kind ofunderstand how, yeah, when
people are looking at their bankaccounts, it's a different
(19:14):
figure to what's showing onpaper, because there's just,
yeah, there's so much that goesinto money.
And what started me on myorganizing journey was money.
It was actually it came down tomy finances because when I came
into my marriage I had debt.
It was terrible, it wasembarrassing.
(19:37):
My husband cleared it at thetime because I guess, you know,
once we're married it's sort ofboth of our problems and that
was really hard and veryhumbling.
But once I started to learn abit more about money, because I
didn't even know about interest,I didn't know anything, like I
was so clueless.
But once I started to knowabout money, I started to
(20:00):
understand organizing better,because then I looked at things
in my home and stuff that I hadthat I went.
I don't even remember buyingthat, but clearly like I bought
it, it costs money, it wentsomewhere and so then you know,
I start decluttering the houseand then I start saving money
because I'm not wasting it onfrivolous things.
So do you find, even from abusiness perspective, that the
(20:24):
more organized someone is, thebetter they are generally with
their money?
Samantha Eck (20:30):
Yeah, I think that plays a big part and I think,
in that sense, like it's kind offunny to say, but I'm kind of
like the home organizer, alittle bit of like your business
finances, because I really dogo in there and like help you
see things clear, like exactlywhat you're saying like,
declutter all the things andshow you what your frivolous
(20:52):
spending is like, where that is.
And again, like I'm saying likeif that, if that frivolous
spending is coffee, and you'relike, hey, like I made an extra
like five thousand dollars lastmonth and you're, that's what's
keeping you fueled a hundredpercent, because I think we're
all different and I think we allhave a different way that keeps
(21:14):
us motivated.
So I would never want to belike okay, like cut that out.
But, I think that's somethingimportant to note too is that
cutting expenses is not going tohelp you grow your business,
because you know, sometimes wedo have to put in a little bit
(21:35):
of money and I'm not sayingdon't, go like I'm not saying
don't go broke, don't go intodebt.
But I'm saying like you,sometimes you have to put in a
little bit more to get more back.
Mel Schener (21:44):
Yeah, yeah, I agree , it's funny because even
starting this business and itsounds very similar to your
story and starting because I I,you know had the idea and
everything, and talking to myhusband about it and he was
supportive and I haven't givenup my nine to five yet, so I'm
(22:05):
scared.
But even talking to my husbandabout it all and I didn't
realize how much it was going tocost to start the business, and
I think now I can understandwhy a lot of businesses fail in
the beginning and I think it'sbecause a lot of people don't
take into account how much abusiness is.
(22:26):
And like, I've got a friend thatmakes soaps, sells them in
markets and does all of that andso and she's put in a little
bit.
But when I'm looking at goingonline, where a lot of people
think, oh yeah, I can makepassive income and I can I don't
know put in 50 bucks and I'mgoing to make a million Not that
I had that, I definitely didnot have that point of view but
(22:47):
so many people do they justthink I go online and I'm going
to be rich and um, and I'vespent so much money and
thankfully, you know it'saccounted for, we're okay, we're
good, but it did cost a lotmore than I thought.
And do you find that perhapswith some businesses that might
(23:09):
not be working out a lot of itis just because they actually
had no idea how much it wouldcost for them to run their
business when they started?
Samantha Eck (23:17):
Yeah, I think that's a thing and I do think
that they tend to miss a lot ofthe expenses, but they also tend
to miss, like, what goes intotheir business.
So you know, the software, thelicenses, the bank fees, the
fees that are like a lot ofpeople are when.
(23:38):
That's been a big thing too iswhen they get the merchant
processing fees taken out,whether that's from stripe or
whatever they're like.
Mel Schener (23:45):
Yeah, is there a way that I can like lessen that
and I'm like really there's not,it's a it's a cost of business
at this point, yeah yeah, and,to be fair, like I don't find a
lot of the processing feesexorbitant, I feel like it's
reasonable for them to havetheir business and for us to run
(24:05):
it using those things.
So it's just.
It's funny how everybody prettymuch just wants things for free
and that's just not how itworks, especially if you're
running a legitimate business,and it can be a bit overwhelming
.
But anyway, I feel like I'veasked so many questions already
and been picking your brain.
It's been fantastic.
(24:26):
So if people wanted to get ahold of you wanted to look, and
I know that you're US-based,particularly in what you do.
So for all the US listeners,they can, you know, actually
work with you.
But even for other peoplearound the world that just want
to get your tips and ideas,where can we find you?
Samantha Eck (24:48):
Yeah, I think that's important to note as well
that, like I can't help youspecifically with like the tax
laws or the financial laws inyour place, but the tips are
still applicable and, like themindset that I have around,
money is still applicable, so Ithink that's a good thing.
But you can connect with me onInstagram and threads at
Firestorm Finance.
I'm also super active onLinkedIn.
(25:10):
So if you're like Ooh, I wantto connect with her, like, feel
free to send me a connectionrequest.
And then, yeah, my podcast,Creative Minds to Mert Money.
If you're like I just need moretips, I need more education on
finances.
Honestly, I would love to callit just like the guidebook to
your business finances, BecauseI just want you to understand
(25:33):
how you can grow your businessin meaningful ways, even without
me, because I want you tosucceed.
I'm someone who wants people toget past the statistics of the
two years, the five years,whatever it is, so that you can
grow a sustainable business.
Mel Schener (25:50):
Wow, that's great.
Look, I mean I'm in Australiaso you know you can't even
necessarily help me with the taxstuff, but I like following you
.
I like actually seeing what youhave on Instagram and a lot of
your stuff even just the mindsetstuff getting your head in the
right space when it comes tomoney, and that it's been
fantastic, and I think you havea lot to offer, no matter where
(26:12):
we are in the world.
So I definitely encourageeveryone listening to follow
Samantha, and I'll pop thedetails in the description as
well.
So if you didn't quite catch it, you can just look at the
description on the podcast.
And, yeah, you can findSamantha.
But was there anything else youwanted to share with the
audience today?
Samantha Eck (26:34):
No, I mean, that's really everything.
And if you are, you're 100%like.
You know what, samantha, theway you talk about money just
makes sense.
I want to work with you.
You know.
Feel free to hit me up on mywebsite and we can chat, and
there's no pressure.
I never want you to feelpressured.
Questions are free.
I'd rather you ask a questionand get support than walk away
with nothing.
And if we don't end up workingtogether, that's totally okay
(26:58):
then walk away with nothing.
And if we don't end up workingtogether, that's totally okay.
Sounds great.
Mel Schener (26:59):
Well, thank you so much for coming on today,
samantha, and I look forward tofollowing you more on the
socials.
Awesome, if you loved thisepisode, don't forget to hit
subscribe so you don't misswhat's coming next.
And if you want to continue theconversation, you can connect
with me on Instagram at @shes.
organised.
Or, for some free resources,head over to beyondorganised.
(27:20):
com.
S toolkit.
Remember, organising is a toolto live the purposeful life
beyond it.
See you next time.
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Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
The Breakfast Club
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy, Jess Hilarious, And Charlamagne Tha God!