Reader, we need to talk.

We all know that a messy Chart of Accounts is bad—but honestly, it’s just the first symptom of much bigger bookkeeping problems.

As a bookkeeper, you know that business owners rely on accurate data, but what happens when the Chart of Accounts is a disaster, or the books are riddled with errors? Unfortunately messy books lead to bad financial decisions, as we've seen happen all too often.

But fear not! Brass Jacks is here to help!
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Introducing....

The Bookkeeping Clean-Up Series is a two-part training designed to transform you into a bookkeeping clean-up specialist. Whether you're working on fixing long-standing financial messes or optimizing an accounting system for efficiency, this series will give you the skills to take on any challenge.

Part 1: Chart of Accounts Clean-Up

The foundation of clean books starts with a well-organized Chart of Accounts (COA). In this session, you’ll learn how to clean up the COA for better financial reporting and smarter bookkeeping.

What You’ll Learn:

• How to determine whether to merge accounts or replace them—and how these choices impact financial analysis.
• When to add a new account vs. using other tracking methods like jobs or classes.
• Should you fix the books or start fresh? Understanding when a COA is beyond saving.
• Cleaning up more than just accounts—lists, subaccounts, and hidden redundancies.
• The power of using other database tools instead of overloading the COA.
• Why financial statements should never exceed two pages and how to streamline them.
• Implementing the “No New Accounts Without Approval” rule to maintain order.
• Protecting your COA in QuickBooks Online (QBO) and QuickBooks Desktop to prevent future chaos.
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Part 2: Accounting File Cleanup

Once the COA is in order, it’s time to dig deeper. This session will teach you how to diagnose and fix problems in a bookkeeping system—ensuring errors don’t keep reappearing.

What You’ll Learn:

• How to check file size to assess database health.
• Identifying when accounts were last reconciled and why it matters.
• Diagnosing data quality: How bad is it, really?
• The importance of pre-tax prep clean-up—don’t let CPAs do all the work with journal entries alone.
• Going beyond temporary fixes—pulling the roots out instead of just cutting the weeds.

This series will teach you how to clean up the books for good. As a bookkeeping clean-up specialist, you'll be able to offer diagnostic and clean-up services to your clients.

Cleaning up books isn’t just about fixing past mistakes—it’s about creating a system that prevents future problems. Clients will pay a premium for expert clean-up services, and with these skills, you’ll position yourself as the go-to bookkeeping professional for clean, accurate financial records.

Don’t just work with messy books—fix them for good.

💡 Enrollment opens next week! Join the waitlist for first access & special pricing:

Rooting for you!
JR & JS

P.S. Know a fellow bookkeeper who needs this? Forward them this email—they’ll thank you later! 😉

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