Podcast Summary: This Can't Be That Hard

Episode 357 – Financial Organization: Peace of Mind is Priceless with Tiffany Bastian
Host: Annemie Tonken
Guest: Tiffany Bastian, Accountant Specializing in Photographers
Release Date: February 24, 2026

Episode Overview

In this episode, Annemie Tonken closes out her organizational series by tackling what she calls "the granddaddy of all organization": getting your photography business's finances in order. Joined by Tiffany Bastian, an accountant who exclusively serves photographers, the discussion demystifies financial organization, explores the emotional hurdles creatives face with money, and provides step-by-step strategies for gaining peace of mind and business clarity.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Why Financial Organization is Essential

• Creatives and Financial Avoidance: Most photographers enter the business for artistic reasons, not because they love spreadsheets (00:00). Annemie highlights that financial organization turns your passion into a sustainable career, not just a hobby.
• It’s Not As Hard As It Seems: "The level of financial organization that most of our businesses require is actually pretty straightforward." (A, 01:11)

2. Tiffany’s Journey to Serving Photographers

• How It Started: Tiffany stumbled into her photography niche after speaking about sales tax at a Rising Tide event, where she noticed a knowledge gap (C, 05:16).
• Niche Benefits: Specializing allows her to deeply understand photographers’ needs, saying, "I can bridge that gap...and I love being able to help somebody." (C, 07:13)

3. Common Money Mindset Hurdles

• Shame, Embarrassment, and Imposter Syndrome:
  • Many successful photographers privately admit to being “a financial mess” despite external appearances (C, 11:51).
  • "Everybody starts somewhere, including myself...take that first step and do that one thing." (C, 12:26)
• Emotional Baggage: Money can be guilt-laden, both for earning “too much” or struggling, and is often tangled with family history and personal beliefs (C, 14:21).

4. Steps to Financial Organization

Step 1: Separate Your Business and Personal Finances

• Create a Dedicated Business Account:
  • "If you want me to kind of go into what I would do first, I would get a separate business and a personal checking account." (C, 18:56)
  • Crucial for clarity and compliance, especially if you're an LLC (C, 19:11).

Step 2: Track, Gather & Sort Transactions

• Download Recent Financial Data:
  • Annemie and Tiffany suggest pulling existing transactions, even into a simple spreadsheet, to start drawing lines between business and personal expenses (A, 21:44).
• Begin Making a List of Subscriptions & Autopayments:
  • Use this opportunity to inventory recurring charges and begin the process of shifting them to the business account (C, 22:14).

Step 3: Implement (Even Basic) Bookkeeping Habits

• Regular Check-Ins:
  • Even if it’s just weekly spreadsheet updates, knowing what comes in and out is empowering and prevents surprises at tax time (C, 24:10).
• “Bookkeeping isn’t just for taxes ... this is going to show you ... here’s what my business looks like, here’s my profit.” (C, 13:44)

Step 4: Mindset and Long-Term Planning

• Define Your Financial Goals:
  • Tiffany emphasizes identifying your “good, better, best” income goals, tailored to your real-life needs (C, 14:21).
  • Money enables you to achieve the personal freedom or flexibility that likely inspired your business in the first place (A, 16:11).
• Revisit and Adjust:
  • Growing as a business owner means revisiting structures and goals regularly—consider adjusting prices or business structure as you evolve (C, 31:01).

Memorable Quotes

• On Starting Somewhere:
  • “Little by little, a little becomes a lot.” — Tiffany (C, 12:26)
• On Facing Finances:
  • "Monsters and mushrooms grow in the dark. You got to open up the closet and dive in, as uncomfortable as that can be." — Annemie (A, 21:24)
• On Business Mindset:
  • "You can't measure what you don't track." — Tiffany (C, 20:20)
  • "Time is the only thing we can’t make more of ... money is just a tool. Time is important." — Tiffany (C, 18:05)
• On Defining Your Own Success:
  • "Social media tries to kind of like show us that we all want the same thing, but it's truly not. So it's really stepping back again with yourself. What do I really want?" — Tiffany (C, 16:02)
• On Bookkeeping Confidence:
  • "When you are creating prices that are based on reality ... it creates this confidence and peace that is totally magnetic to the right clients." — Annemie (A, 26:02)
• On Avoidance Cost:
  • "How much time are you wasting worrying about this? ... a small investment now could save you a lot of time and worrying." — Annemie (A, 33:45)

Notable Segments & Timestamps

• Origin Story: Tiffany’s Niche & Why Photographers (05:16–09:00)
• Real Talk: Photographer Money Struggles and Mindset (11:24–14:21)
• First Practical Steps: Separate Accounts & Begin Sorting (18:56–21:44)
• Bookkeeping Basics & Emotional Relief (24:10–25:55)
• How Organization Enables Pricing with Confidence (26:02–27:55)
• Growth Beyond Basics: Leveraging Organization for Strategy (30:15–32:57)
• Mindset Reframes & Cost of Avoidance (33:35–34:51)

Resources & Next Steps

• Tiffany’s Free Guide: The Five Money Moves — Five actionable steps to get started with business financial organization.
  Download at: bastianaccounting.com/tcbth (35:29)

• Contact Tiffany: For specialized accounting help for photographers, visit bastianaccounting.com — Tiffany personally answers the chat (36:34).

Final Takeaways

• Start Now, No Shame: Whether you’re overwhelmed, behind, or mixing accounts, taking the first small step is the hardest and most important part.
• Organization = Empowerment: Understanding your real numbers is the foundation for sustainable pricing, peace of mind, and freedom to create.
• Ask for Help: Pros like Tiffany are not just for mega-businesses. Creative entrepreneurs deserve specialized support too.