Field notes · written on the night shift
Notes from reading founders' numbers every night: the leaks, the patterns, and the plain-English mechanics behind them. New notes replace the old ones below, one at a time, until the whole ledger speaks this language.
Can I afford a Black Friday discount?
Ad prices jump in Black Friday week; what an order costs may not. The sum per order, when Meta and Google peak, and why your list gets the deeper cut.
11-11-2026Is my Shopify store actually making money?
Shopify's profit figure leaves out every sale with no cost recorded. Profit per order, line by line, and when a profit app is the right answer.
11-11-2026Stripe MRR in plain English: what it counts, and what it hides
A card that already failed keeps counting until the subscription is canceled or unpaid. What goes in, the discount switch, and four weekly checks.
17-09-2026Alternatives to Solor Stream, honestly
A chat assistant, a fractional CFO, a numbers tool, a spreadsheet on Monday: one honest paragraph on each, and where the nightly reading sits.
17-09-2026Solor Stream vs ChatGPT: what a chat cannot do for a founder
The chat wins at thinking and drafting. It was also ready all night to help with the three failed cards; nobody asked it.
17-09-2026Solor Stream vs a fractional CFO: what $5,000 a month buys
Judgment, relationships and a signature, once a week. The reading between the visits is the part they are not there for.
17-09-2026Solor Stream vs a numbers tool: charts that wait to be opened
Fourteen charts, every one correct, none of them said anything. The tab was called Recovery.
29-08-2026Is my business actually fine?
We built a health score and retired it because it flattered people. Three honest checks against your own bars, and a verdict that refuses to become a score again.
29-08-2026How many months of cash do I actually have?
The runway math run three honest ways (income holds, drops by a fifth, stops) because the flattering single number is the one that gets founders into trouble.
29-08-2026If I raise prices, how many clients can I afford to lose?
The break-even arithmetic the fear never runs, a warning about which margin to use, and a rate-increase note you can copy.
26-08-2026Failed payments are a quiet leak
The customer didn't cancel. The card did. Why the first days matter, a leak calculator where every assumption is yours, and a warm note you can copy tonight.
in the queueDo I need a bookkeeper, an accountant, or a CFO?
The three jobs in plain words, and the symptoms that tell you which one you are missing.
in the queueCan I afford to hire?
The full monthly cost, the months of cover, and the revenue trigger that flips the answer.
in the queueHow much am I paying for software I don't use?
The one-week test, an audit worksheet, and a cancellation note you can copy.
in the queueWhich numbers should I look at first each day?
Three numbers are enough. Your own printable morning card.
in the queueWhat will investors actually ask?
The four questions behind every stage, and a prep sheet built from your numbers.
in the queueHow do I know if a decision actually worked?
The Outcome Loop: write it down, check on the day you picked, never let memory edit the result.