Getting to the Bottom Line: Helping business owners maximize revenue, profit, and cash flow

Have you tried using AI in your business, but it's felt like more effort than payoff?

You're not alone. A lot of business owners jump in, sign their team up for a tool, and then wonder why they're not seeing the traction they hoped for. In this episode of Getting to the Bottom Line, Stephanie sits down with Jason Van Orden, who helps business owners use AI to grow their revenue and reclaim their time. Jason started one of the first business podcasts, spent years in the business top 10, and has worked with more than 10,000 entrepreneurs. Today he draws on his background as a software engineer to build custom AI systems that handle operations, marketing, and client work.

Jason breaks down the five things that separate business owners who get real return from AI from the ones who just spend money on a fancy chatbot. He shares how to find the one high-friction process worth starting with, why giving AI the right context matters just as much as it does with a new hire, and how one of his clients started sending proposals faster, winning more work, and feeling more confident doing it.

If you've been curious about AI but weren't sure where to begin, or you've dabbled and want to actually see it move your bottom line, this conversation gives you a simple place to start. Jason's biggest takeaway just might change how you think about the whole thing: start treating your AI like a team member.

→ Free Claude quick-start guide and workshop: JasonVanOrden.com/claude
→ Learn more or connect with Jason: JasonVanOrden.com

We want to hear from you! Send us a message.

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My name is Stephanie Smith, owner of New Light Financial Solutions, and we help business owners walk the one clear path to generating more cash in their business. To learn more, visit us online at https://newlightfs.com/

Sign up for our newsletter for more great tips on how to keep the cash flowing in your business: https://newlightfs.com/newsletter/

Need help generating more cash in your business? Book a right fit call with us today: https://newlightfs.com/rightfit

---

Want to be a guest on Getting to the Bottom Line: Conversations to help business owners maximize revenue, profit, and cash flow? Send Stephanie Smith a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/newlightfs

Looking to be on more podcasts this year? Check out PodMatch: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/newlightfs

You land the work. You put your head down and deliver it. And a few months later you look at the bank balance and think... where did all the money go?

In this episode of Cash Flow Confessions, Stephanie sits down with Trevor Stevenson, an executive coach and experience designer who's spent two decades in leadership development, to talk about what he calls the cash flow roller coaster. It's the up and down so many solopreneurs and entrepreneurs know too well: hustle to get clients, then get so buried in delivering the work that the selling stops and the cash dries up.

Trevor gets honest about the season when he was heads-down coaching and facilitating, not paying attention to the bank balance, and hit the end of a program with nothing left to pay himself or the electric bill. He shares what's actually helped him even the ride out: time blocking his calendar, building in accountability with other business owners, protecting time for self care, and catching the fear-based, scarcity thinking that pushes us to just "work harder" when that's not the answer.

If you're a business owner living the feast-or-famine cycle, this conversation is a real look at why it happens and simple ways to bring more consistency to your revenue and your cash flow. It's practical, encouraging, and honest about how the money side and the mindset side are connected.

Connect with Trevor:
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/trevor-bryce-stevenson/
- Trevor's website: https://www.consciouslead.life/

We want to hear from you! Send us a message.

---

My name is Stephanie Smith, owner of New Light Financial Solutions, and we help business owners walk the one clear path to generating more cash in their business. To learn more, visit us online at https://newlightfs.com/

Sign up for our newsletter for more great tips on how to keep the cash flowing in your business: https://newlightfs.com/newsletter/

Need help generating more cash in your business? Book a right fit call with us today: https://newlightfs.com/rightfit

---

Want to be a guest on Getting to the Bottom Line: Conversations to help business owners maximize revenue, profit, and cash flow? Send Stephanie Smith a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/newlightfs

Looking to be on more podcasts this year? Check out PodMatch: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/newlightfs

You made the Inc. 5000. You grew 40% in a year. On paper, business looks great. So why does it feel like there's no money left at the end of the month?

In this episode of Cash Flow Confessions, Stephanie sits down with Tom Malesic, founder of EZSolution in Lancaster, PA, and a certified EOS implementer. Tom built a company that grows fast, doing IT support, cybersecurity, and digital marketing for small businesses. But for years he chased top line revenue growth without watching what he actually kept. The result? A lot of income, not a lot of profit.

Tom gets honest about the moment it clicked: staring at a profitability number on his scorecard week after week until he decided he was done tolerating it. He talks about the mindset shift from revenue to profit, why he trimmed a bloated payroll, how separating cost of goods finally showed him what was actually making money, and why he keeps a big cash cushion so he never has to pass on a good opportunity.

If you're a business owner who's great at selling but unsure how much you're really keeping, this conversation is for you. It's a real talk about profit margins, cash flow, knowing your numbers, and learning to be a better CFO for your own business.

We want to hear from you! Send us a message.

---

My name is Stephanie Smith, owner of New Light Financial Solutions, and we help business owners walk the one clear path to generating more cash in their business. To learn more, visit us online at https://newlightfs.com/

Sign up for our newsletter for more great tips on how to keep the cash flowing in your business: https://newlightfs.com/newsletter/

Need help generating more cash in your business? Book a right fit call with us today: https://newlightfs.com/rightfit

---

Want to be a guest on Getting to the Bottom Line: Conversations to help business owners maximize revenue, profit, and cash flow? Send Stephanie Smith a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/newlightfs

Looking to be on more podcasts this year? Check out PodMatch: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/newlightfs

What if the thing keeping your profit stuck isn't your pricing or your marketing, but the fact that you're still doing everything yourself?

In this episode of Getting to the Bottom Line, Stephanie sits down with Kirsten Graham, who helps business owners increase profit and improve cash flow through strategic outsourcing. Kirsten and her business partner Jeanne interview, vet, hire, and train virtual assistants who work directly for their clients, mostly coaches, consultants, authors, and real estate agents who want to grow through podcasting, YouTube, or guesting on other people's shows.

Kirsten breaks down why "I need to know how to do it before I can hire someone to do it" is one of the most expensive beliefs a business owner can hold onto. She shares a real story about a client who landed a new customer simply because she had video content up online, and she walks through the actual math on why paying someone a few dollars an hour to free up your time is one of the best investments you can make in your business.

If you've ever felt like you're the bottleneck in your own company, or you've put off starting a podcast or YouTube channel because you don't have the time to manage it, this conversation will change how you think about delegating. It's a real look at what it takes to build a business that grows your revenue and your cash flow without demanding every hour of your day.

Learn more about Kirsten:
- Kirsten Graham's business coaching site: https://sixfigurebusinesscoaching.com/
- Free guide, "Double Your Income With a Marketing VA": https://outsourcingforbosses.com/

We want to hear from you! Send us a message.

---

My name is Stephanie Smith, owner of New Light Financial Solutions, and we help business owners walk the one clear path to generating more cash in their business. To learn more, visit us online at https://newlightfs.com/

Sign up for our newsletter for more great tips on how to keep the cash flowing in your business: https://newlightfs.com/newsletter/

Need help generating more cash in your business? Book a right fit call with us today: https://newlightfs.com/rightfit

---

Want to be a guest on Getting to the Bottom Line: Conversations to help business owners maximize revenue, profit, and cash flow? Send Stephanie Smith a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/newlightfs

Looking to be on more podcasts this year? Check out PodMatch: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/newlightfs

Most new business owners start the same way: funding the business out of their own pocket, putting expenses on personal credit cards, and figuring out the rest as they go. What they don't realize is that every dollar spent on a personal card is a missed opportunity to build something that could actually help the business grow.

In this episode of Cash Flow Confessions, Stephanie talks with Antwon Person, founder of Skillful Brands and a 22-year U.S. Army veteran, about the financial challenge that caught him off guard when he first launched his business. Antwon was hustling, working hard, but running everything through his personal credit with no real business credit to show for it. And he didn't know what he didn't know.

Antwon shares how connecting with a mentor changed everything. He walks through the step-by-step process of structuring a business the right way so it shows up as a real business to lenders, including getting a physical business address, a proper business phone number, and a Dun & Bradstreet account. From there, it was a matter of building business credit the same way you build personal credit: starting small, paying consistently, and working your way up to business loans and lines of credit.

He also shares something a lot of business owners miss: not every business credit card actually builds your business credit. Some still report to your personal profile. If you're putting in the work to build business credit, knowing the difference matters.

Whether you're just getting started or have been in business for years and still have everything on personal cards, this episode is a practical, no-fluff conversation about how cash flow, credit, and business structure are all connected.

We want to hear from you! Send us a message.

---

My name is Stephanie Smith, owner of New Light Financial Solutions, and we help business owners walk the one clear path to generating more cash in their business. To learn more, visit us online at https://newlightfs.com/

Sign up for our newsletter for more great tips on how to keep the cash flowing in your business: https://newlightfs.com/newsletter/

Need help generating more cash in your business? Book a right fit call with us today: https://newlightfs.com/rightfit

---

Want to be a guest on Getting to the Bottom Line: Conversations to help business owners maximize revenue, profit, and cash flow? Send Stephanie Smith a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/newlightfs

Looking to be on more podcasts this year? Check out PodMatch: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/newlightfs

Running a business is hard. Understanding your finances on top of that? That's where a lot of business owners hit a wall.

In this episode of Getting to the Bottom Line, Stephanie sits down with her husband and business partner Kris to talk about who they are, how New Light Financial Solutions got started, and the four services they offer to help business owners at every stage of their journey.

Kris shares how a decade in retail management and a season as a stay-at-home dad led to an unexpected path into bookkeeping. Stephanie talks about her background as a teacher and instructional designer, and how simplifying complicated things is still one of her favorite parts of the work. Together, they explain why so many business owners struggle with their finances — and why it has nothing to do with being bad with money.

You'll hear about the new DIY Bookkeeping Support Membership (perfect if you're doing your own books but need someone in your corner), monthly bookkeeping for those ready to hand it off, the brand-new Financial Pulse for business owners who want to actually understand what their numbers are saying, and full CFO advisory for those ready to set goals and grow.

If you've ever felt like your financial reports are written in a different language, this episode is a good place to start.

We want to hear from you! Send us a message.

---

My name is Stephanie Smith, owner of New Light Financial Solutions, and we help business owners walk the one clear path to generating more cash in their business. To learn more, visit us online at https://newlightfs.com/

Sign up for our newsletter for more great tips on how to keep the cash flowing in your business: https://newlightfs.com/newsletter/

Need help generating more cash in your business? Book a right fit call with us today: https://newlightfs.com/rightfit

---

Want to be a guest on Getting to the Bottom Line: Conversations to help business owners maximize revenue, profit, and cash flow? Send Stephanie Smith a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/newlightfs

Looking to be on more podcasts this year? Check out PodMatch: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/newlightfs

What happens when your biggest clients stop paying you... and then go out of business altogether?

In this episode of Cash Flow Confessions, Stephanie talks with Rachel Minion, founder of Rockstar and Moon, about the financial collapse that closed her family's printing business after 20 years, and the small side hustle that eventually became her real career.

Rachel's family ran a printing company in Maryland through the 2010 recession. When the government shut down printing contracts across the board, her clients went from paying in 30 days, to 60, to 90... to not paying at all. One of their biggest clients, Ritz Camera, went bankrupt. With revenue gone and no way to keep the business running, Rachel and her family had to close a company they'd built for two decades.

What came next is the part most people don't talk about. Rachel lost her home, got turned down for job after job, and started a small marketing agency just to make ends meet. That side hustle, Rockstar and Moon, kept growing quietly in the background, even after Rachel landed what looked like her dream job running marketing for a division of Ticketmaster.

Then the pandemic hit. Another round of layoffs followed. And that's when Rachel finally had the push she needed to go all in on the business she'd been building on the side for years.

If you've ever felt like your revenue depends on just a few clients, or you're sitting on a side hustle wondering if it's worth your time, this episode is for you. Rachel's story is a real look at how a cash flow crisis can force the hardest decisions, and how the business you build out of survival can turn into the business of your dreams.

We want to hear from you! Send us a message.

---

My name is Stephanie Smith, owner of New Light Financial Solutions, and we help business owners walk the one clear path to generating more cash in their business. To learn more, visit us online at https://newlightfs.com/

Sign up for our newsletter for more great tips on how to keep the cash flowing in your business: https://newlightfs.com/newsletter/

Need help generating more cash in your business? Book a right fit call with us today: https://newlightfs.com/rightfit

---

Want to be a guest on Getting to the Bottom Line: Conversations to help business owners maximize revenue, profit, and cash flow? Send Stephanie Smith a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/newlightfs

Looking to be on more podcasts this year? Check out PodMatch: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/newlightfs

What would it mean for your business if you could double your output without hiring a single new person?

In this episode of Getting to the Bottom Line, Stephanie sits down with Hunter Jensen, founder and CEO of Barefoot Solutions and Barefoot Labs, a digital agency specializing in artificial intelligence, data science, and digital transformation. Hunter has been building custom software and AI solutions for over 20 years, and he has a front-row seat to exactly what's happening as AI reshapes the business world.

Hunter shares a real-world example of a 25-person defense contractor that doubled the number of proposals they could respond to in a year just by implementing one AI tool. Same team. Same win rate. Potentially double the revenue. He breaks down where AI is actually moving the needle for businesses right now, how to find the right processes to automate, and why the biggest barrier to AI adoption isn't the technology at all.

If you've been curious about AI but aren't sure where to start, or if you're wondering what this technology is really going to mean for your industry in the next few years, this is a conversation you don't want to miss. Hunter also shares the warning signs that should have every business owner paying attention right now, and what to do about them before it's too late.

Connect with Hunter: 
- Compass: barefootlabs.ai
- Email: [email protected]

We want to hear from you! Send us a message.

---

My name is Stephanie Smith, owner of New Light Financial Solutions, and we help business owners walk the one clear path to generating more cash in their business. To learn more, visit us online at https://newlightfs.com/

Sign up for our newsletter for more great tips on how to keep the cash flowing in your business: https://newlightfs.com/newsletter/

Need help generating more cash in your business? Book a right fit call with us today: https://newlightfs.com/rightfit

---

Want to be a guest on Getting to the Bottom Line: Conversations to help business owners maximize revenue, profit, and cash flow? Send Stephanie Smith a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/newlightfs

Looking to be on more podcasts this year? Check out PodMatch: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/newlightfs

What happens when four years of incredible growth convinces you that nothing can touch you?

In this episode of Cash Flow Confessions, Stephanie talks with Alan Lazaros, CEO and founder of Next Level University, about the financial scare that almost ended his company. For four years straight, his business grew by an average of 115% a year, peaking at 119% in one year alone. Growth like that feels unstoppable. So Alan and his business partner Kevin leaned on credit cards, hired fast, and expanded into new departments (even a side app).

Then growth slowed. Hard. After COVID, the podcast industry doubled in size almost overnight and competition followed. In one quarter, Alan's company lost ten major clients. Revenue growth dropped to 19%, then 11%. The same credit card debt that felt manageable during a 119% growth year suddenly had them in the red.

Alan walks through the exact math behind that shift, the moment he sat Kevin down and told him they were headed toward shutting down, and how they figured out which 8 of their 24 departments were actually keeping the business alive.

If your business is riding a wave of strong revenue and growth right now, this one's for you. It's a real look at how cash flow, profit, and debt interact, and why checking your numbers daily, not just at year-end, is one of the best habits you can build before things slow down.

We want to hear from you! Send us a message.

---

My name is Stephanie Smith, owner of New Light Financial Solutions, and we help business owners walk the one clear path to generating more cash in their business. To learn more, visit us online at https://newlightfs.com/

Sign up for our newsletter for more great tips on how to keep the cash flowing in your business: https://newlightfs.com/newsletter/

Need help generating more cash in your business? Book a right fit call with us today: https://newlightfs.com/rightfit

---

Want to be a guest on Getting to the Bottom Line: Conversations to help business owners maximize revenue, profit, and cash flow? Send Stephanie Smith a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/newlightfs

Looking to be on more podcasts this year? Check out PodMatch: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/newlightfs

Most business owners only look at their numbers once a year. Usually at tax time. They hand everything over to their CPA, find out if they owe money or they're getting a refund, and then tuck it all away until the next year.

But your financials are more than a tax obligation. They're a conversation your business is having with you every single month... whether you're paying attention or not.

In this solo episode of Getting to the Bottom Line, Stephanie walks through the three financial reports every business owner should be reviewing: the Profit and Loss, the Balance Sheet, and the Cash Flow report. She breaks down what each one tells you in plain English, shares common stories she sees in client numbers all the time, and gives you one simple thing to do this week to start paying attention to your finances.

If you've ever said "I'm just not a numbers person" or relied on your bank balance to tell you how your business is doing, this episode is a good place to start. No accounting degree required. Just the willingness to look.

We want to hear from you! Send us a message.

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My name is Stephanie Smith, owner of New Light Financial Solutions, and we help business owners walk the one clear path to generating more cash in their business. To learn more, visit us online at https://newlightfs.com/

Sign up for our newsletter for more great tips on how to keep the cash flowing in your business: https://newlightfs.com/newsletter/

Need help generating more cash in your business? Book a right fit call with us today: https://newlightfs.com/rightfit

---

Want to be a guest on Getting to the Bottom Line: Conversations to help business owners maximize revenue, profit, and cash flow? Send Stephanie Smith a message on PodMatch, here: https://www.podmatch.com/hostdetailpreview/newlightfs

Looking to be on more podcasts this year? Check out PodMatch: https://www.joinpodmatch.com/newlightfs