Financially Adjusted

#52: HOW TO ENJOY YOUR SUMMER VACATION WITHOUT FINANCIAL WORRY

• Leslie Roth

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Summer is here, and whether you're headed out on a big family trip or planning a relaxing staycation, this episode of Financially Adjusted is your chiropractic guide to taking time off—without stress or scrambling. Leslie walks you through how to create peace of mind and financial stability while stepping away from your business. From budgeting and planning for income dips to communicating with patients and setting up staff, this episode covers it all.

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Disclaimer: This content is for educational and informational purposes only. Please consult with an accounting professional for direct advice based on your specific business situation.

Welcome back to the Financially Adjusted podcast. If you're new to me, I'm Leslie Roth, and I started this podcast to bring financial knowledge and tips to all the amazing chiropractic business owners out there. There is a good chance that when you went through chiropractic school, you weren't taught how to manage your business finances or run a business. So, feel free to consider me your financial coach. Make sure that you tune in every other Thursday for a new episode. If you're listening to this episode on the day it comes out, which is July third, that means that summer is in full swing and you're likely planning some type of vacation or trip with your family or maybe just some time off for a staycation.

Today, I'm going to walk you through what it can look like to actually enjoy some time away from your business in a way that gives you peace of mind and financial stability.

My hubby and I did our travel vacation already this year. We'll take some time off later in the summer, later in July when some family comes into town, but we decided to take a trip to the Smoky Mountains for the first time. So, we did this in May, and we were actually originally supposed to do this during Covid times, but, of course, we had to cancel that. So, this was our belated re-do of this trip and I absolutely fell in love with those mountains. If you haven't been there before, I highly recommend a visit there.

I know when I plan these trips or staycations as an entrepreneur, there's a certain guilt and anxiety that comes along with that. Once I'm in the vacation, I get into vacation mode after like a couple of days, but there's definitely a worry in the back of my mind about getting the work done before and after. By setting up a solid money allocation plan, I ahead of time, this brings me so much peace of mind around the financial aspects of running my business. I feel like there's so many things that as a business owner we worry about when we leave to go on a trip that the last thing you want to be really worrying about is finances.

And let's be real. We want to go on vacation. We want to escape the worry, the pressure, and the anxiety that comes along with being a business owner. That can be pretty hard to do if you're panicking about revenue fluctuation and how you're going to keep your cash flow positive during that time.

As chiropractors, you more than likely have a variable revenue for the most part. And as a chiropractic business owner, it might just be you adjusting patients or, you know, you might have an associate doctor or two who also sees patients. Regardless of your situation, if you regularly adjust patients yourself, you'll need to expect and plan for that dip in revenue and the fact that you're spending money on vacation in addition to that. While your revenue is lower. And there's only one thing that can set you up for success, and that is planning.

If you're not a planner, I know that probably hurt your ears, but stick with me. This episode is all about creating peace of mind for you. With a small amount of planning, you can reap huge benefits in your business around vacations.

First, I'll briefly talk about mindset because if you're someone who feels guilty about taking time off because your patients and your business need you, you are not alone.

This business is your baby, and your people depend on you, so it makes sense that you'd feel that way. But you need time away to rest and recharge your battery so that you can show up and be the best version of yourself for your staff and for your patients. If you're someone who avoids planning and thinking about the financial aspect of things, it's time for a mindset shift around that. It's all about choosing your hard at the end of the day. It's going to be hard to remain in the dark or ignore your finances and the result of that is going to put you into a reactive position. If you don't have a plan for your money, it just happens to you. And then you're left scrambling to correct issues with cash flow and sometimes you're more likely to take on more debt because of that lack of planning. It's time to start reshaping your mindset around your finances. You likely take a proactive approach with your wellness just like you teach your patients to because this is what you believe as a chiropractor and wellness practitioner. Apply this same logic to your finances. Think of being proactive with your finances with a money plan as choosing to nurture your mindset because that's exactly what you're doing. And peace of mind around your money can only exist when you're in control, and that involves some planning. It doesn't have to be complicated or elaborate.

So next, I'm going to walk you through some things you can do to set yourself up for a worry-free vacation.

First, I'll talk about a money allocation plan. Also known as a budget, a money allocation plan or MAP is what puts you in control of your money. You can do this with whatever your tool of preference is. It can be pen and paper, a spreadsheet, a budgeting app. I don't care what tool you use. What matters is that you do it.

I recommend EveryDollar, which is an app, and it has a free version. So, you can do the paid version that connects your bank accounts, and then you can categorize transactions as they come in. But this might be a feature you don't need or want. I just use the free version and manually input the transactions, and that works great.

And when it comes to your money allocation plan, this is the proactive measure that's really going to set you up for controlling how your money works for you and set you up to have that peace of mind because you know there's already a plan in place to account for that drop in revenue and those expenses that come with vacationing.

First, to set your money plan up or your map, I have a few podcasts and a YouTube tutorial that walk you through this, and I'll link those in the show notes. And I go into much more detail on those so you can really get the step-by-step idea of how to do that.

But estimating your revenue is really important. Based on past months of revenue, you can roughly estimate how much you'll make that month and factor in the time that you'll be away and what that equates to in relation to your revenue. And when it comes to planning for expenses, with your money allocation plan, you'll be factoring in any recurring and one-off unique expenses that are specific to that month and putting those into your plan.

Be sure to check out my last podcast episode as well, which was episode fifty one, how sinking funds can help you in your chiropractic business. I will link that in the show notes as well. But when you have irregular non monthly, nonrecurring bills, it's helpful to set up a sinking fund for them, which is basically just a savings account that you save monthly in so that you have that money set aside for those irregular expenses. These are expenses that you can predict but aren't regular or recurring. For instance, your malpractice insurance.

That's likely quarterly or a subscription you pay annually for or continuing education credits and travel that goes along with that. There's a lot of different random expenses that fall into this category.

If you're on vacation and one of these irregular bills hits at the same time, it's going to be that much more of a strain on your finances if you're not prepared for it. And you also want to plan for the expense of your vacation. I recommend having a money allocation plan for your personal finances in addition to business finances. The two tie together so tightly that you need to be in control of both and be looking at both at the same time.

You want to save monthly for your vacation so that you have that money just sitting there waiting for you when you're ready to go on vacation. If you're less profitable in the business the month that you're on vacation, there's a chance your profit won't be high enough to take the same owner's draw that you're use that you're used to taking. The remedy for this is all in your money allocation plan for the business and your personal finances. On the business side, you're accounting for that lessened profit that month.

You can estimate and pre-determine what you can take home from the business by doing that. And that will then funnel into your personal money allocation plan, or your personal budget. You can then plan for your personal finances more accurately during that vacation month because you'll know exactly what you'll be able to take home that month. This type of planning protects your cash flow because you know that hit is coming, and you're preparing for that with the funds that you're setting aside. And you can make decisions based on how much profit you'll likely have that month.

When it comes to your profit margin, or how much is left over after expenses, you should have a plan for allocating that between tax savings, owner draws, sinking funds, and emergency funds.

Another part of financially planning for when you're taking a trip and you're going to be away from your business includes the logistics or the facilitation of paying your bills when you're gone. You likely have a lot of recurring expenses that you have set up via ACH where that comes right out of your bank account or you have them set up on a credit card. But if there are bills you pay in your business with a check, and you're the one who facilitates that every month, you need to make sure that you're doing that before you go on vacation if it's a bill that's due while you're on vacation.

For instance, rent. Make sure you've sent in your rent check via mail or however you do that and that any of those, especially those bigger expenses and more important expenses, are accounted for, and there's a plan for that if they are due at the time you're leaving.

The last thing you want is to be trying to relax on vacation at the beach or in the mountains and then thinking about whether or not you paid your rent check. And this is where that peace of mind really comes in. You put in the work ahead of time so that you can be as worry free as possible on your vacation and just enjoy the time away from your business. This provides you the mental escape you need along with the physical escape.

Next, I'll talk about support systems.

There are some non-financial things that you can do that indirectly affect the financial aspects of your business. For instance, letting your patients know a month or so ahead of time that you're going to be going on vacation so they can schedule their appointments ahead of time. This could help out your revenue a lot by allowing them to plan for a visit at a different time during that month. You could really end up lessening the blow of that decreased revenue.

Also, you can set up your out-of-office email notification. This is more of a peace of mind thing than a financial thing. This way people know you're gone, and they can link back up to you when you get back versus them continuing to try to get in touch with you.

And set up your staff for success while you're gone. If you have an office manager who helps you with financial stuff, equip them with any knowledge they need to handle things while you're gone so they don't feel like they need to bother you, and they can just take care of whatever they need to.

If you DIY your bookkeeping, it's really important that you get caught up with transactions before you leave. That way, you're not overwhelmed when you get back and feel like you have a ton to do in your books and that you're playing catch up.

And if you have an outsourced bookkeeper, make sure you've given them any info they need before you leave town. That way, you're not holding up the bookkeeping flow, and you don't feel that overwhelm when you get back.

While you're on vacation, make it a point to truly check out. It's so much easier to mentally do this when you've done the work and the planning ahead of time. Help “vacation you” enjoy that time off.

And once you're back from vacation, block time in your calendar to do a financial check-in. During this time, you can adjust your personal and your business budget. By looking at how closely you are able to stick to your budget while you were gone, you can better and more accurately plan for your next vacation in your budget so that next time you really get it right.

Also, you can catch up on your bookkeeping during this financial check-in. Whether you DIY or outsource, you can spend that time sending off to your bookkeeper whatever they needed, and you couldn't get to while you were gone or catch up on those transactions you couldn't get to while you were gone.

You can also catch up on paying any bills if needed or catch up on any receipts that you need to save or any mileage you need to record.

And you can also communicate with patients when you're back in the office and adjusting patients again so they know they can come in and you're back from vacation. 

Communication is really key and will help your revenue. If you don't plan and tell your patients ahead of time, they're not going to be able to plan accordingly and work around your schedule. So, they may not be able to come in at all if you don't tell them ahead of time. So that can really help your bottom line in an indirect way.

And then finally, reflect on what worked financially and what didn't when you were on vacation. What effect did being proactive have on your life and your mindset when you took a vacation?

So, reflecting on that and really feeling how it set you up for success will be more likely to kick you into gear the next time it comes to planning for a trip. Recognizing those benefits of being proactive with your finances can really just help future you to want to be prepared. If we're reaping the rewards of a certain behavior, we are much more likely to do it again.

Financial stability and peace of mind isn't just about the numbers. It never is. It's about protecting your mental state as a business owner and your bottom line. It's not an easy thing to run a business, and just a little bit of planning can set you up for success in so many ways. You work hard and deserve to truly check out on your vacation without negative consequences.

If you're interested in truly gaining control with your finances, check out my course, Business Financial Foundations (BFF) for Chiropractors. This is a self-paced course designed to teach you the fundamental financial knowledge and money management skills when it comes to running your practice. It's really the course you should have had in school before you opened your practice, but it's never too late to learn and really step into the driver's seats.

I have a thirty-day free trial to my VIP membership along with that purchase of the course. The VIP membership is called Aligned for Profit. And you can go through the course at your own pace, but the support is there for you in that membership. I also have Zoom office hours once a month with that membership and a private Facebook group where you can get all of your questions answered.

I will link my course in the show notes, but you can easily find it on my website if you just go to financiallyadjusted.com and click on “courses” at the top.

But that's it for today's episode of the Financially Adjusted podcast. Thank you for hanging out with me and props to you for showing up for yourself and taking steps towards changing your financial future. By following these steps, future “vacation you” will be so thankful.

Have a great day and remember, action brings clarity and imperfect action is always better than none at all.

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Leslie Roth

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