Solo Summit Recap: Financial Strategies Every Solopreneur Should Know (According to Experts)

You know firsthand that running a solo business means wearing every hat—and that includes CFO. Yet, for most solopreneurs, planning and managing their finances often feels confusing, time-consuming, and just plain unfun.

During the “Financial Planning: Lettuce Talk Money” session of Lettuce’s recent Solo Summit, Diane Kennedy, CPA at U.S. Tax Aid and Kennedy Tax, Elizabeth Gore, Co-Founder of Hello Alice, and Ryan Page, Founder of Backpocket CPA shared practical strategies to help solos manage their money with more clarity and confidence. Here’s a look at some of the biggest takeaways—and how you can make the most of them in your business-of-one. 

S Corps Can Boost Your Savings (and Your Stature)

You might’ve heard some buzz about S Corps. It’s a tax status you can elect on top of your existing business entity (like an LLC). 

With an S Corp, you split your income into two buckets: a reasonable salary and owner’s distributions. You only pay self-employment tax on your salary (and not your total business income), which can mean major tax savings—especially for high earners. 

“You start seeing tax savings at about $60,000 of net income,” explained Diane Kennedy, CPA at U.S. Tax Aid and Kennedy Tax. While lowering your tax bill is a nice perk, S Corp status can also help your business look more legitimate to banks and lenders.

“As soon as you become an S corporation, you get a little bit more cachet,” Diane said. “The banks are more likely to see you as a real business. It's easier to get loans, and you can start building that business credit a lot better.”

One important thing to keep in mind: the salary you set for yourself needs to be reasonable to avoid any scrutiny from the IRS. Diane’s general rule of thumb is to pay yourself roughly one-third of your business income, but she also emphasized that the number needs to increase as your business grows.

Your Next Steps:

• Calculate Your Savings: Use this calculator to see how much your solo business could save by electing S Corp status.
• Get More Information: Learn more about the ins and outs of S Corps in our S Corp 101 webinar.
• Make Your Choice: Take this simple quiz to see if an S Corp is right for you.
• Benchmark Your Salary: Compare your salary to similar roles to ensure it’s reasonable in the eyes of the IRS (or let Lettuce do the math for you).
  

Your Paycheck Should Be a Priority

When you’re building or growing your business, it’s tempting to put yourself last. But that’s a mistake. “So many entrepreneurs and small business owners frankly wait too long to start paying themselves,” said Elizabeth Gore, Co-Founder of Hello Alice. 

A smarter plan is to get clear on what you need to sustain yourself and your business. That means understanding how much to reinvest, how much to pay yourself, and how much to save for the future. “It’s almost your life plan before your business plan,” Elizabeth added.

This means having a really firm grasp on your personal extensions—not just your business costs. “Part of not paying themselves is a function of not fully knowing family expenses or household expenses to know how much actually needs to be pulled out,” explained Ryan Page, Founder of Backpocket CPA. 

And while it’s tempting to hang onto every last dollar, sometimes spending money is the best financial move. “There will be things that only you can do in your business,” said Elizabeth. But for other things—whether it’s website design or a more functional need like legal, accounting, or cybersecurity support? It’s worth outsourcing that to experts and saving your time and energy for your strengths.

Your Next Steps:

• Pay Yourself—On Purpose: Set up a system to ensure you’re getting paid reliably and regularly. For example, if you’re an S Corp, you’ll run payroll to pay yourself and stay compliant.
• Build Your Personal Budget: Get a grasp on your monthly baseline so you can make informed decisions about how much profit to reinvest versus take home.
• Outsource Wisely: If you’re spending hours on admin or taxes, hiring help (or signing up for Lettuce) will likely save you more in the long run.

Bookkeeping Is an Opportunity (Not an Obligation)

“If you’re thinking of bookkeeping as a tax time necessity, you’re already losing or behind in the game of business,” Ryan said. Rather than running your business based on your bank balance (“I have $100, so I can afford this”), Ryan suggests zooming out and becoming more strategic.

Clean, up-to-date books help you see trends, plan ahead, and make smarter decisions—not just during tax season, but all year long. 

“Books are the most important thing a tax strategist has,” added Diane. “If you’re asking me in March 2026 how you can pay less tax for 2025, we should have had this conversation five months ago because there’s very little you can do.”

One trick to stay consistent with your bookkeeping? “Carve out some time on your calendar every week,” Elizabeth shared. Use this time to take a closer look at your numbers and use “the data to make better financial decisions for your business,” whether it’s introducing a more profitable service or parting ways with a draining client.

You can also schedule an annual meeting—which is surprisingly a requirement for certain solo businesses, depending on their status and state of formation—to review your finances or meet with relevant professionals like your accountant, financial planner, or a lawyer.

Even a little bit of time now will save you a lot of headaches and hassles later. 

Your Next Steps:

• Schedule a Recurring Money Date: Block one hour each week to review transactions, categorize expenses, or update your books. Or, let Lettuce do all of this work for you.
• Create a Simple Cash Flow Forecast: Even a two-month look-ahead helps you understand your runway and plan smarter.
• Host an Annual Meeting: Gather your accountant, financial planner, and any other advisors for a yearly check-in—and treat it like your board meeting.
  

Your Personal Financial Future Matters Too

You’re likely focused on your solo business’s finances—but your personal finances are important too. Case in point? Saving for retirement. There are several retirement plans (like a SEP IRA or a Solo 401(k)) specifically designed for solopreneurs like you. 

“Even if you’re putting $100 a month in, it is important for you to start,” Elizabeth said. “Do it as a cost of doing business.” 

Exactly how much you can contribute will depend on your income structure and, if you’re an S Corp, your salary. “You might have a business making $100,000, but your salary is $30,000,” Diane shared. “Your amount that you can contribute is going to be based on that $30,000.”

It’s another reason to make sure the salary you set for yourself is reasonable—so your retirement contributions are aligned with what you’re truly paying yourself. 

Your Next Steps:

• Open Your Retirement Account: If you don’t already have a retirement account, now’s the time. A solution like Carry makes it easy to set up your retirement account (and Lettuce customers have access to special pricing for their first year!).
• Start Small, But Start Now: Even modest contributions to your retirement can add up over time.
• Regularly Revisit Contributions: Periodically review how much you’re saving for retirement so you can adjust that number as your income (and salary) grows.

Stay Focused on the Basics

“A lot of people will go on TikTok and just find the newest tax rules that are big and fancy,” Ryan warned. “But when you don’t have the basis for the strategy, it’s useless information.”

Instead, get back to the basics by focusing on your business margins—meaning, how much you actually keep after expenses.

For example, you might have a $5,000 per month offer, but it costs you $4,000 to deliver it. That’s $1,000 profit for your business. In contrast, a $2,500 offer that only costs you $500 to deliver means $2,000 flowing back into the business, even though the starting number is smaller.

In other words, the best way to grow your income isn’t always to raise prices, expand your offerings, or implement flashy TikTok hacks—it’s to get clear on what’s most profitable and double down on that. As Ryan said, “I think just simple things will move the needle and then ultimately give you the predictability to stabilize your income and ultimately grow a sustainable business.”

Your Next Steps:

• Know Your Margins: List out all of your core products or services and calculate the true cost of delivering each.
• Refine What Works: Focus on the offers that deliver the strongest return for your time and effort.
• Ignore the Noise: Skip the overcomplicated (and sometimes completely misguided) tax tricks and stick to the simple systems that actually strengthen your business.

Stop Stressing About Your Finances—Start Strategizing For Them

Intimidating. Overwhelming. Guesswork. They’re all words that most solopreneurs would use to describe handling their finances. But, as the experts remind us, it’s the simple, consistent habits that lead to smart money management as a solo business owner. 

When you treat your finances as a strategic part of your business (and not a stressful afterthought), you lay the foundation for a smart, successful, and sustainable business.

Want even more practical tips from these experts? Watch the full Solo Summit session, "Financial Planning: Lettuce Talk Money,"
to learn more about managing your money with clarity and confidence.