Let me guess, you didn’t start your business because you love spreadsheets, balance sheets, or reconciling bank accounts. (If you did, call me, we should totally be friends.)

But like it or not, your business lives or dies by your cash flow. And if you’re constantly wondering where your money went, or why you’re making sales but still feel broke, welcome to the club of hard-working entrepreneurs who never got a manual.

That’s exactly why I created The STOP Method™. It’s a simple, sanity-saving budgeting framework that helps small business owners take control of their money, without needing a finance degree or becoming besties with Excel.

So, What Is The STOP Method™?

The STOP Method™ is my signature cash flow system designed to give every dollar in your business a job. Instead of letting money sit in one account (and disappear without warning), this method organizes your cash into four purpose-driven bank accounts:

✅ S – Savings
 Your business emergency fund. Think 3–6 months of expenses. This protects you from slow seasons, surprise expenses, and growth dips.

✅ T – Taxes
 Your tax liability fund. No more panic when the IRS bill hits. You set aside a percentage every 2 weeks so you’re always prepared.

✅ O – Operations
 This is your working account. All regular monthly expenses run through this account: rent, payroll, software, AND your owner pay.

✅ P – Profit Sharing
 Quarterly bonuses for the humans who make your business run (including you). This isn’t owner pay, it’s extra profit you’ve planned for and are rewarding your team with.

By organizing your revenue into these buckets, you create instant clarity. No more mixing business and personal expenses. No more waiting for tax season to realize you’re underwater. No more hoping that you have enough money every time you log into your bank account.

Why Most Budgets Don’t Work (And This One Does)

Let’s be honest: traditional budgeting advice is boring, overly complicated, and obsessed with top-line sales. Most templates assume your income and expenses are steady and predictable which is completely unrealistic for small business owners.

The STOP Method™ flips the script. It’s built for the monthly ebb and flow of real business life, where cash flow doesn’t show up in perfect, neat lines.

• It’s built for real entrepreneurs, not spreadsheets.
• It’s proactive, not reactive.
• It works whether you make $3K or $300K a month.
• It puts YOU on payroll (finally).

And it only takes a few minutes a week to maintain. You don’t have to micromanage every dollar, you just need to look at your budget versus actuals to see if you are on track.

The Psychology Behind It

Here’s something wild: studies show that when we separate money into categories, we’re way less likely to overspend. The STOP Method uses this behavioral trick to your advantage. It takes your income and gives it a job the moment it hits your account. It’s the difference between “I think I have money for that” and “I know that’s coming from my Operating account.” This method gives you permission to profit, without guilt, guesswork, or hoping for the best.

Let’s Save That Business, Shall We?

If your current “budget” is just praying you make it to next Friday, it’s time to STOP (pun very much intended).

Set up your STOP accounts. Automate transfers. Track where your money’s going.

And for the love of lattes, start paying yourself consistently.

Because at the end of the day, profit isn’t an accident, it’s a plan. And cash flow isn’t luck, it’s strategy.

Need Help Putting It All into Practice?

At My CFO, we do more than just crunch numbers, we help small business owners like you actually understand the financial trends of your business. Whether you need help setting up your STOP accounts, cleaning up your books, or finally paying yourself like a boss, we’ve got your back.

Let us handle the bookkeeping so you can get back to making the world a better place with your vision and creativity.