Planning the year
A one page plan for the next twelve months: three priorities, what gets dropped to make room, and the monthly figures that show whether it is working.
Plan the year, price the work, hire the right person
Monthly coaching for founders running firms of one to thirty people. Ninety minutes a month with your own numbers on the table and honest questions about pricing and hiring. No revenue figure is ever promised, because nobody can honestly make one.
90 minuteseach monthly session
1 to 30people in the firms coached
One monthnotice to stop
- Monthly, in the same week
- A written note after each session
- At your workplace or by video
- Your figures stay with you
The four things founders ask for help with
Most months touch two of these. The agenda comes from you, and the figures come from your own books.
Pricing the work
Finding out what a job, a product or an hour really costs you, then setting prices you can say out loud without apologising.
Hiring and handing over
When to hire, what the role is actually for, how to interview for it and how to hand over work you have done yourself for years.
Growing on purpose
Choosing which customers, services or places to grow into, and which to turn down, so growth does not simply mean longer days.
Six figures worth bringing to every session
Pull them from your own books or ask your accountant. They are read together in the session, never kept and never judged.
| The figure | Why it matters | Where it usually lives |
|---|---|---|
| Cash in the bank, and owed to you | Shows how many weeks the business can run on what it already has | Bank statement and unpaid invoices |
| Margin on each service | Tells you which work pays for the rest and which quietly loses money | Bookkeeping software or a simple spreadsheet |
| Price per job or per hour | Lets you compare what you charge with what each job truly costs | Quotes and invoices |
| Hours you work each week | When the founder does everything, that is often what holds growth back | Your diary, honestly counted |
| Enquiries, and how many say yes | Shows whether the work is finding customers or winning them | Inbox, phone log or sales notes |
| Wages as a share of sales | Helps decide when a hire is affordable and when it is only a hope | Payroll records |
Monthly plans, with a month's notice to stop
Prices are examples in US dollars. There is no minimum term, and three months is usually enough to tell whether coaching is helping.
Monthly session
a month, from$420
- Your own agenda every month
- A quick look at your figures beforehand
- Questions by email between sessions, answered within two working days
Session and quarterly review (example reviews)
a month, from$690
- Everything in the monthly session
- A 45 minute check in halfway through the month
- A half day planning review every quarter
- Help preparing for a bank or investor meeting
Planning day
one day, from$950
- A full day on next year's plan
- The one page plan written up within a week
- A follow up call a month later
Each month's fee is invoiced on the first working day and paid straight to Ledger and Lift. Stop whenever you like with one month's notice.
A coach, not your accountant, lawyer or therapist
Ledger and Lift helps you think, decide and follow through. It does not keep your books, file tax returns, draft contracts or give investment advice, and it never touches your bank account. Tax, employment and company rules differ from country to country, so decisions in those areas belong with a qualified accountant or lawyer, and the coach will gladly help you prepare the questions.
Running a firm can weigh heavily. If stress is affecting your sleep, your health or the people at home, please talk to your doctor or a counsellor; coaching can carry on beside that support or pause while you get it. In a crisis, call your local emergency number.
- No revenue, profit or funding promises, ever
- No commission from any supplier, lender or software mentioned
- Your figures are never shared or used as examples
- Names of accountants and lawyers are suggestions, not deals
How a coaching month runs
Week one: the figures
You send the six figures and the one question keeping you up at night. Ten minutes of work, and no polished report is needed.
Week two: the session
Ninety minutes at your workplace or by video. A quick look at the figures, then most of the time on your question.
The same evening: the note
One page with what you decided, who does what by when, and the figure to keep an eye on.
Week four: the nudge
A short email asking how the actions went, so the month does not quietly drift.
Workshops, back offices and bakery tables
Sessions happen where the business does, or on a screen when the van is already loaded.
From the founders' side of the table (example reviews)
The pricing session was uncomfortable in the best way. Two services turned out to lose money on every job, and both now cost more or have been dropped.
Hiring the first manager felt like giving the business away. Three sessions on what the role was for made the interviews easier and the handover much calmer.
The planning day left the three of us with one page we genuinely agree on. It now hangs above the kettle in the brewery office.
What founders ask before the first month
Can coaching guarantee more revenue or profit?
No, and a coach who names a figure is guessing. Results depend on your market, your team, your timing and a fair amount of luck. What coaching can offer is clearer decisions, made sooner and carried through more often.
Will you do our bookkeeping or tax return?
No. Ledger and Lift reads the figures with you but never prepares accounts, files returns or gives tax or legal advice. Those rules vary by country and need a qualified accountant or lawyer.
Do you need to see our full accounts?
Only the six figures in the table, however rough. Nothing is kept once the session note is written, and nothing is ever passed on.
Can two cofounders come to the same session?
Yes, and partners often find it useful. When the question is a disagreement between you, each of you can also have a short call alone first.
What if the business is in serious trouble right now?
Say so on the fit call. Coaching helps you think clearly, but urgent debt or legal trouble needs an accountant, an insolvency adviser or a lawyer first, and the coach will tell you so plainly. If the strain is affecting your health, speak to your doctor or a counsellor.
How do we stop?
Send an email at any time. The plan ends after one more month, and that last session can be a wrap up if you would like one.
Request a fit call or a first month
Say a little about the firm, then suggest a day and a time slot. The coach answers inside two working days with a confirmation, a different time or a straight answer if the diary is already full.
- The fit call lasts 30 minutes and costs nothing
- Nothing is booked until the coach confirms
- Fees are invoiced and paid directly to Ledger and Lift
Reach Ledger and Lift
Call or write
Sessions at your own workplace across the city, or by video from anywhere
Coaching hours
| Monday to Thursday | 07:30 to 18:30 |
| Friday | 07:30 to 13:00 |
| Saturday | Planning days by arrangement |
| Sunday | Closed |
Accountants and advisers
Accountants, bank managers and business advisers who want to suggest coaching to a client are welcome to call. Introductions are never paid for, in either direction.