“Clarity is the Entrepreneur’s Competitive Advantage.”
– Anisha Bailey, EA | Founder & CEO, Taxley
That belief wasn’t created in a boardroom or marketing meeting.
It was earned through nearly two decades of working alongside entrepreneurs, building a business of my own, and discovering that the greatest challenges entrepreneurs face are often much bigger than taxes – they’re about carrying the responsibility of building a business while building a life.
Taxley was founded on the belief that entrepreneurs deserve more than an advisor who understands tax law. They deserve an advisor who understands the realities of entrepreneurship and helps them move forward with greater clarity.
It Started with a Simple Goal.
When I left Corporate America and Deloitte in 2008, I wasn’t trying to build a tax resolution firm. I was at 27-year-old raising two young children while trying to build a better future we could be proud of.
I simply wanted to build a business where my work could have a direct impact on the people I served.
Like many entrepreneurs, I wasn’t just building a business. I was building a life. Every decision mattered. Every dollar mattered. Every mistake mattered.
So I started Taxley with one simple goal: Help entrepreneurs build stronger businesses.
At first, that meant providing bookkeeping, accounting support, tax preparation, and financial guidance to small business owners.
I knew how to help them with the technical work. Like many entrepreneurs, I quickly discovered that being good at my profession wasn’t enough.
I thought I was building a business.
I realized I also had to become a better entrepreneur.
Looking back, I was becoming the very entrepreneur I would spend the next two decades serving – an entrepreneur willing to slow down enough to succeed in the profession of entrepreneurship.
What I didn’t realize then was that entrepreneurship itself would become my greatest teacher. Those lessons would eventually shape the way Taxley serves entrepreneurs today.
Then the Pattern Emerged.
Every entrepreneur’s story was different. The pattern wasn’t.
As my work evolved, I became an Enrolled Agent and began helping entrepreneurs navigate increasingly complex IRS and state tax matters.
The more entrepreneurs I served, the more I realized tax problems rarely began with the IRS. They often started long before a notice ever arrived.
Over time, I realized Taxley couldn’t simply be about resolving tax problems. It had to help entrepreneurs navigate the realities of entrepreneurship.
That’s when everything changed.
For years, I thought I was helping entrepreneurs solve tax problems. I eventually realized the real challenge wasn’t understanding the tax law.
It was helping entrepreneurs gain the clarity to make better decisions before, during, and after a tax problem.
Clarity wasn’t just helpful – it was the entrepreneur’s competitive advantage.
Stories Were Different
Every entrepreneur had a different business, different circumstances, and different tax challenges. Yet beneath those differences, I kept seeing the same financial, operational, and leadership patterns.
Responsibilities Multiplied
Entrepreneurs weren’t just building businesses. They were making decisions that affected their families, finances, employees, and futures – often all at the same time.
Tax Problems Were Symptoms
The IRS was rarely where the story began. More often, tax problems were the result of deeper business, financial, or leadership issues that had gone unaddressed.
Entrepreneurs Are Developed
Few entrepreneurs are taught how to build and lead a business. Most learn through experience, mistakes, and hard-earned lessons, making trusted guidance invaluable along the way.
“Second to parenting, entrepreneurship will be the most challenging thing you’ll ever volunteer to do.”
You don’t get to choose every obstacle you’ll face. But you do get to choose the principles that guide you through them.
Over the years, I’ve learned to hold tightly to three things: Integrity. High standards. Taking care of the entrepreneur behind the business. Because every business is only as strong as the entrepreneur leading it.
It All Started Coming Together.
The experiences that shaped my career also shaped Taxley.
Over time, I realized that leadership, financial stewardship, operations, decision-making, and taxes aren’t separate challenges.
They’re all connected.
Earning my Master’s in Executive Leadership didn’t change what I believed—it gave me a framework for understanding why entrepreneurs facing similar tax issues often experienced very different outcomes.
The difference wasn’t the tax problem. It was the decisions that led there – and the clarity needed to move forward.
It was clarity. That realization became the foundation of the Taxley philosophy.
That’s why every engagement at Taxley begins the same way: by understanding the entrepreneur and current circumstances before determining the best path forward.
Today, Taxley exists for one purpose: helping entrepreneurs gain the clarity to make better decisions before, during, and after their greatest business challenges.
Sometimes that means preventing problems before they begin. Other times it means resolving problems that already exist.
That’s why Taxley was intentionally built as both a prevention and resolution firm.
Because the greatest value we can provide isn’t simply resolving yesterday’s problems. It’s helping entrepreneurs build stronger businesses tomorrow.
Building a Profession Entrepreneurs Deserve
The more entrepreneurs I served, the more I realized that strengthening Taxley wasn’t enough. If entrepreneurs deserve exceptional advisors, they also deserve a stronger profession serving them.
That belief led me beyond client work.
In 2023, I developed the first Registered Apprenticeship occupation for Enrolled Agents recognized by the U.S. Department of Labor, creating a structured career pathway into the profession.
Today, I also serve as Chair-elect on the Board of Trustees for the National Association of Enrolled Agents Education Foundation, where I continue supporting education and workforce development initiatives.
ElevatEA™
Taxley’s Workforce Development Initiative
Building awareness of the Enrolled Agent profession, developing future professionals, and strengthening the firms that serve entrepreneurs.
ExplorEA™
Creating awareness.
Introducing students, career changers, and aspiring professionals to the Enrolled Agent profession and the opportunities it offers to serve entrepreneurs.
ApprentEA™
Developing talent.
Preparing the next generation of entrepreneur-focused Enrolled Agents through structured apprenticeship, mentorship, and real-world experience.
Practice Development
Expanding impact.
Partnering with firms to strengthen entrepreneur-focused tax problem prevention and resolution through leadership capacity, workforce development, and shared best practices.
Everything we do, whether serving entrepreneurs directly through Taxley or helping develop the next generation of Enrolled Agents, comes back to the same belief:
Clarity is the entrepreneur’s competitive advantage.
Recognition & Affiliations
A Note from the Founder
If you’ve made it this far, thank you.
It means you’ve taken the time to understand not just what Taxley does, but why it exists.
Entrepreneurship has been one of the greatest teachers of my life. Second parenting, it’s been proven to be the most challenging thing I’ve ever chosen to do.
There have been seasons of confidence and seasons of uncertainty. Seasons where I thought I had the answers, and seasons where I realized I needed to ask better questions.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s this: You don’t have to have all the answers. But you do have to stay curious. Stay teachable. Stay connected to people who will tell you the truth.
The entrepreneurs who continue learning, adapting, and asking better questions are usually the ones who continue moving forward.
I hope your journey is one of them.
Thank you for allowing me to share part of mine.
— Anisha Bailey, EA, MSEL
Founder & CEO, Taxley
Continue Your Journey
Whether you’re looking to prevent tax problems, resolve one, or strengthen the profession serving entrepreneurs, there’s a place to begin.
Tax Problem Prevention
Prevent IRS and state tax problems before they begin through proactive oversight, entrepreneur development, and ongoing guidance.
IRS & State Tax Resolution
Resolve complex IRS and state tax matters with an experienced Enrolled Agent who understands the realities of entrepreneurship.
ElevatEA™
Help strengthen the Enrolled Agent profession through career awareness, workforce development, apprenticeships, and professional partnerships – all for the benefit of entrepreneurs.