“I don’t think you want to take me on as a client.”

Imagine the look on my face. I was hoping that the woman sitting across from me would hire Black Tulip for one of our great back office services. Instead she tried to protect us from what she described as a complete mess. “My books aren’t up to date, stuff hasn’t been filed, things aren’t in the right place… you don’t want someone like me.”

I wanted to say, “Actually, we love messes here at Black Tulip. Creating organization out of chaos is our specialty.” But instead I replied with a smile, “Of course we’ll take you on. Bring us everything you have. “

Rucsandra Mitrea turned out to be the perfect Black Tulip client. To begin with, she’s a busy entrepreneur; so highly skilled as a mind body coach that her loyal clients refer to her as “the body whisperer”. When someone suffers from chronic pain, has given up hope of feeling better, needs immediate or long-term relief, then Mitrea Wellness in mid-town Toronto is the place to go. But Rucsandra is a therapist not an accountant or a bookkeeper—and she doesn’t need to be one. Once she realized that, there was no looking back.

“When you focus on your business, in my case, spending time with clients and teaching,” explains Rucsandra, “You aren’t always looking at the operations side of your business. Things start to go downhill and before you know it, you’re at the bottom of the hill, sitting in a puddle!”

Black Tulip got to work and over time Rucsandra’s books took shape: everything was filed, updated, and to her delight, she now can view her current financial situation at any given moment. “Plus, I have someone to consult with when I need to make a business decision,” she adds.  And when she required assistance setting up her company software, Black Tulip stepped in once again to make her life more efficient.

But the biggest gain for Rucsandra came from the confidence she acquired once she knew it was possible to run a successful wellness centre and feel on top of the financial side of her company. “I had been afraid of that part of my business,” she recalls, “Black Tulip educated me along the way so that the accounting no longer scares me.”

This doesn’t mean that Rucsandra wants to try accounting again—just the opposite. Now with back office services in place, she sees how much more she gets done, and how her business thrives because of it. With over 100 clients coming in for treatment or attending classes, she’s never looked back—except to remember the day she thought Black Tulip wouldn’t want her.

Rucsandra’s advise to other business owners is blunt but honest (and we really like it!)

“Get yourself a good team of bookkeepers or whatever back office services you need.  You’re not qualified to do these things yourself, and even if you are, you’re spending far too much time on this stuff instead of what you’re really good at!”

Thumbs up to that!