This week on The Localist, Carrie is diving into the sometimes-scary world of business finances. Money can be stressful, emotional, and overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be! Carrie was inspired to talk about this after participating in a SharkTank-like contest at a local high school. A lot of the projects had a common theme: underestimating how much funding their ideas would need. And this common theme isn’t specific to high school students; many entrepreneurs underestimate the funding they’ll need as well. Carrie then introduces the Rollwagen Theory of Accounting (disclaimer: Carrie is not an accountant!). Carrie points out that the math is actually pretty basic, the terminology is Googleable, and there is a simple formula to figure out profit. Carrie wraps up with the value of dividing money into buckets, the importance of having a solid business plan, and how you can still pursue your dream if the numbers don’t add up. 

Mentioned in this episode: 

Infomedia 

Banks Academy 

Create Birmingham’s CO.STARTERS

The Big Pitch - REV Birmingham 

Piper & Leaf Tea Co. 

Bham Burger Battle 

James Spann 

Church Street Coffee and Books 

FreshBooks 

Wave 

The Girl’s Guide to Starting Your Own Business 

In Search of the Perfect Store Front with Jackie and Lyndsy on The Localist Podcast 

Southern Living 

@ThinkLocalist on Instagram

CarrieRollwagen.com