Bookkeepers On Fire 🔥 w/ Wayne Higdon — From Hourly to Value, QBD to QBO, and Building a Firm You Love 

Today we’re joined by the legendary (and proudly introverted!) Wayne Higdon to talk about his journey—from a sociology major and “Bob Cratchit with a coal stove” 😄 to a modern firm owner running on value pricing and QuickBooks Online. 

We swap stories from Scaling New Heights (remember that wild Orlando hotel + Bahamas trip?!), why Brittany Brown’s keynote hit so hard, and get real about moving clients from QuickBooks Desktop to QBO, adopting RightTool, and preparing a lifestyle exit toward retirement without losing the joy (or profits). In this episode, you’ll learn: 

How Wayne shifted from hourly billing to fixed-fee/value pricing—and why that unlocked team growth

A practical playbook for transitioning clients from Desktop to QBO (who to migrate first, and how to position the change)

When it’s still smart to keep a client on Desktop payroll (allocations + cleanup realities)
Power-user tips with RightTool (allocations, batch edit, balance-sheet adjustments for TB-to-tax cleanups)

What to tell clients about the new QBO UI so they don’t panic (shortcuts, favorites, and teaching the “same engine, new face”)

Real-world perspectives on firm succession: sell, team buy-in, or lifestyle exit (keep profits, work a few hours/week)

Resources & Mentions 
RightTool for QBO (free + pro tiers) — allocations, batch edits, balance-sheet tools
QBO Desktop App (multi-company convenience—why Wayne liked it before RightTool took over)
QBO’s new UI — set Favorites/Shortcuts; teach clients the “same under the hood” mindset
Hector Garcia’s QBO UI deep-dive video (great client-friendly walkthrough)

 Join the Community

Love this convo? Get more with Bookkeepers On Fire: patreon.com/BookkeepersOnFire
🎧 Podcast + Turn Up The Heat (behind the scenes)
💬 Private member chat
📥 Monthly “Sizzle” downloads & toolkits

If this helped, like, subscribe, and drop your biggest QBO/RightTool win in the comments! 🔥

🔥 Join our Bookkeepers On Fire Community to connect 🤝, collaborate 💬, and thrive 🚀 with like-minded professionals who are passionate about bookkeeping, accounting and business growth.

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Bookkeepers On Fire is proudly ad-free and 100% listener-supported, so we can bring you unfiltered conversations without outside agendas. If you enjoy the show, consider donating to help keep our mics hot and our mission independent.
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#BookkeepersOnFire #QuickBooksOnline #RightTool #ValuePricing #ScalingNewHeights #QBO #AccountingCommunity #FirmGrowth #BookkeepingTips

🔥 Ever seen “Unapplied Cash Bill Payment Expense” on your P&L and felt personally attacked?

You’re not alone — but you are probably running Cash Basis reports with some “goofy” dates. Here's your spicy cheat sheet to stop letting QuickBooks make your books look wild:

🔍 Watch your dates
If Larry the Computer Guy can’t figure out why he’s getting paid before he does the work, it might be time to fix the bill dates.

✏️ Rename the nonsense
“Unapplied Cash Bill Payment Expense”? Nah. Try: "Bills Paid Before Bill Date." It won’t fix the issue, but at least it’ll make you feel like you have control.

📊 Accrual > Confusion
Want it gone? Switch your P&L to accrual basis. Still confused? Just remember: cash basis is for taxes, accrual is for actually understanding your business.

💥 Your books should tell a story — not a horror story.

🔥 Join our Bookkeepers On Fire Community to connect 🤝, collaborate 💬, and thrive 🚀 with like-minded professionals who are passionate about bookkeeping, accounting and business growth.

Join us here: Bookkeepers On Fire Community

Bookkeepers On Fire is proudly ad-free and 100% listener-supported, so we can bring you unfiltered conversations without outside agendas. If you enjoy the show, consider donating to help keep our mics hot and our mission independent.

🔥Donate with Venmo🔥    🔥Donate with PayPal🔥

 #BookkeepingHumor #QuickBooksOnline #CashBasisDrama #AccrualCoolKids #AccountingWithSpice #WatchYourDates #TeamReade

⚡ Chaos by Client: Why Your Chart of Accounts Looks Like a Dumpster Fire 🔥

You asked, we answered — but you’re not gonna like it. No, you can’t delete inactive COA lines in QBO.

 And yes, the mess is usually homemade. Here's how to keep your sanity:

🧷 Set boundaries — and permissions.
Advanced QBO gives more control. Use it. Lock it down like your best spreadsheet formula. 🧩

✏️ Rename, repurpose, repeat.
That “Unicorn Feed Supplies” account? Inactive + renamed = not your problem anymore. 🦄

🧠 Train ‘em or fire ‘em.
It’s education or exorcism. Pick one. (Preferably before they create a new account for every car, ad, or cup of coffee.) ☕🚗📉

🔥 Join our Bookkeepers On Fire Community to connect 🤝, collaborate 💬, and thrive 🚀 with like-minded professionals who are passionate about bookkeeping, accounting and business growth.

Join us here: Bookkeepers On Fire Community

Bookkeepers On Fire is proudly ad-free and 100% listener-supported, so we can bring you unfiltered conversations without outside agendas. If you enjoy the show, consider donating to help keep our mics hot and our mission independent.

🔥Donate with Venmo🔥    🔥Donate with PayPal🔥

#BookkeeperLife #QuickBooksOnline #ChartOfAccounts #SpicyAccounting #QBOHumor #ClientChaos

🧨 Bookkeepers, let’s cut the crap.

If your client’s still mailing checks or slapping on credit card fees, it’s not “old-school” — it’s outdated.

Time for some tough bookkeeping love:

📬 Checks? Still? Why?
Envelopes, stamps, and standing in line at the bank? What is this — 1987?

💳 Credit Card Fee Rage
Nothing clears a restaurant faster than a surprise $3 swipe tax. Want loyalty? Don’t punish convenience.

🛠️ Just Use BILL
Approvals, e-checks, scheduling, remote access — it's the Cadillac of bill pay. You're not saving money doing it manually — you're burning time.

⚡ Stop stepping over $20K to save $10K. Get efficient, get real, and please... get with the times.

🔥 Join our Bookkeepers On Fire Community to connect 🤝, collaborate 💬, and thrive 🚀 with like-minded professionals who are passionate about bookkeeping, accounting and business growth.

Join us here: Bookkeepers On Fire Community

Bookkeepers On Fire is proudly ad-free and 100% listener-supported, so we can bring you unfiltered conversations without outside agendas. If you enjoy the show, consider donating to help keep our mics hot and our mission independent.

🔥Donate with Venmo🔥    🔥Donate with PayPal🔥

#BookkeeperLife #DigitalPayments #SpicyTruths #NoMoreChecks #VendorFeeTantrum #BillPayBoss #LinkedInWithBite

🔥 New Episode Drop: "Support, Not Psychic" 🔮

Ever called support expecting them to read your mind? Yeah... don’t. On this episode of Bookkeepers on Fire, Donna spills the inside tea ☕ from the other side of the support call 👀.

💥 Here’s the spicy scoop:

🎯 Be Ready: Name. Email. Company ID. and Company Name. If you don’t bring it, we’re just guessing—and spoiler alert: we’re not psychics.

📞 Be Nice: Yelling won’t make the payroll mess vanish faster. Kindness goes a long way (and keeps your call from being “accidentally” disconnected 😉).

🧠 Be Smart: If you're calling while also chatting, we see that. And no, four reps won't give you four different answers.

🚫 Not a séance. Just support.

 🎧 Tune in now. Save your sanity later.

🔥 Join our Bookkeepers On Fire Community to connect 🤝, collaborate 💬, and thrive 🚀 with like-minded professionals who are passionate about bookkeeping, accounting and business growth.

Join us here: Bookkeepers On Fire Community

Bookkeepers On Fire is proudly ad-free and 100% listener-supported, so we can bring you unfiltered conversations without outside agendas. If you enjoy the show, consider donating to help keep our mics hot and our mission independent.

🔥Donate with Venmo🔥    🔥Donate with PayPal🔥

#BookkeepersOnFire #QuickBooksHelp #SupportNotPsychic #SpicySupportTips #DonnaSaidIt #AccountingHumor #ClientChaos

🔥 Prior Period Panic? Oh, we’ve all been there. One minute you’re reconciling January 2024, next thing you know, you're knee-deep in 2023's mystery meat of transactions. 😅 

Here’s the real talk from the bookkeeping trenches:

📌 No Adjustments? You're Lucky.
If you reconciled a year with no adjustments, go buy a lottery ticket. That never happens. Like… ever.

📌 The Tax Return is Sacred-ish.
Once it’s filed, draw that line in the sand. Adjust forward. Don’t look back unless you like pain and unpaid overtime.

📌 Keep It Clean, Not Complicated.
Use judgment. Make it tidy. Prior year mess? Shove it in equity with a post-it that says “not my circus, not my tax return.”

✨ Remember: You’re not going to jail. Just make the books right going forward and sleep easy.

🔥 Join our Bookkeepers On Fire Community to connect 🤝, collaborate 💬, and thrive 🚀 with like-minded professionals who are passionate about bookkeeping, accounting and business growth.

Join us here: Bookkeepers On Fire Community

Bookkeepers On Fire is proudly ad-free and 100% listener-supported, so we can bring you unfiltered conversations without outside agendas. If you enjoy the show, consider donating to help keep our mics hot and our mission independent.

🔥Donate with Venmo🔥    🔥Donate with PayPal🔥

"Just started using QuickBooks Online again... and wow, I forgot how much I hated it." 😅

If you've ever screamed internally at QBO, you're not alone. But here’s the deal:

 QuickBooks wasn't built for accountants — it was built for humans.

💥 So before you rage-quit and grab your green ledger paper, consider this:

🔸 Forms > Journal Entries
Your client doesn't speak debit/credit. They speak “I bought stuff at Office Depot.” Meet them there.

🔸 Control-Y is Life
Want your precious debits and credits? Boom — Transaction Journal. It's hiding right behind the curtain.

🔸 Be a Translator, Not a Tyrant
Speak their language. Stop preaching. The real superpower? Making accounting make sense to non-accountants.

💬 Sound familiar? Drop your favorite "What in the QuickBooks is this?!" moment below.

🔥 Join our Bookkeepers On Fire Community to connect 🤝, collaborate 💬, and thrive 🚀 with like-minded professionals who are passionate about bookkeeping, accounting and business growth.

Join us here: Bookkeepers On Fire Community

Bookkeepers On Fire is proudly ad-free and 100% listener-supported, so we can bring you unfiltered conversations without outside agendas. If you enjoy the show, consider donating to help keep our mics hot and our mission independent.

🔥Donate with Venmo🔥    🔥Donate with PayPal🔥

#Bookkeeping #AccountingHumor #QuickBooksOnline #ClientCommunication #TranslateDontPreach #AccountingLife #QBOProTips #SpicyTakes

🔥 Zero It Out — because sometimes bookkeeping gets real.

Ever had a client whose Social Security deposits hit the business account? Yeah... us too. On the latest episode of Bookkeepers on Fire, Debbie and Donna dish out spicy solutions with a side of sarcasm.

Here’s what you’ll learn (and laugh about):

💸 Wrong Account, Right Fix — Why owner's equity is your new best friend.

🧾 Cash, Checks, Chickens — How to handle income that never touches the bank.

⏳ SSA Drama — Why updating direct deposit with Social Security is like a DMV horror movie.

👉 Ready to keep it compliant and keep your cool? Listen to "Zero It Out" now.

🔥 Join our Bookkeepers On Fire Community to connect 🤝, collaborate 💬, and thrive 🚀 with like-minded professionals who are passionate about bookkeeping, accounting and business growth.

Join us here: Bookkeepers On Fire Community

Bookkeepers On Fire is proudly ad-free and 100% listener-supported, so we can bring you unfiltered conversations without outside agendas. If you enjoy the show, consider donating to help keep our mics hot and our mission independent.

🔥Donate with Venmo🔥    🔥Donate with PayPal🔥

#BookkeepersOnFire #ZeroItOut #SpicyBookkeeping #AccountingLife #QuickBooksTips #DebitsAndDrama #FinanceWithFlare #DonnaAndDebbieDropTruths

 🎙 “Pitch It Anyway” — Because sometimes, rules are just... suggestions.

A company wants a full-time W-2? Cute. But we know better. 😏

In this episode, we tackle the fine line between what they want and what actually works for us as professionals.

💼 Key Takeaways (with a kick):

💸 W-2 vs. 1099: Just because they said “employee” doesn’t mean you can’t educate them on options.

☕ Bookkeeper ≠ Receptionist: You’re not here to make coffee—unless it’s for yourself.

🧠 Client Mentality Hack: Treat that 9-to-5 like a client gig (they just don’t know it yet).

📬 Got a spicy scenario? Send it in—we’ll roast it on-air (with love, of course).

 🎧 Listen now, laugh a little, and pitch it anyway.

🔥 Join our Bookkeepers On Fire Community to connect 🤝, collaborate 💬, and thrive 🚀 with like-minded professionals who are passionate about bookkeeping, accounting and business growth.

Join us here: Bookkeepers On Fire Community

Bookkeepers On Fire is proudly ad-free and 100% listener-supported, so we can bring you unfiltered conversations without outside agendas. If you enjoy the show, consider donating to help keep our mics hot and our mission independent.

🔥Donate with Venmo🔥    🔥Donate with PayPal🔥

#BookkeepersOnFire #SpicyBookkeeping #W2Who #PitchItAnyway #DonnaAndDebbieUnfiltered

🚀🔥 What an epic Bookkeepers On Fire episode with the legendary Ron Baker — the man who makes you rethink everything you thought you knew about pricing.
Here’s the 🔥 takeaway buffet you didn’t know you needed:

💡 Value is a feeling, not a formula – Stop selling hours, start selling transformation. Price tells your story, not your stopwatch.
📦 Subscription ≠ Payment Plan – True subscription means plussing your offer constantly (think Amazon Prime for accounting).
🥂 Better prices = better clients – Set minimums, stick to them, and watch the tire-kickers disappear.

🎯 Full episode streaming now on YouTube — grab your front-row seat to the future of accounting. 📺✨

🔥 Join our Bookkeepers On Fire Community to connect 🤝, collaborate 💬, and thrive 🚀 with like-minded professionals who are passionate about bookkeeping, accounting and business growth.

Join us here: Bookkeepers On Fire Community

Bookkeepers On Fire is proudly ad-free and 100% listener-supported, so we can bring you unfiltered conversations without outside agendas. If you enjoy the show, consider donating to help keep our mics hot and our mission independent.

🔥Donate with Venmo🔥    🔥Donate with PayPal🔥

#BookkeepersOnFire #RonBaker #ValuePricing #SubscriptionModel #AccountingLife #BookkeepingTips #BusinessGrowth #PricingStrategy #EntrepreneurMindset #FutureOfAccounting #SmallBusinessSuccess #ClientExperience