The free First-Client Readiness Checker
Readiness advice on the internet is prose — "4 signs you are ready" — that never asks about you. This checker does: nine concrete things a first client will quietly assume you have, from reconciling a bank statement to having a price that is a number instead of a hope. Answer honestly; the verdict is Ready, Almost, or Start Here, and every gap comes with the free next step that closes it, in the order to close them.
Nine questions, yes or not-yet. The checker answers with a verdict — Ready, Almost, or Start Here — and an ordered list of the gaps, each one mapped to a free next step. No login, nothing uploaded; it runs on this page, in your browser.
I can reconcile a bank statement
I can read a profit-and-loss statement and a balance sheet
I have finished a full practice set (or the workbook)
I am QuickBooks ProAdvisor certified (free at Intuit)
I have QuickBooks Online access to practice in
My pricing is decided — a number, not a hope
My engagement letter is ready
I have a business name and a separate bank account
I have 5+ hours a week for client work
The order is the point: skills first, then practice, then the free certification, then pricing, then the letter, then the business basics.
Why this order? Skills before practice, practice before the credential, the credential before pricing, pricing before the letter, the letter before the business basics — because a client found before the skills exist is a problem, not a milestone. The one credential on the list, QuickBooks ProAdvisor certification, is free at Intuit; nothing on this list requires a course purchase.
Close the practice gap on the workbook page, the credential gap in the ProAdvisor article, and the letter gap in the first-client checklist.