Have you ever looked at your business bank account and thought:

“I made good money this year… so why does it still feel tight?”

If that thought has ever crossed your mind, you’re not alone.

Many small business owners assume they have a revenue problem when profits feel thin. But in many cases, the real issue is something much simpler:

Expense awareness.

Not bad spending.
Not irresponsible spending.

Just a lack of visibility into where money is actually going.

The good news? You can get a surprising amount of clarity in about 10 minutes.

In my latest YouTube video, I walk through a simple exercise you can do using nothing more than your bank statement and a pen.

Let’s break down the method.

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Why Business Owners Feel Broke (Even After a Good Year)

Something I hear all the time from photographers and small business owners is:

“I made decent money this year… but I still feel broke.”

And when we look closer together, a pattern almost always appears.

It’s rarely one huge purchase causing the problem.

Instead, it’s usually a slow accumulation of things like:

• Software subscriptions
  
• Tools signed up for during busy season
  
• Delivery and convenience fees
  
• Platforms you intended to use but forgot about
  

Each one feels small on its own.

But over time, they quietly stack up.

That’s why doing a simple expense audit once in a while can be incredibly powerful.

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The Simple 10-Minute Expense Audit

This exercise is intentionally simple.

All you need is:

• Your most recent bank statement
  
• A pen or highlighter
  

Start at the top of your statement and go line by line through every expense.

Next to each transaction, write one of three letters:

G
C
V

Each one represents a different type of spending in your business.

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G = Growth Expenses

Growth expenses are purchases that help your business improve or expand over time.

These are investments in your future skills, visibility, and revenue potential.

Examples include:

• Courses and education
  
• Workshops
  
• Mentorship
  
• Marketing investments
  
• Conferences or training
  

These expenses are meant to help you become better at what you do or reach more clients.

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C = Client Expenses

Client expenses are the tools and resources that help you deliver your service well.

They directly support the experience your paying clients have with your business.

Examples might include:

• Client galleries
  
• Client management software
  
• Editing software
  
• Album companies
  
• Studio rentals
  
• Props or session supplies
  

If it helps you serve your clients better, it falls into this category.

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V = Convenience Expenses

Convenience spending is the category that tends to surprise people the most.

Convenience expenses are things that make your life easier in the moment but don’t necessarily move your business forward long-term.

Examples could include:

• Extra software you rarely use
  
• Duplicate subscriptions
  
• Rush fees
  
• Delivery services
• Coffee purchase on the way to a shoot or while editing
  
• Tools you signed up for during a busy season
  

And this part is important:

Convenience spending isn’t automatically bad.

The goal of this exercise is not guilt or shame.

It’s simply awareness.

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The Most Important Step: Look for the Pattern

After you finish labeling your expenses, pause and look at the bigger picture.

Ask yourself three simple questions:

1. How many Growth expenses do I actually have?

Many business owners assume they’re investing heavily in growth.

But when they review their statement, they realize very little of their spending is actually helping them grow.

2. Do my Client expenses support the experience I want to offer?

If your brand promises a high-end experience, your tools and resources should support that.

If your business is designed to be simple and streamlined, that should show up in your expenses too.

3. How much of my spending falls into Convenience?

This is where most surprises happen.

Because those small $9, $15, or $29 monthly charges can quietly add up to hundreds or even thousands of dollars each year.

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The Real Goal of This Exercise

The goal isn’t to eliminate every convenience expense.

The goal is to make sure your money is aligned with your priorities.

Every dollar leaving your business is doing one of two things:

• Helping your business grow
  
• Making things easier in the moment
  

Neither one is wrong.

But when convenience spending starts outweighing growth and client support, that’s when profits can start feeling tighter than expected.

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A Simple Next Step

After you complete this exercise, choose one or two convenience expenses that you can:

• Cancel
  
• Pause
  
• Or downgrade
  

Just one or two.

Small adjustments can free up money that you can redirect toward things like:

• Tax savings
  
• Emergency reserves
  
• Education
  
• Improving your client experience
  

And those small shifts add up quickly over time.

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Free Resource: Business Tax Category Guide

If reviewing expenses ever leaves you wondering:

“Wait… where does this actually go for taxes?”

I created a free guide to help.

Inside my 15 Business Tax Category Breakdowns Guide, I explain common tax categories photographers use and include examples of the types of purchases that usually fall into each one.

This can make organizing your expenses during tax season much clearer and less stressful.

You can download the guide here:
👉 [Download the Free Tax Category Guide]

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If you try this exercise, I’d love to know:

What was one expense you labeled “V” for Convenience that surprised you?

Let me know in the comments below.

XOXO ~ Heather

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And don’t forget to grab my free 15 Business Tax Category Breakdowns Guide to get a head start on organizing your expenses and maximizing your write-offs.

Let’s make this the year you take control of your business finances!

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Let’s Prep for Tax Season – Together

Keep more of what you make inside of your business with these 5 key deductions for photographers. I’m sharing all inside of my free class — Maximizing Your Tax Deductions as a Photographer!

Make tracking your numbers easy with my Tax Prep Spreadsheet and ensure that tax season is a breeze.

Transform your passion into a thriving business and unlock success for your photography business with my free guide to setting goals for the first year of your photography business.

Mastering your business taxes starts with understanding the different tax categories. Grab my free tax category guide to take the first step towards stress-free taxes today.

Want taxes to suck less? Learn how to correctly prepare your taxes for your accountant with the Photographer Tax Course – and say hello to a confident and calm tax season!

Don’t know what you don’t know? You’re just 90 minutes from a custom tax prep system with my 1:1 Tax Prep Mentoring sessions!

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Other HMP blog posts for you to read:

How Much Photographers Should Save for Taxes
First Year Filing Taxes as a Photographer