Pono is one of the deepest words in Hawaiian. It means right, proper, honest and in balance. Hawaiʻi’s state motto, Ua mau ke ea o ka ʻāina i ka pono, ties the life of the land to righteousness. To “be pono” is to do the right thing even when nobody is checking.
In bookkeeping, somebody is usually checking: the Department of Taxation, the IRS, your lender. But pono goes further than passing an audit.
Honest books
Your books should tell the truth about your business, good news and bad. We don’t dress up a profit and loss statement to look better than it is, and we don’t bury problems in a suspense account. If revenue dropped or a cost doubled, you see it first.
Correct filings
GET and TAT are easy to get wrong. Rates differ by county and by type of income, and vacation rentals often owe both. Being pono means filing what is actually owed, on time, with the right rates. Not more, not less.
Straight answers
- If a deduction is allowed, we will make sure you get it.
- If something isn’t allowed, we will tell you plainly, even if it isn’t what you hoped to hear.
- If we aren’t sure, we will find out before we answer.
Balance
Pono also means balance: between growth and caution, between paying yourself and reinvesting, between work and the rest of life. Good numbers help you find that balance, because you can see what the business can afford.
Our professional standards
Every month’s work is reviewed by a CPA. CPAs answer to licensing boards and a code of professional conduct that requires integrity, objectivity and confidentiality. Pono is how we would want to work anyway; the license makes it a requirement.
If you want books you can trust, book a free 30-minute call.
Read about all seven of our values on the Kōkua Financial home page.