Please note: We DO NOT offer free tax advice for TurboTax users or self-preparers.

Evaluate Your Bookkeeping with Our 5-Question Financial Checkup (0–25 Points)

Conduct a simple self-assessment on your bookkeeping prowess by answering five focused questions.

Get ready with a pen, take a deep breath, and evaluate your bookkeeping with these questions.

Just five. That's all it takes.

Even if you’re confident in your financial management, continue reading — even exemplary businesses can discover unexpected insights about their operational efficiencies.

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This quick evaluation can uncover underlying issues like cash flow inefficiencies, pricing mismatches, overlooked tax breaks, growth obstructions, and more — the costly problems that can hide beneath the surface until they're too significant to ignore.

Ready to begin? Let's get started.

Scoring Methodology

Award yourself 0–5 points for each query.

  • 0 = Not at all

  • 5 = Absolutely, consistently executed monthly

Total achievable points: 0–25 points. This exercise is about gaining clarity, not judgment.

Question 1: Are your financials closed every month efficiently?

Think of the monthly close as the hygiene routine for your enterprise. Neglect it once? Perhaps manageable. Neglect it repeatedly? You’re operating on guesses rather than precise data.

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A meticulous monthly closure delivers:

  • Accurate financial statements

  • Reliable analytical reports

  • Elimination of uncertainty

  • Early detection of potential issues before they escalate

If you find yourself falling behind by months or if bookkeeping feels like deciphering a mystery novel, assign yourself a lesser score here.

Rate yourself: 0–5.

Question 2: Do you understand your gross profit margin?

While your revenue covers costs, it’s your gross profit margin that benefits you.

Being unaware of your margin equates to selling blindly. Adjusting pricing, workforce, or process issues is impossible without clarity on how each revenue dollar supports your operations.

Efficient businesses not only know their margins but also have strategies to enhance them.

Rate yourself: 0–5.

Question 3: Are you aware of your breakeven point and cash flow days on hand?

Consider this your stress and sanity assessment — the difference between peaceful slumbers and insomnia-driven concern at 3 a.m.

If you lack insight on:

  • The sales volume needed to breakeven

  • The viability of cash flow over time

  • The sustainability during downturns or unexpected expenses

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…your score here might be lower than desireable.

Rate yourself: 0–5.

Question 4: Does your financial report illustrate trends and KPIs rather than just figures?

Expense lists are helpful; however, reports that highlight growth patterns and KPIs can transform perspectives.

Trendlines illustrate dynamics; KPIs exhibit financial wellbeing, equipping you with the tools to steer your business confidently.

If your reports tell only what happened, without contextual meaning, reflect honestly in your scoring.

Rate yourself: 0–5.

Question 5: Do you maintain a budget or cashflow forecast?

Forecasting transforms your financials from looking backwards to charting forward.

A budget directs financial resources, while a cashflow forecast ascertains liquidity for progressing.

Without them, you're in a constant reactive loop, which can be exhausting, unpredictable, and costly.

Rate yourself: 0–5.

Your Total Score: Interpreting the Results

0–10 points: Financial Firefight

You’re managing to proceed but with unnecessary challenges, operating reactively instead of proactively — possibly close to stress in deficit months.

Potential advantage: rapid progress is often achievable from this state.

11–17 points: Stable yet Reactive

You're out of immediate danger but missing growth opportunities. Enhancing margins, cashflows, and reports could be beneficial.

Organizations in this category often experience an ‘okay’ operational level without realizing how efficient they could be.

18–22 points: Robust, yet with Improvement Opportunities

Sound fundamentals coupled with strategist finesse would enable unlocking enhanced profit margins and optimizing operations.

This is the juncture where growth transitions from circumstantial to deliberate.

23–25 points: Exemplary Financial Supervision

Your operation resembles a professional, streamlined powerhouse management.

Upon achieving this level, kudos — however, continue the pursuit. This represents a solid foundation for scaling up strategically.

Interested in Elevating Your Score? Let's Collaborate.

Business leaders often require clarity in data — improving insightful systems, healthy practices, and informed financial guidance.

For assistance in refining your bookkeeping, enhancing reporting, constructing forecasts, or establishing a transparent dashboard, feel free to reach out.

Your financial records should propel growth, not contribute to uncertainty. Let’s tailor them to serve your advancement.

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