Checklist to Success: Building Your Dream Bookkeeping Practice

Let’s be honest—you didn’t start your bookkeeping practice to stay stuck, stressed, or spinning your wheels. You started it because you wanted something better. More freedom. More income. More impact.

The truth? You can absolutely have all of that. But it doesn’t happen by accident.

Inside The Strategic Bookkeeper Program, bookkeepers are building profitable, time-rich practices—not with hustle, but with structure, strategy, and support. And one of the secret weapons behind it all? The implementation sessions.

This blog gives you a sneak peek into one of those sessions—hosted by Jeannie Savage, founder of The Strategic Bookkeeper and Women in Finance Australia’s Innovator of the Year. It’s all about the checklist that’s helping bookkeepers around the world build the business (and life) they really want.

Why a Checklist Changes Everything

Jeannie dropped a new checklist into this session—a simple, powerful tool that outlines exactly what she’d do if she were starting from scratch.

No fluff. No overthinking. Just a clear plan that actually works.

It’s the kind of checklist that helps you stop guessing and start moving. Whether you’re setting prices, hiring your first team member, or reworking your client onboarding process, this checklist guides you through it all.

First, Get Clear: Where Are You Now?

Jeannie kicked things off with a question that bookkeepers don’t ask often enough:

“Where are you now—and where do you want to go?”

Most bookkeepers are either drowning in client work with no time or slowly building, unsure which steps to take next. Sound familiar?

The key is to get out of reaction mode and into creation mode. Think about your ideal income, your ideal week, your dream clients—and then reverse-engineer your plan.

That’s where the checklist comes in.

The Bookkeeping Practice Checklist (AKA Your New Best Friend)

This isn’t a wish list. It’s a roadmap.

Here are just a few of the must-dos on Jeannie’s checklist:

• Napkin Numbers: Get clear on how much you want to earn and how many hours you want to work.

• Productivity Architecture: Decide what to do, what to delegate, and what to ditch.

• Marketing Assets: Get your storybook brochure, website, and social presence working for you.

• Sales Process: Use the needs analysis and structured offers to onboard clients with ease.

• EAPs & Networking: Build real referral relationships that generate consistent leads.

• Time Strategy: Spend at least half your time working on your business—not just in it.

• Hiring Plan: Don’t wait until you’re drowning—recruit early, and smart.

• Systemisation: Let your systems (and your team) take the weight off your shoulders.

Every item on that list is about building a business that gives you more income, more time, and way more joy.

Why Bookkeepers Get Stuck (and How to Snap Out of It)

Here’s the thing Jeannie sees again and again: bookkeepers get stuck because they try to do everything alone.

They get caught up in perfectionism. They delay decisions. They keep doing what they’ve always done, hoping for different results.

But the bookkeepers who fly? They follow the system. They lean into support. They take action.

One bookkeeper doubled her prices, halved her hours, and still ended up with happier clients—because she used the checklist. Step by step.

It’s Not Just a Checklist. It’s a Tribe.

Having the steps is one thing. Having a community to walk them with you? That’s next-level.

Inside the program, you’re not on your own. You’ve got Jeannie. You’ve got the tribe. You’ve got open coaching, live Q&As, and a whole crew of bookkeepers who get it.

And when something’s not working? You don’t spiral. You just get on a call, ask for help, and fix it.

As Jeannie says: “If it’s not working, it’s not because you’re broken. You probably just missed a step.”

What Would Jeannie Do?

Want to know how Jeannie would build her practice from scratch today?

Here’s the short version:

1. Get clear on napkin numbers.

2. Spend 50% of her time working on the business.

3. Launch the core marketing and sales tools.

4. Automate what she can and outsource what she can’t.

5. Network like crazy and build strategic partnerships.

6. Start recruiting early to avoid burnout.

7. Let her team handle systems and SOPs.

8. Use every walk, workout, and school drop-off to listen and learn.

No guessing. Just a smart, strategic start.

Confidence Comes From Doing

Here’s what happens when you start checking off the list:

• You feel in control.

• You stop second-guessing.

• You trust your process.

• You start seeing results.

Confidence doesn’t come from planning. It comes from doing. And this checklist gives you the exact steps to get it done.

Let’s Wrap This Up

If you want a business that gives you real freedom—financially, emotionally, energetically—start here.

Start with the checklist.

Jeannie’s advice?

• Do the 5% that creates 95% of your results.

• Stop doing things that don’t move the needle.

• Use what’s already built for you.

• Get support when you need it.

You can build your dream practice. You really can. And it starts with a plan that actually works.

Download the Bookkeeping Practice Checklist and see where you are, where you want to be, and exactly what to do to get there.

Join the program. Join the tribe. Start building your dream practice today.