Open workbook and black folder with gold logo and text for a financial year planner covering July 2026 to June 2027.
Open workbook and black folder with gold logo and text for a financial year planner covering July 2026 to June 2027.

THE JOURNAL

Notes from
Behind the Books.

Practical writing on bookkeeping, payroll, compliance and running a business in Western Australia.

Recent posts.

LATEST


Ami O'Connell Ami O'Connell

How to Set Yourself Up For a Stronger Financial Year

And Why This Happens in July

July has a particular kind of energy for business owners. The new financial year has officially started, last year is done and dusted, and there is, for a brief and glorious moment, a genuine fresh start on the table.

Read More
Ami O'Connell Ami O'Connell

Your EOFY 2026 Checklist: A Bookkeeper’s Step-by-Step Guide

End of financial year always feels closer than you think. If June has snuck up on you, take a breath. This is your EOFY checklist 2026, the same one I walk my clients through every year. The next few weeks are about working through it one task at a time, so you head into 1 July with your books in order and money back where it belongs: in your business.

Read More
Ami O'Connell Ami O'Connell

When the back end eats the front end

It’s been a hard few weeks in Perth hospitality.

The Young George closed its doors on April 2. And in October, after a beautiful run, Champagne and Gumboots will follow.

Two venues. Two creative visions. Both gone within months of each other, in a city that loves its hospitality scene.

Read More
Ami O'Connell Ami O'Connell

Why your bookkeeper’s industry knowledge matters more than you think

Most business owners do not think too hard about whether their bookkeeper understands their industry. They think about whether the person is reliable, whether the work gets done on time, and whether the price is reasonable. Which is fair, as those things matter.

But in hospitality, industry knowledge changes the quality of everything.

Read More
Ami O'Connell Ami O'Connell

What running a hospitality business actually takes

There is a particular kind of tired that hospitality operators know all too well. It is not the tired that comes from a big week. It is the tired that comes from being across everything, all the time, with no clear boundary between where the business ends and where you begin.

Read More