THE JOURNAL
Notes from
Behind the Books.
Practical writing on bookkeeping, payroll, compliance and running a business in Western Australia.
Recent posts.
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Why I Built the AmiWho Financial Year Journal
On July 26 we gathered a room full of business owners at The Adnate to launch something I’ve wanted to make for a long time. The AmiWho Financial Year Journal is now here, and this is the story of why it exists and who it’s for.
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.
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.
What the 2026 federal budget actually means for everyday business owners
The 2026 federal budget was handed down on Tuesday 12 May, and the property changes are getting the loudest coverage. If you’ve been wondering whether to panic about your investment property, or what any of this means for your business, here’s the plain English version.
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.
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.
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.
I didn’t build AmiWho from a business plan. I built it from necessity
The year I walked away from my marriage was the same year I lost the man who raised me. Two of the biggest losses of my life, arriving at the same time, while I was figuring out how to be a single mum and keep everything together for my daughter.