Interview with Paul Barnhurst

One of my favorite parts of this blog series is providing access to other business owners in Finance.

Everyone is building a business in their own way, often with unique strategies.

Having a diverse perspective helps us all grow.

Let's get into it...

Editors note: responses are mostly verbatim, but may be slightly edited for formatting or clarity.

Give us a short career background -- where did you start, and where are you today?

I started my career writing contracts for the US Navy. I fairly quickly realized that was not something I saw myself doing for a career, and I switched over to the business systems office. After nearly 4 years with the Navy, I went back to school and got a dual master's degree in Finance and Information Management. From there, I went to work as a Finance Analyst and in FP&A. After 12 years working in Corporate America I decided to start my own business.

Today I create content, host a podcast, and provide FP&A training for companies and individuals.

What's the "elevator pitch" for your company? What exactly do you do?

I make understanding FP&A and the FP&A tool software market easier for FP&A Professionals.

Are you currently working on your "solo venture" part-time or full-time?

If full-time, please tell us when you knew it was time to go all-in and leave your "regular job" behind.

Full-Time, I decided to go all-in when I had multiple opportunities come up in the same week around December 2021.

Do you have anyone on your team (like partners, employees, subcontractors, etc.) or are you going it alone?

I partner with a number of people on projects and do have some W-9 subcontractors so I am not going it alone but I do not have any full-time employees.

Who is your ideal customer/client?

Anyone with Money :) - I really have two Clients:

1. CFO Tech Vendors who want articles written, speakers for webinars or to advertise in a research guide

2. Finance Professionals - People who want to improve Visualization, FP&A, Modeling, or Excel Skills

Step-by-step, walk us through how you acquire new leads

For my vendor leads most of them come to me after I post something on LinkedIn. However, whenever I learn of a new software I make a point of trying to get a demo as a way to build leads.

Beyond that a lot of leads come from people reaching out to me. I also create daily content on LinkedIn and have a website where I try to draw people in for my training courses.

What has been the single-most impactful thing that has helped you grow your business?

Three things:

1. LinkedIn

2. Focusing on software tools

3. Partnering with others

If I had to pick one it is LinkedIn as it all started from there.

What do you know now that you wish you knew when you first started?

The importance of saying no.

What advice would you give to someone thinking about starting their own finance business?

My advice is niche down and go for it. Make sure you plan well and have money saved to give you a run way to build your business but always good to go for it.

At the end of the day we're all motivated by something. Why do you do what you do?

I really enjoy teaching others and meeting with CEO's of startup companies and hearing their stories. I also love setting my own schedule.

If I think I might be a good customer (or just want to learn more), how can I get in touch with you?

website: TheFPandAGuy​

e-mail: [email protected] ​

LinkedIn: Paul Barnhurst​

Action Items

One of my favorite parts of Paul's interview is this quote:

Once you gain a little traction on your own, suddenly you can become inundated with opportunities, all of which might seem like a good idea at the time.

However, you may quickly find that the "freedom of schedule" you thought you had disappears and suddenly you're buried with so many commitments that you're burned out and stressed.

If you can, ask yourself, "does saying 'yes' to this next request get me closer to the long-term vision of the company?"

If yes, give it a shot. If not, it has to be a "hell no."

Protect your time above all else (it's all we have).

I sincerely hope you enjoyed this "interview edition" of The Finance Solopreneur, more to come!

That's it for today. See you next time.

—Chris

How I Can Help Further...

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