June 23, 2025 • 20 mins
In this episode, I’m breaking down how the Profit First system completely changed how I handle money in my studio and why it gave me more peace of mind than any spreadsheet ever did.
I’ll walk you through how it works, how I set it up as a piano teacher, and the mindset shift that made all the difference.
You’ll hear real examples from my studio, a few budgeting truths I had to learn the hard way, and the steps you can take to start simplifying your finances too.
● Includes my Profit First Cheat Sheet for Music Teachers (free download at www.scrappypianoteacher.com)● Real talk on percentages, taxes, owner’s pay, and what to do if numbers overwhelm you● Bonus: How I use Scrappy Sessions to actually get this stuff done
If you’ve ever felt like your studio money disappears before the month ends, this one’s for you.
Subscribe to the email list and find resources at www.scrappypianoteacher.com
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:01):
After a few months of doing thisand I realized how wrong I had
been for so many years. I I feel almost silly, like
almost a little embarrassed. So I'm hoping that this episode
can help help some of you. Hello, hello, and welcome to the
Scrappy Piano Teacher podcast, the show for independent music
(00:22):
teachers who are building studios with heart, grit and
maybe a whole lot of coffee. I'm your host, Jacqueline
Rosick. You can call me Jackie.
And after 27 years of teaching piano, 10 years of
homeschooling, and of course running my own piano studio at
the same time, I know the path to a successful teaching life
isn't always polished, but it ispossible.
(00:43):
This podcast gives you real world strategies, grounded
encouragement, and the occasional messy story from the
trenches. Because you do not have to have
it all figured out to build something great.
And today's episode is one of those stories.
We're talking about money, Not how much you're making, but how
you're managing it. Because being aware of my own
(01:04):
weak spots, especially with finances, has been one of the
most powerful ways I've kept my studio sustainable.
When I know where I struggle, I can be proactive and put systems
in place before those struggles turn into full on problems.
Also, don't forget after you have listened, there is a free
(01:24):
Profit 1st at a Glance CHEAT SHEET for music teachers that I
put together. It's got sample percentages,
account suggestions, and the exact system I use.
You can find it at scrappy pianoteacher.com.
In the meantime, let's dive in. Hey guys, if you are anything
like me and you specifically shell out time to work only to
(01:47):
end up doom scrolling during your admin hours, I created
Scrappy Sessions so that we can actually get some stuff done.
This is not just a Zoom call, itis a live workshop.
In our July session, I'll give you quick, actionable advice on
both career planning and policy writing, and you'll get a copy
of my free calendar template andthe exclusive policy builder.
(02:09):
After that, we've got a solid hour of focused work time to get
your drafts outlined and hopefully finished.
Also, it's just 10 bucks if you register before July 8th, so
head to scrappypianoteacher.com and click on Scrappy Sessions to
snag your seat. Now let's talk profit first,
(02:32):
righty. Hey, scrappy teacher Jackie
here. And if you've ever stared at
your bank account at the end of the month wondering how, where,
what, what money, where's the money all gone?
Well, this ones for you. We are diving into the system
that finally made my studio feelsustainable, which is profit
first. Now this episode is going to
(02:52):
break down exactly what it is, how I use it as a piano teacher,
and why it has saved my tush in multiple ways this past year.
Plus, what to do if numbers are not your thing.
Spoiler alert, I am probably worse than you are, I guarantee
it. So if I can do it, you can
absolutely do this too. Now let's be real.
(03:14):
OK, to my credit and ego, I did have a pretty decent setup
before I implemented profit. First, I had a checking account
for the studio, I had a checkingaccount for Personal, and I had
a savings account for overflow, which did end up kind of mixing
between Studio and Personal, butit worked until it didn't.
(03:40):
Actually, just kidding, it neverreally worked.
I didn't have clear boundaries. I didn't have any rules.
I just kind of was like, no, I'll move a little here, I'll
move a little there. Never mind, let's move this back
here and this back there. And anyway, I would pay myself
when it felt OK. Actually, I never even got to
the point of quote UN quote paying myself, but I pretty much
(04:04):
just kept moving the money back and forth like a game of hot
potato, literally pinching pennies by the end of the month
until the next month of tuition.Which I think if you've been a a
teacher long enough you probablyknow what I'm talking about.
I would also totally panic during tax season and I would
stress when anything unexpected would pop up in the studio or my
(04:25):
home life, which of course it always does.
Now that all changed when I finally implemented a version of
profit first that worked for a piano teacher like myself.
So let me give you some examplesof how profit first helped me
this past year. First of all, the church that I
always use for recitals has always been 50 bucks every time.
Every recital 50 bucks. With respect, they really have
(04:49):
been under charging. It's a great place to have
recitals. And finally, they revise their
fees. Fortunately for them and
unfortunately for me, they switched it to $250 per recital
due upfront with a $200 deposit.At this point when I found this
(05:11):
out, I had three recitals already booked, but thanks to
Profit first, I was able to cover two of them and then for
the third one, I ended up shifting plans and we did
something a little different andthat was fine.
It actually ended up working outpretty well.
Now the next way that Profit First helped me is over the
course of the year, I was gifteda piano.
Yay. So exciting, right?
(05:31):
We always dream about being gifted beautiful pianos, but you
guys are teachers and you know just as well as I do that free
pianos aren't really free. I had to pay for moving my old
piano to my parents house and then the new piano to my house,
and I had to pay for the tuning for both instruments.
(05:54):
So yeah, not free. But again, I have the money
ready because of profit first. And my favorite adulting moment
of the year that I can pat myself on the back for is I
actually got to pay my taxes in full.
I paid my accountant and I stillhad enough to contribute to a
Sep IRA. This is unreal for me.
(06:17):
I never in my life expected thatI would be able to do that.
I've I've always felt kind of like the redhead stepchild in
that sense that I've been like everybody else gets to do this,
but I can't figure this out. So if you're one of those,
you're not alone. So those are fun wins and all,
But real quick, let's talk aboutmoney mindset because this
always comes up. It's conversation that I've had
(06:39):
a gazillion times with my own financial coaches and the
courses that I've taken. You got to talk about your money
mindset and you got to think about it.
Now, I am not a money person. I love spending money.
I'm really good at it. If you want to spend money, come
to me, I'll help you. It's fun.
Influencers are out there just influencing me every today with
(07:00):
their cute planners, their cozy HomeGoods, all the cute clothes,
and let's just say it's not great for my budget.
But I also know that there is a lot of baggage for us when it
comes to money, how we grew up, what we were not taught,
generational money mindsets. It can be a lot and it's real.
(07:21):
But to be blunt, and I say this with love, your studios,
finances don't care about your feelings.
They don't care if you grew up with money trauma or feel
uncomfortable with numbers. Either you're going to build
something sustainable and do thework or you're going to feel
stuck. So that's my little bit on that.
Now, just to be clear, I have had to work extra hard on this.
(07:44):
I now have a monthly meeting with a financial coach and
quarterly meetings with my accountant to keep me
accountable. Hopefully you don't have to do
all that, but if you do, just bebe real about it, OK?
Because it really has helped me to be real about it.
So when I say that the system works, I'm not saying it
lightly. I'm saying it as someone who has
(08:04):
had to claw her way in to bettermoney habits.
So what is Profit First? Profit First is a cash flow
management system created by MM Mikolowitz.
Mikola. MM, how do you say last name?
It's Mikolowitz. I'll spell it like right here
(08:27):
for you. So anyway, it's based on this
idea that businesses should pay themselves 1st instead of
spending and hoping profits leftat the end.
You pull the profit first, then you allocate what's left to
expenses. And why are people loving it?
Because it creates clarity. You always know where your money
(08:49):
is and for what purpose. It forces discipline, it gives
you margin, and it reduces surprise expenses.
This system has literally saved businesses from bankruptcy, no
joke. And even major corporations have
started adopting variations of this method because it really
works for any size business, including micro businesses like
(09:12):
ourselves and multi teacher studios.
Now most people run their business like this.
They get their income, they subtract their expenses for the
month and what is leftover is profit.
We don't do that with profit first.
We flip it and instead we do income minus profit equals
(09:34):
expenses. OK, that's it in a nutshell.
Now with profit first, you're going to create accounts like
profit taxes, operating expenses, business checking,
something like that. Every time money comes in, you
split it between the accounts onpurpose.
There's no more waiting to see what's left.
There's no more moving this hereor there or whatever.
(09:56):
You move it one time to the allocated account and the
percentage that you have chosen beforehand.
Now when it comes to Piano Studio, as per usual we are
always, it's a tad different. I use Relay, it's an online
bank. It lets you set up multiple
accounts. I like it because there's no
fees and it specifically talks about profit first.
So it just worked really well for me.
(10:17):
I love it because I can move themoney around fast and keep
everything super clear. There are some other pretty
solid options other than Relay that I found when I was doing my
research. Some other ones I found were
Blue Vine, Novo, or even Ally. But honestly it's whatever works
best for you. I don't know which one's better
than the other. Relay works really good for me
(10:37):
and I'm going to stick with it. Now with Relay, I have 4
accounts. I have a business savings, I
have a business checking, I havea tax account, and I have a
profit account. I also have a personal checking
and a personal savings at my regular local bank.
So in total I have 6 accounts, four with relay, 2 at my regular
(10:58):
bank. So when it's tuition time, which
is the best time of the month? Wahoo.
Here is how I split every payment.
So I get the payment I'm going to send 50% to my personal.
I move 5% to my personal savings.
I move 25% to taxes. I move 5% to profit, I move 10%
(11:24):
to my business checking, and I move 5% to my business savings.
Beep bop, boop. If I did my math right, that
should equal 100%. Now I want to go through these
really quick. 50% that goes to my personal.
That's where I'm going to pay mybills.
OK, 5% to my personal savings. I don't touch that 25, two
(11:44):
percent to my taxes. Obviously that's going to my
taxes. 5% goes to a profit, whatthe profit is.
That's kind of fun. And now that I'm thinking about
it, I didn't prepare this, so I'm just going to explain this
as best as I can on the spot. But your profit accounts, I
think it's every six months. I have it set at every six
months. You're going to put 5% into your
(12:06):
profit account and you're just going to leave it.
You're just going to let it sit.But after six months, you get to
take 50% of what's in your profit account and take it out
like a personal bonus. So maybe you do want some Amazon
dresses or maybe you are gettinginfluenced or maybe you're going
to go to the Bahamas and you want some spending money.
(12:27):
You, you can use that as like a bonus to yourself.
And then think about it. You have half that money sitting
there in profit and then the next six months, 5% every month
continues to accumulate. Then you take half of that and
so it keeps building and you keep getting a bonus every six
months. After some time.
It's going to be a lot of fun. Mine's not huge right now, but
(12:48):
it will be 1 day and it's going to be awesome.
OK, 10% to business checking. So that's going to go to
anything for my business that I need to pay on the regular for
recitals. If I need to get music, get my
piano tuned, and then 5% to my business savings.
Maybe I'm going to save up for anew piano, you know that kind of
thing. Now please know I have played
(13:11):
with my numbers a lot and I haveworked with a finance coach and
this is not a hill I would die on with these percentages.
It's just been was working well for me right now.
Maybe you're like me. And when I first heard those
percentages, I remember thinking, wait, I'm only getting
paid 50%. That's it.
(13:33):
How am I supposed to pay my bills on that?
Like, that's how am I supposed to do that?
And this is totally valid. Again, that was my exact thought
too, and part of why I held off on starting profit first.
I looked at it for two years andI was like, yeah, not for me,
but yeah, I get it. However, once I started actually
(13:54):
moving the money into those separate accounts and giving it
a job, I kid you not, I really felt like I got in a raise.
I've never felt so good about mymoney in my entire life.
Absolutely nothing changed in what I was earning at that time.
What changed was the clarity. It was my mindset.
I wasn't flip flopping my funds.I didn't get that sick feeling
(14:16):
in my stomach when I had to spend money unexpectedly.
You know what I'm talking about.And when I needed the money, it
was sitting right there in the pocket that it was meant for in
the right account. So it turns out I was making
enough. I just wasn't managing it in a
way that gave me Peace of Mind, clarity, or even really let's
when it all comes down to it, responsibility.
(14:38):
And hey, one more thing I want to throw in here because I
didn't say earlier, for those ofyou running a lean solo studio
like working out of your house or not paying other teachers,
it's totally OK to bump your owner's pay up to 60 or even 65%
at first. Just know that means you'll be
giving a little less to businessexpenses and savings.
(15:00):
It's all about trade-offs. You can adjust it as you go and
that's the whole point. It's flexible and it gives you
data. If this helps you pay your
mortgage and breathe a little easier, then I think it will be
worth it. So I'm not going to lie about
this. After a few months of doing this
and I realized how wrong I had been for so many years.
(15:21):
It's almost kind of I, I feel almost silly, like almost a
little embarrassed. And here I am, you know, like
letting the world know. But it's helped me.
So I'm hoping that this episode can help help some of you.
That would be amazing if it helps some of you.
So if it does, let me know. Now, if you're like me and not
great with money, the biggest advice I have is to do this.
(15:43):
You have to do it the moment that payment hits your account.
If you ignore it, you're going to forget and you're going to
end up spending the money. You're going to be like
whatever. And I haven't been perfect.
There has been a month May, because May is May as a teacher,
and it's crazy. I personally try to set a little
(16:04):
coffee date with myself at the start of each month to do a
check in. And sometimes when tuition is
due, I set aside 10 minutes eachday that entire week to keep up
because we all know how sometimes that money kind of
trickles in little by little. I also have a financial coach.
She keeps me on my toes. She's always like, so did you
log this in? And I'm like, no.
(16:25):
So I have to go back and do it again.
I do need some accountability. I am not offering to do
accountability for this, by the way.
You don't want me. But if you would like a
financial coach and you are a music teacher, let me know
because I know a couple of really, really great ones and
I'll be more than happy to referyou.
But yeah, you want to do it right away.
(16:45):
It's going to reduce that temptation to use it for
something else. And if you mess up, you just
start again, like I did when I messed up in May Whatever we're
human. We learned through mistakes.
Give yourself grace and get backto it.
I know this is a lot of information and your brain might
be buzzing with questions, so let me go ahead and answer a few
of the big ones teachers usuallyask and ones that I asked as
(17:08):
well. So do I have to open five bank
accounts right away? No, you can totally start with
just two or three like I did. Just have a better system.
So think of it as a system that grows with you.
OK. Another question would be, what
if my income changes month to month?
(17:30):
Because sometimes it is inconsistent.
And that's normal for a lot of us.
Profit first still works. You just apply the same
percentages to whatever comes in.
A student's tuition comes in. You just divvy it out.
Good to go. All right.
Do I need an accountant to do this or a financial coach like
me? No, not at all.
It's great if you have one, but you can absolutely set this up
(17:54):
on your own and if you're unsure, just start small and
build confidence as you go. If you got any other questions
or if you'd like me to bring on a financial expert for a follow
up episode, let me know. You can DM me on Instagram at
Jacqueline Merozik under Score Piano.
(18:16):
Had to think about that for a second.
I've changed it a couple times. Or you could e-mail me at
jaclynjaclyn@scrappypianoteacher.comand let me know.
I'm happy to make it happen. And one more reminder before you
go, make sure to grab that profit First CHEAT SHEET for
music teachers. It's totally free, super simple.
It breaks all of this down in a visual way.
(18:38):
Again, head to scrappypianoteacher.com or check
the show notes to grab it. OK, so listen, Profit First is
not about becoming a finance guru.
We all know that Jackie is not one, but that's OK.
It's about giving your money, a job and finally feeling like
your business is working for you.
(18:59):
You don't need to get it perfectto get started.
You just need a system that separates the dollars meant for
your business, your taxes, your savings and your life.
You deserve that clarity. Again, not a financial coach,
but if you need time set aside to do things like this for your
(19:20):
business, come and join the Scrappy Sessions.
They will be monthly, they will have different topics because
when we do this stuff together, it actually gets done.
Anyway, thanks for listening. I think you guys are great.
I've been so grateful for the support as I have re branded to
my scrappy piano teacher podcast.
(19:42):
Check out the YouTube channel. Give me some five stars on that
Apple and Spotify and sign up and subscribe because I do send
out some free stuff. I've got free stuff on the
resource page and it's just going to keep building.
So thanks for joining me. I appreciate you guys and have a
wonderful, wonderful day. Bye.
After a few months of doing thisand I realized how wrong I had
been for so many years. I I feel almost silly, like
almost a little embarrassed. So I'm hoping that this episode
can help help some of you. Hello, hello, and welcome to the
Scrappy Piano Teacher podcast, the show for independent music
(00:22):
teachers who are building studios with heart, grit and
maybe a whole lot of coffee. I'm your host, Jacqueline
Rosick. You can call me Jackie.
And after 27 years of teaching piano, 10 years of
homeschooling, and of course running my own piano studio at
the same time, I know the path to a successful teaching life
isn't always polished, but it ispossible.
(00:43):
This podcast gives you real world strategies, grounded
encouragement, and the occasional messy story from the
trenches. Because you do not have to have
it all figured out to build something great.
And today's episode is one of those stories.
We're talking about money, Not how much you're making, but how
you're managing it. Because being aware of my own
(01:04):
weak spots, especially with finances, has been one of the
most powerful ways I've kept my studio sustainable.
When I know where I struggle, I can be proactive and put systems
in place before those struggles turn into full on problems.
Also, don't forget after you have listened, there is a free
(01:24):
Profit 1st at a Glance CHEAT SHEET for music teachers that I
put together. It's got sample percentages,
account suggestions, and the exact system I use.
You can find it at scrappy pianoteacher.com.
In the meantime, let's dive in. Hey guys, if you are anything
like me and you specifically shell out time to work only to
(01:47):
end up doom scrolling during your admin hours, I created
Scrappy Sessions so that we can actually get some stuff done.
This is not just a Zoom call, itis a live workshop.
In our July session, I'll give you quick, actionable advice on
both career planning and policy writing, and you'll get a copy
of my free calendar template andthe exclusive policy builder.
(02:09):
After that, we've got a solid hour of focused work time to get
your drafts outlined and hopefully finished.
Also, it's just 10 bucks if you register before July 8th, so
head to scrappypianoteacher.com and click on Scrappy Sessions to
snag your seat. Now let's talk profit first,
(02:32):
righty. Hey, scrappy teacher Jackie
here. And if you've ever stared at
your bank account at the end of the month wondering how, where,
what, what money, where's the money all gone?
Well, this ones for you. We are diving into the system
that finally made my studio feelsustainable, which is profit
first. Now this episode is going to
(02:52):
break down exactly what it is, how I use it as a piano teacher,
and why it has saved my tush in multiple ways this past year.
Plus, what to do if numbers are not your thing.
Spoiler alert, I am probably worse than you are, I guarantee
it. So if I can do it, you can
absolutely do this too. Now let's be real.
(03:14):
OK, to my credit and ego, I did have a pretty decent setup
before I implemented profit. First, I had a checking account
for the studio, I had a checkingaccount for Personal, and I had
a savings account for overflow, which did end up kind of mixing
between Studio and Personal, butit worked until it didn't.
(03:40):
Actually, just kidding, it neverreally worked.
I didn't have clear boundaries. I didn't have any rules.
I just kind of was like, no, I'll move a little here, I'll
move a little there. Never mind, let's move this back
here and this back there. And anyway, I would pay myself
when it felt OK. Actually, I never even got to
the point of quote UN quote paying myself, but I pretty much
(04:04):
just kept moving the money back and forth like a game of hot
potato, literally pinching pennies by the end of the month
until the next month of tuition.Which I think if you've been a a
teacher long enough you probablyknow what I'm talking about.
I would also totally panic during tax season and I would
stress when anything unexpected would pop up in the studio or my
(04:25):
home life, which of course it always does.
Now that all changed when I finally implemented a version of
profit first that worked for a piano teacher like myself.
So let me give you some examplesof how profit first helped me
this past year. First of all, the church that I
always use for recitals has always been 50 bucks every time.
Every recital 50 bucks. With respect, they really have
(04:49):
been under charging. It's a great place to have
recitals. And finally, they revise their
fees. Fortunately for them and
unfortunately for me, they switched it to $250 per recital
due upfront with a $200 deposit.At this point when I found this
(05:11):
out, I had three recitals already booked, but thanks to
Profit first, I was able to cover two of them and then for
the third one, I ended up shifting plans and we did
something a little different andthat was fine.
It actually ended up working outpretty well.
Now the next way that Profit First helped me is over the
course of the year, I was gifteda piano.
Yay. So exciting, right?
(05:31):
We always dream about being gifted beautiful pianos, but you
guys are teachers and you know just as well as I do that free
pianos aren't really free. I had to pay for moving my old
piano to my parents house and then the new piano to my house,
and I had to pay for the tuning for both instruments.
(05:54):
So yeah, not free. But again, I have the money
ready because of profit first. And my favorite adulting moment
of the year that I can pat myself on the back for is I
actually got to pay my taxes in full.
I paid my accountant and I stillhad enough to contribute to a
Sep IRA. This is unreal for me.
(06:17):
I never in my life expected thatI would be able to do that.
I've I've always felt kind of like the redhead stepchild in
that sense that I've been like everybody else gets to do this,
but I can't figure this out. So if you're one of those,
you're not alone. So those are fun wins and all,
But real quick, let's talk aboutmoney mindset because this
always comes up. It's conversation that I've had
(06:39):
a gazillion times with my own financial coaches and the
courses that I've taken. You got to talk about your money
mindset and you got to think about it.
Now, I am not a money person. I love spending money.
I'm really good at it. If you want to spend money, come
to me, I'll help you. It's fun.
Influencers are out there just influencing me every today with
(07:00):
their cute planners, their cozy HomeGoods, all the cute clothes,
and let's just say it's not great for my budget.
But I also know that there is a lot of baggage for us when it
comes to money, how we grew up, what we were not taught,
generational money mindsets. It can be a lot and it's real.
(07:21):
But to be blunt, and I say this with love, your studios,
finances don't care about your feelings.
They don't care if you grew up with money trauma or feel
uncomfortable with numbers. Either you're going to build
something sustainable and do thework or you're going to feel
stuck. So that's my little bit on that.
Now, just to be clear, I have had to work extra hard on this.
(07:44):
I now have a monthly meeting with a financial coach and
quarterly meetings with my accountant to keep me
accountable. Hopefully you don't have to do
all that, but if you do, just bebe real about it, OK?
Because it really has helped me to be real about it.
So when I say that the system works, I'm not saying it
lightly. I'm saying it as someone who has
(08:04):
had to claw her way in to bettermoney habits.
So what is Profit First? Profit First is a cash flow
management system created by MM Mikolowitz.
Mikola. MM, how do you say last name?
It's Mikolowitz. I'll spell it like right here
(08:27):
for you. So anyway, it's based on this
idea that businesses should pay themselves 1st instead of
spending and hoping profits leftat the end.
You pull the profit first, then you allocate what's left to
expenses. And why are people loving it?
Because it creates clarity. You always know where your money
(08:49):
is and for what purpose. It forces discipline, it gives
you margin, and it reduces surprise expenses.
This system has literally saved businesses from bankruptcy, no
joke. And even major corporations have
started adopting variations of this method because it really
works for any size business, including micro businesses like
(09:12):
ourselves and multi teacher studios.
Now most people run their business like this.
They get their income, they subtract their expenses for the
month and what is leftover is profit.
We don't do that with profit first.
We flip it and instead we do income minus profit equals
(09:34):
expenses. OK, that's it in a nutshell.
Now with profit first, you're going to create accounts like
profit taxes, operating expenses, business checking,
something like that. Every time money comes in, you
split it between the accounts onpurpose.
There's no more waiting to see what's left.
There's no more moving this hereor there or whatever.
(09:56):
You move it one time to the allocated account and the
percentage that you have chosen beforehand.
Now when it comes to Piano Studio, as per usual we are
always, it's a tad different. I use Relay, it's an online
bank. It lets you set up multiple
accounts. I like it because there's no
fees and it specifically talks about profit first.
So it just worked really well for me.
(10:17):
I love it because I can move themoney around fast and keep
everything super clear. There are some other pretty
solid options other than Relay that I found when I was doing my
research. Some other ones I found were
Blue Vine, Novo, or even Ally. But honestly it's whatever works
best for you. I don't know which one's better
than the other. Relay works really good for me
(10:37):
and I'm going to stick with it. Now with Relay, I have 4
accounts. I have a business savings, I
have a business checking, I havea tax account, and I have a
profit account. I also have a personal checking
and a personal savings at my regular local bank.
So in total I have 6 accounts, four with relay, 2 at my regular
(10:58):
bank. So when it's tuition time, which
is the best time of the month? Wahoo.
Here is how I split every payment.
So I get the payment I'm going to send 50% to my personal.
I move 5% to my personal savings.
I move 25% to taxes. I move 5% to profit, I move 10%
(11:24):
to my business checking, and I move 5% to my business savings.
Beep bop, boop. If I did my math right, that
should equal 100%. Now I want to go through these
really quick. 50% that goes to my personal.
That's where I'm going to pay mybills.
OK, 5% to my personal savings. I don't touch that 25, two
(11:44):
percent to my taxes. Obviously that's going to my
taxes. 5% goes to a profit, whatthe profit is.
That's kind of fun. And now that I'm thinking about
it, I didn't prepare this, so I'm just going to explain this
as best as I can on the spot. But your profit accounts, I
think it's every six months. I have it set at every six
months. You're going to put 5% into your
(12:06):
profit account and you're just going to leave it.
You're just going to let it sit.But after six months, you get to
take 50% of what's in your profit account and take it out
like a personal bonus. So maybe you do want some Amazon
dresses or maybe you are gettinginfluenced or maybe you're going
to go to the Bahamas and you want some spending money.
(12:27):
You, you can use that as like a bonus to yourself.
And then think about it. You have half that money sitting
there in profit and then the next six months, 5% every month
continues to accumulate. Then you take half of that and
so it keeps building and you keep getting a bonus every six
months. After some time.
It's going to be a lot of fun. Mine's not huge right now, but
(12:48):
it will be 1 day and it's going to be awesome.
OK, 10% to business checking. So that's going to go to
anything for my business that I need to pay on the regular for
recitals. If I need to get music, get my
piano tuned, and then 5% to my business savings.
Maybe I'm going to save up for anew piano, you know that kind of
thing. Now please know I have played
(13:11):
with my numbers a lot and I haveworked with a finance coach and
this is not a hill I would die on with these percentages.
It's just been was working well for me right now.
Maybe you're like me. And when I first heard those
percentages, I remember thinking, wait, I'm only getting
paid 50%. That's it.
(13:33):
How am I supposed to pay my bills on that?
Like, that's how am I supposed to do that?
And this is totally valid. Again, that was my exact thought
too, and part of why I held off on starting profit first.
I looked at it for two years andI was like, yeah, not for me,
but yeah, I get it. However, once I started actually
(13:54):
moving the money into those separate accounts and giving it
a job, I kid you not, I really felt like I got in a raise.
I've never felt so good about mymoney in my entire life.
Absolutely nothing changed in what I was earning at that time.
What changed was the clarity. It was my mindset.
I wasn't flip flopping my funds.I didn't get that sick feeling
(14:16):
in my stomach when I had to spend money unexpectedly.
You know what I'm talking about.And when I needed the money, it
was sitting right there in the pocket that it was meant for in
the right account. So it turns out I was making
enough. I just wasn't managing it in a
way that gave me Peace of Mind, clarity, or even really let's
when it all comes down to it, responsibility.
(14:38):
And hey, one more thing I want to throw in here because I
didn't say earlier, for those ofyou running a lean solo studio
like working out of your house or not paying other teachers,
it's totally OK to bump your owner's pay up to 60 or even 65%
at first. Just know that means you'll be
giving a little less to businessexpenses and savings.
(15:00):
It's all about trade-offs. You can adjust it as you go and
that's the whole point. It's flexible and it gives you
data. If this helps you pay your
mortgage and breathe a little easier, then I think it will be
worth it. So I'm not going to lie about
this. After a few months of doing this
and I realized how wrong I had been for so many years.
(15:21):
It's almost kind of I, I feel almost silly, like almost a
little embarrassed. And here I am, you know, like
letting the world know. But it's helped me.
So I'm hoping that this episode can help help some of you.
That would be amazing if it helps some of you.
So if it does, let me know. Now, if you're like me and not
great with money, the biggest advice I have is to do this.
(15:43):
You have to do it the moment that payment hits your account.
If you ignore it, you're going to forget and you're going to
end up spending the money. You're going to be like
whatever. And I haven't been perfect.
There has been a month May, because May is May as a teacher,
and it's crazy. I personally try to set a little
(16:04):
coffee date with myself at the start of each month to do a
check in. And sometimes when tuition is
due, I set aside 10 minutes eachday that entire week to keep up
because we all know how sometimes that money kind of
trickles in little by little. I also have a financial coach.
She keeps me on my toes. She's always like, so did you
log this in? And I'm like, no.
(16:25):
So I have to go back and do it again.
I do need some accountability. I am not offering to do
accountability for this, by the way.
You don't want me. But if you would like a
financial coach and you are a music teacher, let me know
because I know a couple of really, really great ones and
I'll be more than happy to referyou.
But yeah, you want to do it right away.
(16:45):
It's going to reduce that temptation to use it for
something else. And if you mess up, you just
start again, like I did when I messed up in May Whatever we're
human. We learned through mistakes.
Give yourself grace and get backto it.
I know this is a lot of information and your brain might
be buzzing with questions, so let me go ahead and answer a few
of the big ones teachers usuallyask and ones that I asked as
(17:08):
well. So do I have to open five bank
accounts right away? No, you can totally start with
just two or three like I did. Just have a better system.
So think of it as a system that grows with you.
OK. Another question would be, what
if my income changes month to month?
(17:30):
Because sometimes it is inconsistent.
And that's normal for a lot of us.
Profit first still works. You just apply the same
percentages to whatever comes in.
A student's tuition comes in. You just divvy it out.
Good to go. All right.
Do I need an accountant to do this or a financial coach like
me? No, not at all.
It's great if you have one, but you can absolutely set this up
(17:54):
on your own and if you're unsure, just start small and
build confidence as you go. If you got any other questions
or if you'd like me to bring on a financial expert for a follow
up episode, let me know. You can DM me on Instagram at
Jacqueline Merozik under Score Piano.
(18:16):
Had to think about that for a second.
I've changed it a couple times. Or you could e-mail me at
jaclynjaclyn@scrappypianoteacher.comand let me know.
I'm happy to make it happen. And one more reminder before you
go, make sure to grab that profit First CHEAT SHEET for
music teachers. It's totally free, super simple.
It breaks all of this down in a visual way.
(18:38):
Again, head to scrappypianoteacher.com or check
the show notes to grab it. OK, so listen, Profit First is
not about becoming a finance guru.
We all know that Jackie is not one, but that's OK.
It's about giving your money, a job and finally feeling like
your business is working for you.
(18:59):
You don't need to get it perfectto get started.
You just need a system that separates the dollars meant for
your business, your taxes, your savings and your life.
You deserve that clarity. Again, not a financial coach,
but if you need time set aside to do things like this for your
(19:20):
business, come and join the Scrappy Sessions.
They will be monthly, they will have different topics because
when we do this stuff together, it actually gets done.
Anyway, thanks for listening. I think you guys are great.
I've been so grateful for the support as I have re branded to
my scrappy piano teacher podcast.
(19:42):
Check out the YouTube channel. Give me some five stars on that
Apple and Spotify and sign up and subscribe because I do send
out some free stuff. I've got free stuff on the
resource page and it's just going to keep building.
So thanks for joining me. I appreciate you guys and have a
wonderful, wonderful day. Bye.
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