I was glad to be asked about common mistakes with financial projections. I read about 100 business plans a year for angel investment and business plan competitions. Most show unrealistic profitability. More people doing business plans should realize that most startups are unprofitable at the beginning; and that high growth correlates with losses, not profits. […]
Cash Flow
So, What If You Run Out of Money?
Money in the bank is like oil in the car. Certainly, you have many ways you are pulled every day, both tactical and strategic. But when money is the issue, your time, energy and focus are drained from other important areas of your life or business. Running out of money is not always synonymous with […]
Have Uneven Cash Flow? 5 Ways to Smooth It Out
Small businesses, freelancers and “solopreneurs” alike know all too well that steady, predictable cash flow is a peace of mind that is not always guaranteed. Luckily, there are some things you can be doing to mitigate those dips and help make your financials get into a more reliable state, month after month. Update Billing Cycles […]
4 Surefire Tips to Get Clients to Pay Faster
You finish the job and send your client the invoice. And then you wait for your payment. And then you wait some more. You silently wonder if you should contact your client, but you know that they will pay – eventually. Sound familiar? We’ve all been there. The problem is that not getting your pay […]
Don’t Ignore This 12-Step Program to Good Credit Management
Cash flow is the life blood of all businesses and having too much working capital tied up in late and non-paying customers can spell disaster for a new small business. According to a U.S. bank survey, the majority of small businesses fail within the first five years, and roughly 82% fail because of poor cash […]
Why It Is Important to Keep an Eye on Your Cash Flow
If profits are up and the projections look good for the next month or two, should you kick back and relax? Maybe not. No matter how positive other signs may be, if you’re not keeping a close eye on your company’s cash flow, things could go haywire. Even a temporary crunch resulting in late debt […]
10 Startup Strategies to Minimize Cash Flow Disasters
The “valley of death” is a common term in the startup world, referring to the difficulty of covering the negative cash flow in the early stages of a startup, before their new product or service is bringing in revenue from real customers. I often get asked about the real alternatives to bridge this valley, and […]
Avoiding Cash Flow Problems
Poor cash flow can affect much more than the financial performance of your business. The non-financial costs of poor cash flow can have just as negative an impact on your business as the financial costs. Here are a few ways, as noted in Beyond the Numbers, that poor cash flow can affect your business. Tips on […]
3 Strategies for Bootstrapping from the Beginning
While choosing to forego outside investment can leave your business more susceptible to the ups and downs of the market, it can also be exhilarating to be in complete control of your professional destiny. Your ascent into the upper ranks of your industry may be slower than if you were bolstered by outside funds, but […]
How and When to Use Short-Term Business Loans
Almost every small business needs to borrow at one time or another. However, not all loans are created equal—and some types of finance are more appropriate in particular circumstances. So, what is the best guidance on a short-term loan? All about short-term loans As its name suggests, a short-term loan involves borrowing a fixed amount, […]
