Can you honestly answer that question?
Most owner-operators can't.
And here's the bad news: it's not your accountant or bookkeeper's job to
know this for you. They're the score-keepers — they record what happened.
It's yours. You make the decisions, every decision — the wrong asset bought,
the wrong loan taken, the wrong moment to grow, the wrong moment to
hold back — depends on understanding what you actually own and owe.
Mike, a former merchant banker, walked away to be present for his kids.
Cheryl, daughter of Chinese immigrants, ran luxury hotels.
A classic Aussie working couple with serious credentials and serious stakes.
Then they took the plunge. They bought Crystal Springs Hotel. Used their savings,
borrowed the rest, signed personal guarantees on everything they had. Three
months in, Mike sat at the back-office desk buried under bills and bank
statements and said the words most owner-operators never say out loud:
"I have no idea what we actually own."
You might be wondering: how is this relevant to me, when my business is
nothing like Crystal Springs? And is this a business book, or a soap opera?
The Sandersons' story is the vehicle. The lessons apply everywhere.
Whether you run a hairdressing salon, a freight business, a consulting practice
or a café — what works for the Sandersons works for you.
The storytelling isn't decoration. It's how the lessons stick.
You don't learn finance from textbook chapters on "asset valuation
methodologies." You learn it from watching someone work through
real decisions, with real money on the line.
Over the next eighteen months, Mike and Cheryl learned to understand
what they owned, what they owed, and what their business was actually worth
— not on paper, but in real terms, in good times and bad.
You're walked through that journey alongside them, decision by decision.
The mistakes. The realisations. The moments where they stopped being
confused and started being in control. By the end, they'd transformed
their business — and their personal financial position — by really understanding
what they owned and owed, with a few real life twists and turns we can all relate to.
194 pages set out in three parts:
1. assets — what your business actually owns
2. liabilities — what your business actually owes
3. equity — what your business is actually worth
Definitely not a boring accounting textbook. Throughout, practical AI-assisted
tools and templates you can apply to your own business immediately
Mike's banking wisdom and Cheryl's hospitality wisdom at the end of every
chapter. As you follow the Sandersons' journey, you may be really surprised
at things you had no idea about...That's where the value lives:
Better decisions
Fewer expensive mistakes
Ability to spot trouble before it becomes a crisis
Without understanding what you own and owe, you're flying blind. You take
loans you shouldn't. You miss opportunities you should take. You don't know
which assets are working for you and which are dragging you down. The cost
isn't always immediate — but it adds up.
You don't need a finance or accounting background, or a string of letters after
your name. All you need is the right approach. You don't need a lot of time. The
book is self-paced, for business owner-operators of all types and sizes who are tired
of being told finance is "complicated." It isn't. It's just been explained badly for too
long. You can read a chapter or two on your iPad or phone with a coffee relaxing
at your local cafe. It can be a real page turner.
Regularly updated with best practice and added tools and features. You always
have the latest version, accessible from any device, anywhere. You're not buying
a snapshot — you're buying access to a living resource.
Want to read before you buy?
Read the introduction and chapter one for free.
If you want the rest, it's yours for $40.
More about the author at winningwithmoney.com.