LINZY BONHAM: BUILD THE FINANCIAL FOUNDATION FOR YOUR CANADIAN PRIVATE PRACTICE| EP 22
Do you worry about money in your Canadian private practice? Have you separated your personal bank account from your business account?? How do you plan for retirement? If any of these questions are making you nervous, then we need to address this tension around money and reframe your relationship with it!
In this podcast episode, I speak with Canadian money coach Linzy Bonham who covers the basics of how to build a strong financial foundation whereupon you can build your Canadian private practice.
As you know I’m all about seeing you succeed in your Canadian private practice, so in the spirit of keeping things real, check out my Tools and Deals page where you can get free access to my online private practice checklist, as well as discount codes and subscriptions specials on EMRs, website builders, and online practice essentials. Visit fearlesspractice.ca/deals to claim your discount codes and to get more info!
MEET LINZY BONHAM
Linzy Bonham is a therapist turned money coach who teaches Canadian therapists and health practitioners the money skills to feel empowered and in control of their private practice finances, so they can have rich and fulfilling lives.
As the daughter of an accountant, Linzy inherited a good dose of bookkeeping brains, resulting in a perfect mix of spreadsheet and heart.
With this rare mix of talents, she has created a way to approach finances in a way that provides clarity, calm, and confidence. Linzy has helped hundreds of therapists and health practitioners in her signature course, Money Skills For Therapists, and thousands more through her free resources (including her podcast by the same name).
Learn more about Linzy Bonham on her website and Instagram profile.
In This Episode
- The importance of separating your bank accounts
- Find the balance between saving and spending your private practice income
- Practice the “Profit First” philosophy
- Is there ever a time when you can spend money from your sales tax account?
- How to plan and save for retirement
The importance of separating your bank accounts
Many therapists may find it difficult to handle the business aspect of owning a Canadian private, but remember that managing your money and running a business is a skill that can be learned.
At the beginning of starting and running a Canadian counselling practice, Linzy has seen that many therapists new to private practice often struggle with supervising their bank accounts and separating their cash flow.
‘Especially if [therapists] are coming from agency work or were working somewhere else and were starting [their] private practice on the side. It is easy to start it in your own bank account [as] part of your own finances, and then it starts to grow, but you never take that step to make it something separate and official.’ – Linzy Bonham
Create separate bank accounts for your Canadian private practice and personal expenses to lessen confusion and the potentiality of losing track of where your money is going.
‘When we haven’t set the [financial] foundation intentionally and clearly from the start, it continues to create confusion and fogginess for literally years until you do something to change it.’ – Linzy Bonham
Find the balance between saving and spending your private practice income
There is a balance that you can find between spending too much and being too strict with yourself.
Running a successful Canadian private practice is an important job that requires money management skills and business tools; however, you have desires and wants that stretch past the confines of the business.
Allow yourself to find the balance between saving money and enjoying the benefits of your hard work by using the profit first model.
Practice the “Profit First” philosophy
Profit First is a budgeting system developed by Mike Michalowicz, the business writer, where small business owners are encouraged to divide up their expenses and pay a different percentage of their income into the following labeled bank accounts:
- taxes
- profit or “entrepreneur reward money”
- salary
- operating expenses
‘By doing that big-picture thinking rather than having to make conscious decisions every time you get paid, you just follow the system, divvy up the money, and then you can see how much you have to spend on each of those things for the next few weeks.’ – Linzy Bonham
Is there ever a time when you can spend money from your sales tax account?
Yes, but it depends on your return of investment on the decision that you make.
There could be situations where you borrow money from your tax fund to purchase a course or skill that can immediately help you to boost your Canadian private practice.
‘That’s a business decision and risk you could choose to take but whenever there’s something like that, I really encourage people to think about … what is the potential return on investment?’ – Linzy Bonham
You need to be honest with yourself and trust yourself that whatever money you spend from your sales tax account that you are saving to pay your taxes at fiscal year-end, you will put it back in.
‘Make sure if you are doing that, do a risk assessment, and also a rewards assessment, when you are deciding to do that.’ – Julia Smith
How to plan and save for retirement
Speak to a financial advisor to figure out what makes sense for your situation and goals. Linzy’s current advice is to:
- Build your retirement savings into your business bank account by putting these allocated funds in a separate “retirement” fund
- Save 10% – 12% of what you earn for retirement
- Work with a financial advisor on how to save based on the structure and average income of your Canadian private practice
- Open a TFSA (tax-free savings account) or a RRSP (registered retirement savings plan)
It does not have to be perfect, so start small for now, and develop it as you grow. Lay the foundations as soon as you can to help yourself in the future.
Connect With Me
Resources Mentioned and Useful Links:
Resources mentioned and useful links:
Ep 21: Jara Dekker: Are You Curious About Being a Digital Nomad Therapist?
Sign up for my free e-course about How to Start an Online Canadian Private Practice
Learn more about the tools and deals that I love and use for my Canadian private practice
Listen to Linzy Bonhams’ Money Skills for Therapists Podcast
Follow Linzy Bonham on her website, LinkedIn account, and Instagram profile
Learn more about Profit First through Mike Michalowicz’s book
Check out this website to calculate your projected tax expenses
Listen to Julia Smith’s podcast episode about budgeting for your Canadian Private Practice
Look at different bank accounts like Tangerine
Check out Linzy Bonham’s Money Skills for Therapists course
Rate, review, and subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, Amazon, and TuneIn.
About Julia
Julia Smith, MEd, RCT, CCC is a registered Counselling Therapist who owns a group private practice in Halifax, Nova Scotia. She is also the owner of Fearless Practice Consulting and hosts the Fearless Practice podcast. Through the Fearless Practice podcast, she provides invaluable insights and practical advice on starting and growing a successful Canadian private practice. Julia’s wealth of knowledge also extends beyond the podcast, as she provides personalized one-on-one consulting to therapists who are feeling burnt out and overwhelmed with their solo or group private practices. With Julia’s expertise, therapists can confidently navigate the complexities of owning a private practice and find work life – balance.
Julia also has written articles for the Canadian Counselling and Psychotherapy association. You can learn more at www.ccpa-accp.ca/blog/.
