Please take the brief 10-15 minute survey at the bottom of this page before registering. These workshops are offered on a sliding scale to increase equity and accessibility. After completing the survey you will be linked to our registration pages to choose which sessions you would like to attend and to make payment.
January 13 - 3PM to 5PM Session #1: Better Bookkeeping: For anyone who thinks his or her bookkeeping could be better. Whether you are seasoned at bookkeeping or just getting started, you want to make sure you’re getting the best information about your business. If your records don’t give you the answers you need, this session could be for you.
In this session: We’ll cover the keys to success in maintaining current and accurate financial information.
You will come out of this session understanding:
- The difference between cash and accrual bookkeeping and how it affects your data entry and reports.
- How to set up your chart of accounts so you can file your taxes and make important management decisions.
- How to use your income statement (Profit & Loss) and balance sheet to evaluate your business operations.
January 27 - 3PM to 5PM Session #2: Adaptation: For those who have been in business for at least one season:
If you have a record of your financial results, even if they’re not perfect, you have the basis for evaluating what worked, what didn’t, and what changes will help you increase you profits. Even if your short-term goal in 2020 was just to survive, your financial results form the basis for understanding your options for the upcoming year and beyond.
You will come out of this session understanding:
- the difference between sunk costs and incremental costs, and how that impacts decision making.
- how to calculate your breakeven point and how that impacts profitability.
- how to evaluate new business opportunities that could increase profitability, and how to incorporate risk into decision making.
- key information needed to evaluate your business moving forward.
February 3 - 3PM to 5PM Session #3: Adjusting: For those who have been in business for at least one season:
A budget is simply a numerical representation of your plan for the year. Even if your plans are thrown for a loop, it still helps to look back at your budget, to make real-time adjustments when things go off the rails. The session will prepare you to address problems and create solutions before you continue down a path that is just not working.
You will come out of this session understanding
- the process of comparing your budget to your real numbers
- How to assess what changes you need to make to get back on track
- How make adjustments to your budget to ensure that it helps you going forward.
February 17- 3PM to 5PM Session #4: Roadblocks: For those who have been in business for at least one season. Attendance priority for participants of the Adaptation and Adjusting sessions:
We’ll talk about what might get in the way of using your plan during the season and help you devise a realistic path to overcome those obstacles.
Sessions will be taught by The Carrot Project’s senior business advisor and lead trainer Julia Shanks. She brings a broad range of professional experiences to her clients, from pilot to chef to serial entrepreneur.
As part of this training, all participants have an opportunity to work with their own numbers as part of a cohort group or through one to one guidance with one of The Carrot Project's professional business advisors.