Why it's fine... until suddenly it isn't

If you have your own small business, and it is still mostly you doing most of the things, most (all) of the time, you'll know this.

There’s a particular kind of business stress that doesn’t arrive with drama.

There's no explosion. No crisis email. No big red warning light.

It just… builds. And builds. You feel it - but you ignore it. There are plenty of other things to take your attention, or that you can give your attention to... And then, you'll tell yourself seemingly from nowhere, there is this thing and it's big and it's horrible.

Yep - I'm talking about the 'bookkeeping banshee'. And it's screaming.

Because doing the bookkeeping is often 'fine'. You get by. It's not enjoyable, but you do it.

Mostly. But then life happens, you miss a bit. You forget something. And it gets pushed to the bottom of the list until you have a bit more time or some sort of sudden desire to 'get on top of things'.

And then one day even opening your bank feed makes your stomach clench.

If that’s you: you’re not lazy, broken, or “bad with numbers”.

You’re human.

This isn’t about difficulty — it’s about accumulation

Capable, intelligent, passionate small business owners like you don’t avoid bookkeeping because it’s hard.

You avoid it because:

• it feels low priority compared to clients

• it’s not urgent (yet)

• it requires a specific kind of focus you don’t have at 9pm

• it’s emotionally loaded (“what if I’ve messed it up?”)

So it slips. And then slips again. And then quietly becomes the banshee thing. (No offence banshees, I know you're just the messenger).

So what is the message?

There is an emotional cost of avoiding your bookkeeping (and business numbers in general).

Every avoided task takes up space in your head.

You’re not just “not doing it”. You’re carrying it.

Avoidance uses more energy than action (annoyingly)

Here’s the bit you might not realise.

Avoided admin doesn’t sit in a neat little box labelled Later. It leaks.

• It pops into your head in the shower

• It drains your energy before you even start work

• It makes everything else feel heavier than it needs to be

Your nervous system treats unfinished tasks like open apps. You can't see them on screen, but they're in the background slowly using up that valuable battery life, and slowing down everything else too.

Ten tiny avoided things can feel heavier than one big, boring session where you just… deal with them.

Which is why bookkeeping often tips from fine to overwhelming very quickly.

You go from:

“I’ll catch up soon”

to:

“I don’t even know where to start”

The problem isn’t capability — it’s capacity

This is where I want to gently challenge the story many people tell themselves.

You don’t need:

• more motivation

• more willpower

• more theory

You need less cognitive load and smaller entry points.

Good financial habits aren’t about perfection. They’re about making future you’s life easier.

Because as your business grows, you’ll want your time and energy for things like:

• clients

• decisions

• creativity

• strategy

• rest (radical, I know)

Not for wading through six months of transactions thinking “FFS, why did I leave this? What even IS this???”

Getting unstuck starts smaller than you think

When you’re behind, the instinct is to “do a big catch-up”.

Please don’t.

That’s how overwhelm wins.

It's like deciding to run a marathon because you feel unfit and haven't been to the gym in a while. Or pulling everything out of all your wardrobes and dumping it on your bed Sunday lunchtime because you wanted to sort your clothes. (and yes, before you ask, on that occasion I did end up curled around the clothes Sunday night because I absolutely did not have the time or energy to complete the task in its hugeness right at that very moment).

Momentum comes from distinct, contained tasks — not heroic one off sessions (which is why January is horrible when you're self-employed and trying to do a year of bookkeeping in a week alongside all your other shizzle)

So here are some genuinely small ways back in:

Pick one category. ONE.

• Just match payments

• Just categorise income

• Just work through utilities

• Just tidy one bank rule

Not everything. Not even most things. Just one type.

Work in short, defined bursts

• 15 minutes

• Stop

• Make tea

• Walk away

Then do another 15 minutes tomorrow.

Consistency beats intensity every time.

Lower the bar - deliberately

• You’re not “finishing bookkeeping”

• You’re just touching it

• Familiarity builds confidence faster than accuracy

Micro actions (choose one — not all)

If you want something practical to do today, here are a few low-friction options:

• Open your accounting software and match 5 transactions

• Set a 15-minute timer and categorise only last week

• Create one bank rule that would save future effort

• Write down what you’re avoiding and why (seriously — name it)

Then stop.

Sleep. And Repeat.

What actually matters most

You see this isn’t really about bookkeeping.

It’s about:

• protecting your energy

• reducing background stress

• building systems that work with your life

• making your business feel lighter, not heavier

Good enough systems done regularly will always beat perfect systems you never touch.

And the earlier you build those habits, the kinder future growth becomes.

A gentle closing thought

I’m noticing a pattern with a lot of capable small business owners.

You know what needs doing. You’re not scared of learning. You just don’t need more theory — you need support actually doing the thing, regularly, in a way that fits your life and your business.

I’m exploring better ways of supporting that — no pitch, just listening and pressure-testing ideas.

If this is familiar, I’m having a few conversations about better ways of supporting this — please message me if you want to talk.

You don’t need fixing. You need systems that don’t drain your battery.