Bill Von Fumetti bounced around from job to job before finally discovering bookkeeping at age 38. Just days later, he founded his bookkeeping business, Von Fumetti, PC, and quickly grew it to multiple six figures in annual revenue.
Realizing he could help others achieve the same level of success, Bill started the Booming Bookkeeping Business mentorship program. To date, he’s helped over 8,000 people gain financial freedom, with many of them earning over $100k in annual revenue.
Featured in Forbes, Business Insider, and Yahoo! Finance, Bill has also spoken at QuickBooks Connect, the premier accounting conference in the world.
In 2023, Bill’s book, Keyboard Rich: How Anyone Can Earn Six Figures from Home with a Simple Bookkeeping Business, became a Wall Street Journal bestseller.
Bill is a firm believer that anyone who wants to take control of their financial future and is willing to learn bookkeeping can build their dream life.
Bill currently lives in Manhattan Beach, CA with his beautiful wife, Elizabeth, and their two precious children, Capri and Ace!
What is your typical day, and how do you make it productive?
My days start by getting up with the kids and getting them ready for their day. One of the highlights of my day is walking them to school and seeing how excited they are to see their teacher and friends. Then it’s a kiss for my wife and off to the office to start my work day, which includes connecting with my team and diving straight into whichever items on my to-do list are of the highest priority. I’ll check in with some of my bookkeeping clients and also provide coaching to the budding bookkeeping business owners in my mentorship program. I’ll then head home around 5:30 for dinner and family time
How do you bring ideas to life?
I prioritize all of the ideas or initiatives I have in my business and then focus on the one or two that will provide me with the highest return, both financial and time. Then I simply get to work, whether or not the idea is fully fleshed out. I find that just getting started is the fastest way to “figure things out” and it also helps avoid analysis paralysis.
What’s one trend that excites you?
Alternative learning formats. I like that people are starting to realize that you can learn and be successful in almost any given discipline in a variety of formats, and that college is simply one option. The ability to fast-track one’s learning by taking online classes or coaching programs for instance, has dramatically flattened the learning curve for many very lucrative endeavors
What is one habit that helps you be productive?
Focus. Most people are guilty of trying to do too much at once, which typically results in nothing being done well enough to be effective. I find that focusing on only one or two primary initiatives at any given time produces faster and better results.
What advice would you give your younger self?
Success leaves clues. Find someone who has accomplished what you’re trying to do and pay them whatever they want to teach it to you. Also, spend as much money as you can on increasing your skills. As Warren Buffett has said, “Investing in yourself is the best thing you can do.”
Tell us something you believe almost nobody agrees with you.
Garlic tastes terrible. I sometimes get the impression that I’m the only person on the planet that believes that!
What is the one thing you repeatedly do and recommend everyone else do?
Tell (and show) the most important people in my life that I love them as often as I can. Tomorrow isn’t guaranteed so take the time to ensure those closest to you know exactly how you feel.
When you feel overwhelmed or unfocused, what do you do?
Take a break. Some exercise or even a walk does wonders to clear the head and regain focus. Then once I’m back to work, I break things down into smaller tasks that are more manageable. And believe it or not, sometimes I’ll “rage clean” the garage to clear my head!
What is one strategy that has helped you grow your business or advance in your career?
Resist the urge to chase shiny objects. In business, there are many ideas or initiatives you can pursue. All too often people will jump from one thing to the next in order to find a winner. The truth is, almost anything can be a winner, but you’ll never know unless you stick with it for long enough. Then once you find something that works, stick with it and go all-in while ignoring “trends” that can zap your focus and attention.
What is one failure in your career, how did you overcome it, and what lessons did you take away from it?
I long held the belief that nobody could do what I do as well as I can do it so I didn’t hire anybody for years, even as my business grew substantially. It lead to 70 hour workweeks being the norm and total burnout. The effect it had on my family was profound. That experience forced me to build a team regardless of the outcome as I felt I had no other choice. The difference it has made on my business and family life is incredible. We’re growing faster than ever, and I’m working less than ever. One of the biggest lessons I learned was that I could go farther faster with a team of people working at 75% of my capability than I could with just me working at 100%. The right people can change your business and life!
What is one business idea you’re willing to give away to our readers?
Learning bookkeeping and starting a bookkeeping business is the best way to afford the life you want to live with enough free time to actually enjoy it. Lots of people have misconceptions about what bookkeeping is and how quickly you can be successful, which is a shame. It’s fulfilling work and allows you to be an entrepreneur and help other business owners be successful.
What is one piece of software that helps you be productive? How do you use it?
Loom.com is a screen-recording tool that makes it easy to make quick videos to demonstrate processes or convey visual information to your team members or clients. You can use it to make training videos and review financial reports with clients, all while skipping time-consuming meetings because the recordings can be watched anytime.
What is the best $100 you recently spent?
Last week was teacher appreciation week at my daughter’s school and we gave each of her teachers a $100 gift. Her teachers are some of the most kind and giving people I’ve ever met and the work they do is worth a thousand times what we gave. But $100 was the limit in this particular instance.
Do you have a favorite book or podcast from which you’ve received much value?
The One Thing by Gary Keller. You’ve heard me mention the power of focus several times because learning how to harness the power of focus has resulted in my business growing FAR beyond anything I had imagined when I started. It’s a simple concept but one that most people struggle with. If one is willing to commit to the principles taught in the book, absolutely anything is achievable.
What’s a movie or series you recently enjoyed and why?
My wife and I just started watching Ted Lasso and we’re really enjoying it. I love a good underdog story.
Key learnings:
- Resist the urge to do “everything” that seems like a good idea. Focus on just one or two primary initiatives to realize all the success you’ve imagined.
- When building a team, realize that nobody will ever do things exactly how you’re able to do them. Which is fine because that’s not the goal. The right people will be able to do the job well enough and then will bring other qualities and skills to the table that you’ll come to not be able to live without.
- Life is short. Be keenly aware of your mortality and act accordingly by being more productive and making the most of the time you have with the people you love.