“I don’t know if I’m making enough.”
Revenue is coming in, but you’re not sure if the business is supporting your life or just keeping itself alive.
The Northstar Number
Your business is working. Is it working hard enough for your life?
Most owners are so busy running the business that they never stop to define what it actually needs to generate. That number has a name, and knowing it changes how you make every decision.
Questions? Call 919-886-4829
Sound familiar?
You’re working hard, but something feels off.
These aren’t accounting problems. They’re symptoms of one missing number.
“I decide on gut feeling, not numbers.”
Pricing, hiring and spending all feel like guesses, because there’s no financial target to measure them against.
“I only look at my books at tax time.”
By the time you see the full picture, the year is over. You’re reacting instead of leading.
“Busy isn’t the same as profitable. And profitable isn’t the same as sustainable.” James Heyward, CPA
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Money left on the table
Without a revenue target, it’s easy to underprice, overspend, or both, and not notice until it’s late.
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Growth without direction
More clients and more revenue don’t automatically mean more money in your pocket. Not without a plan built around your real number.
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Clarity is built month by month
Financial clarity isn’t something you build in April. It comes from small decisions, made every month, starting now.
The solution starts here
Meet your Northstar Number.
The annual revenue your business needs to generate to support your life. Not a guess or a stretch goal, but a calculated target every business decision can point toward.
Step 1
Define what your life really costs
Start with what your life actually costs: housing, food, transportation, health, savings and taxes. No padding, just reality.
Step 2
Calculate what your business must bring in
Factor in your profit margin to find the revenue your business needs to generate, not just what you take home.
Step 3
Track it monthly in your books
Your bookkeeping becomes your GPS. Each month you can see whether you’re on pace, and adjust before it’s too late.
Free calculator
Find your number in a few minutes.
Walk through your living expenses, savings goals, tax buffer and profit margin. You’ll see your annual, monthly and weekly revenue target, and how we got there.
Start the calculator
Free, and nothing to sign up for.
Watch the workshop replay
5 steps to find your Northstar Number
A step-by-step guide to the math behind the calculator, with a worked example.
Read on the Heyward CPA blogHustle vs. strategy: do you have a Northstar Number?
Why staying busy isn’t the same as building a business that supports your life.
Read on the Heyward CPA blog
The program
BYOBookkeeper keeps you pointed at your number.
BYOBookkeeper is built around your Northstar Number, so you can see in real time whether your business is on track to fund your life.
- Setup. We configure Xero for your business: chart of accounts, bank feeds and reports built around your Northstar Number.
- Training. Three one-on-one sessions teach you the two-hour weekly routine: what to do, when to do it, and what the numbers mean.
- Quarterly reviews. Every quarter we review your books together, keep you accountable to your number, and adjust the plan as your business grows.
BYOBookkeeper program
$299per month
Xero subscription included. No minimum term.
Minimize the guesswork and maximize what your business keeps, with a CPA reviewing your books all year, not just at tax time.
Schedule a free consultationOr call 919-886-4829
About James
A CPA who’s been in your shoes.
Before I was a CPA, I was in the music industry, running a business, making decisions and, honestly, winging it financially just like most entrepreneurs do.
I didn’t have a Northstar Number. I had hustle and hope, and it cost me. When I finally got serious about the numbers, everything changed.
I built BYOBookkeeper because financial clarity shouldn’t require a finance degree. That’s what we do at Heyward CPA PLLC in Durham, North Carolina. We’re not your once-a-year tax accountant. We’re with you month after month.
You can’t hit a target you’ve never set.
Find your Northstar Number, then let’s talk about a plan to reach it. Or join the next free live workshop.