It used to be lenders would throw money at you if you told them you wanted to start a dot com biz. Before then, banks were desperate enough they would hand out toasters if you opened a bank account with them.
Today? Not so much.
More:
I once “overheard” an online conversation about a business owner trying to sell his business. He made decent money with it but it wasn’t worth much without him. He was “the magic” that made it profitable. Anywho, the “buyer” was grilling him…and basically came to the conclusion he wasn’t going to buy because…well…there wasn’t really any value in it apart from the guy running it…who was retiring.
There’s a legitimate need for planning for small businesses precisely because of this phenomenon.
…because no one is dropping money from helicopters (at least not for the little guys)…
Problem is, most types of business planning just aren’t applicable to a small business.
Here’s what I mean:
Your best investment is usually your own business. You can concentrate risk there and do very, very well. It’s something you know. It’s something you’re good at. But it’s also a delicate balance. Knowing how much to reinvest and how much to hold in cash. I have friends who’ve been in business longer than me who still haven’t learned this lesson and are paying the price for it right now.
Throwing money in traditional retirement plans is good if you want long-term savings…but it separates you from your cash. Cash you need now. And cash you will need for the next recession.
Alternative? Busines financial planning.
Planning isn’t sexy tho. It takes time. Yes, there are some lazy shortcuts, but there’s also a lot of work you have to do. That email about good laziness and bad laziness hinted at it but I failed to really communicate something…and that is…
…most people work way too hard on their finances. They’re lazy about things that they shouldn’t be and not lazy about things they should be.
It’s like that Seinfeld episode where Jerry is dating this woman who walks around his apartment naked all the time. There’s “good naked” and “bad naked.”
Most business owners have the two all mixed up.
They waste time on bookkeeping and accounting tasks…and don’t spend enough time analyzing cash flow.
Por ejemplo: It’s very common for financial advisors to tell you to track each and every little thing in your biz-naz. Especially when it comes to money.
They believe if you track every little penny, it’ll make a difference. It won’t. As a side note…there was an internal study done by the IRS showing even professional accountants aren’t all that good at managing nitty-gritty details on tax returns. …and they’re “number guys”.
They believe if you reinvest every cent back into your business, it builds a more stable business. It doesn’t.
They believe cash on hand is a waste. It isn’t.
You really have to go to the George Costanza school of money and “do the opposite” of what the ex-spurts tell you.
Here’s the thing: lotsa people give lip service to it but few people really know how to manage it. Cash flow.
It almost doesn’t matter what your ROI is as long as you have more cash today than you did yesterday.
…and this is what my new eBook will show you. It’s a sort of ABCs of managing cash flow the lazy way without sacrificing control and accuracy. And, I’ll be releasing it very soon.
In the meantime, if you’ve found these emails helpful in any way, shape, or form…or if you know someone who might benefit from the book…please forward this email to a friend and tell them to sign up to my email list.
