Autumn is Here!

Written By Barbara L. Starley, CPA

Cool mornings, crisp air, and gorgeous trees - just the thought of these things makes me smile.

As a kid growing up in the Midwest, I have fond memories of my Dad raking leaves into huge piles and letting us kids jump off the picnic table into the colorful mound.  Autumn was always my favorite season of the year, except it served as a reminder that winter was right around the corner. Even so, my “leaf diving” is one of the things I miss most since moving to Arizona.

When I saw this quote, “Autumn shows us how beautiful it is to let things go,” I started thinking and then asked myself,

“Are there things in my life that I need to let go?”  

It is a great question to ask yourself, pray about, and ponder during this fall season. I posed this same question to a group of business owners and here are some of their answers: 

  • Serving everyone instead of focusing on the clients who I serve best

  • Tasks that take me away from doing the thing I am meant to do and am most passionate about

  • Trying to control everything rather than delegating and empowering others to grow

  • Negativity around circumstances rather than looking for opportunities in the midst of the crisis

  • Saying “I can do it all”, which creates feelings of overwhelm

  • Expectations – of myself and others

  • Bad habits

  • Saying “this is how we do it” rather than being open to new processes

  • Stress, worry, and anxiety

  • Excuses

  • Perfectionism

  • Stuff – consider the things around you and whether they serve your purpose.

That said, do any of these items resonate with you? Do you have others that I should add to this list? Reach out and let me know. I’d love to hear from you and receive your feedback. Let’s learn and grow together as we ponder this question and “let go” together.

Wishing you a blessed fall season,

Barbara

Barbara L. Starley, CPA

Barbara is a best-selling author and trainer who uses her extensive QuickBooks(r) knowledge and professional expertise to serve primarily churches and related not-for-profit organizations. She is the founder of the Good Steward Church Academy, a member-based community of like-minded bookkeepers, pastors and treasurers who desire to honor God with their church finances.

As your On-Call Controller, Barbara bridges the gap between your in-house staff (maybe that's you) and your outside advisors. Her goal is to empower you to do what you can do yourself and to understand why you need to do it. You also have Barbara "on-call" for quick question support, further training, and troubleshooting, if your books get messy.

Churches, as a subset of all not-for-profits, are often under-served. Barbara believes that she has been called to change that. Integrity is a core value in how she trains and advises her clients. Having a clean set of books that tell a story and allow for wise-decision making is paramount to the success of any organization. She loves to see the light bulbs go on for her clients in the area of accounting and financial reporting and she looks forward to working with you!

https://www.goodstewardchurchacademy.com
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