In this Season Finale, our 100th episode, Dalibor Ivkovic
shares his business and life journey, discussing his transition from Bosnia to Australia, his experience in the brewing industry, the challenges of first starting a fitness technology business, and the creation of Salestrekker.

Dan Nikas, founder of Elite Brands, joins us to share his journey from being a homicide detective to becoming a successful online marketer and a Meta Trainer. He discusses how his skills as an investigator transferred to the world of marketing, particularly in targeting and understanding customer behaviour. Dan also talks about his experience with Facebook advertising and how he became a trainer for Meta. He emphasises the importance of building a brand and creating a business that has residual value. Dan also talks about his experience with running Facebook ads for businesses and the mistakes he sees business owners make. Listen in for an inspiring story of career change as well as some tips and tricks to improve your Facebook marketing.

Podcast regular Nick Zaras from Consilium Wealth is back to talk to us about retirement. Nick answers the popular questions of exactly how much money do I need to be able to retire and does that differ whether I'm single/couple and own my own home. With Trudi and Sarah, the 3 talk through what “retiring well” might look like and some of the things to consider to ensure you have the funds you need. Nick also talks us through an alternative to superannuation that may be an alternatively way to save for retirement or other expenses such as schooling. So whether retirement is imminent or in the distant future this is a must listen episode for all.

If you have been listening in this season then you would know that Communication has been a theme running through many of our episodes. In the world of business it is important to get communication right and to understand the who, what, when, where and how! In this episode Sarah and Trudi focus solely on communication. They cover off the different audiences, different methods, types and styles of communication and emphasise that different audiences may need different styles of communication. Importantly they talk about why good communication is so important in business and how you can ensure your business communication style is attracting the right response. As well as what can happen if you get it wrong. This episode links in really well with episodes 2, 3 and 4 of this season.

AI is a hot topic at the moment as it has the potential to disrupt all sorts of industries. But is AI something to fear or to embrace? Trudi and Sarah chat to Courtney Smith from Kynection about AI. What exactly is it and how can we use it within our own businesses? Courtney is passionate about deep diving into AI tools and shares some of his favourites and they ways he uses to them to streamline and improve his thought processes and the way he does business. Whether AI is something you love or hate, listen in for a new perspective and perhaps a new tool or two to checkout.

The profit methodology is a cash flow management system talked about as being a way to increase profits back to the business owners. In this episode Sarah and Trudi talk about this methodology and outline at a summary level how it works. They will talk you through some of the pros and cons and whether it might be useful for you in your business. As all businesses are different they also talk through other options for cash flow management and how they could be used in your business. Cash is King! Any discussion on how to

improve business cashflow is one to tune into!

Sarah and Trudi are joined by Peter Johnson an Accountant that specialises in the CGT small business concessions and advises other accountants to assist their clients. If you think this one is relevant because you have no plans to sell your business then you would be wrong. Peter walks us through some the various concessions and how they apply. But more important they discuss the importance of planning within your business to ensure that the concession you are eligible for the concessions you want to apply, when you need to apply them! This is a really informative episode that is a must for all business owners at any stage of business. It will provide you with some things to takeaway and discuss with your Accountant to ensure you are on the right track with your business structure.

This episode is a great follow on to the previous two as Sarah and Trudi talk all about when is the best time to obtain finance (tip...before you need it!). A great conversation on what are the indicators to look out for so that you are working on finance well before you actually need. They also talk about understanding your books and business plans and the relevant indicators our of these. Finally, they take you through all the tings you will need in order to obtain finance and some of the issues they have seen arise. A great episode to help all business owners understand when is the right time to obtain finance.

Do you have or intend to have finance in your business? If so, this is a must listen to episode to understand how you can ensure you don’t pay any more interest than you have to. In this episode Sarah and Trudi talk about the importance of understanding your loans and ensuring you are using them in the way they were intended. They also work through how to approach obtaining finance to ensure that you receive the right type of loan and best interest rate to ensure that you don’t pay more interest that you have to. As always timing and planning are key, so listen in to ensure you have all the tips to maximise the benefit of your finance.

Most of us know we have a credit rating, but do you know what it is for or how it is calculated? In this episode Sarah and Trudi unpack all things credit ratings. They work through who calculates the ratings, who uses them and most importantly what types of things can impact on your having a good or bad rating! They will also talk about the importance of business owners understanding not only their own credit ratings, but that of large customers or customers to whom they lend money or equipment. This is the episode to listen to ensure you have the credit rating you need when you need it.

No business owner can “do it all”. So when is it time to call in the experts and how do you know which one? Sarah and Trudi unpack this in their latest episode where they talk about the importance of using experts within your business, and making sure you don’t leave it too late to call them in. They discuss some of the reasons you might use an expert and why isn’t not always in your best interests to do everything yourself. And as always, they touch on the importance of planning within your business and how these plans can ensure you get it right when it comes to using the experts.

You’ve heard us mention it, but this week we dive deep into the Better Business Owners Course. The course designed to build your business confidence and mindset. Sarah and Trudi will take you through the course content and structure (tip, you can just do the modules that suit you best!) as well as who the course is targeted at and why they think all business owners should do it. So, if you are feeling overwhelmed by paperwork, quotes and constant work hours take a little time out to listen to how this course can help you have a business that operates

seamlessly, allowing you the chance to enjoy life beyond work!

Personal services income (PSI) is an often misunderstand tax rule requiring individuals that earn more than 50% of their income from personal skill and effort to be taxed as if they were an employee. In this episode we walk through the, sometimes complex, rules around who is subject to the Personal Services Income rules. Sarah and Trudi will take you through the various tests that can exempt you from the PSI to treat you as a Personal Services (PSB) and some of the complexities around applying these tests. If you earn your income from your labour (as opposed to product) this is a must listen to episode to ensure that you are aware of the rules that potentially apply to you.

Do you have employees? If so, then this is a must listen episode for all things employee entitlements. Sarah and Trudi run through the various types of leave and other entitlements available to employees. They also touch on some tips on keeping up to date with FairWork changes and ensuring your employees have access to the policies applicable to your business.

Tax debt is one of the biggest cash flow issues that many small businesses face. In this episode Sarah and Trudi talk about the most common types of tax debt that arise in business and work through how you can change your mindset around these taxes. They also take us through the various ways to both prevent having tax debt related cash flow issues and how to deal with it if you find you can’t pay on time. If you have ever had to stop and think “how will I pay the ATO” then this episode is for you!

Poverty consciousness is the belief that there isn’t enough of anything to go around: not enough money, not enough time, not enough planning, leaders, clean air, rest, love – just about anything that you want or think you and others need, or that is important to you. So how does this impact you as a business owner?

We all know how to network right? Or do we? Love it or hate it networking is a part of being a business owner. We all need a network of people around us to help ensure business success – whether they be customer, supplier or biz buddy.

We all want our clients to walk about feeling like they have had a good experience, whether with out product or service. In this episode Sarah and Trudi discuss exactly what is a “quality client outcome”, and how it can look different for different types of businesses.

In this episode, Trudi and Sarah break down what the "Customer Journey” is and why optimising it is important to a business. All businesses rely on their customers/clients to have an ongoing business and understanding the customer journey is an important aspect of this.

And we are back for Season 5! In the opening episode Sarah and Trudi discuss how inefficiencies within your business can be impacting on business profitability. They consider the different types of inefficiencies such at processes, technology, communication and decision making.